Friedrich Nietzsche: Philosophy and Cultural Impact

The 19th Century Context

Nietzsche lived in the nineteenth century, a period characterized by numerous social crises and revolutions. It was also an era defined by the development of natural sciences—such as biology, physics, and chemistry—and the creation of new disciplines including psychology, history, and economics. These advancements fueled the scientific and industrial technological progress that led to the Industrial Revolution.

The scientific and technical development achieved during this century necessitated a new approach to human life that could not be explained through traditional metaphysical thinking. Consequently, many philosophical movements emerged to answer the questions posed by Western culture, including:

• Idealism
• Evolutionism
• Positivism
• Vitalism

Understanding Vitalism

Vitalism was a movement that exalted the vital, emotional, and irrational aspects of human existence as supreme realities, standing in opposition to excessive scientific rationalism. It denies that reason is the most appropriate method for understanding reality, instead enhancing the validity of other faculties such as intuition or instinct. The primary figures of this movement include Schopenhauer, Bergson, and Nietzsche.

Nietzsche's Life and Works

Nietzsche was born in Röcken, Germany, into a Protestant family. After losing his father at a young age, he was raised by his mother, sisters, and aunts. He studied theology and classical philology and was deeply influenced by the work of Schopenhauer and Wagner, with whom he maintained a friendship that was eventually broken. Suffering from chronic illness, he wrote most of his work while battling poor health. He was eventually diagnosed with cerebral softening and progressive paralysis, spending his final ten years in a near-vegetative state before his death in 1900.

Among his most important works are:

• The Gay Science
• Human, All Too Human
• Thus Spoke Zarathustra
• The Will to Power
• Twilight of the Idols (the work under discussion)

Critique of Metaphysics

In Twilight of the Idols, Nietzsche makes a fierce and devastating critique of traditional metaphysics, especially the conception of "truth." He considers the greatest error to be the contempt for this world and the subsequent overvaluation of an invented "intelligible world."

Legacy and Misinterpretations

There have been attempts to equate Nietzsche with the principles of Nazism by falsifying documents and writings, revisiting some statements while ignoring others that serve as direct criticisms of nationalism. Philosophers such as Heidegger and Freud have analyzed his work, noting similarities between Nietzsche and Freud. In Spain, his nuances were introduced by Ortega y Gasset. Today, Nietzsche serves as a foundation for what we call postmodernism. His work is defined by its critical nature, establishing him as the great critic of Western culture.