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14: Our Virtues as Will to Power (And Nothing Besides!)

14: Our Virtues as Will to Power (And Nothing Besides!)

FromThe Nietzsche Podcast


14: Our Virtues as Will to Power (And Nothing Besides!)

FromThe Nietzsche Podcast

ratings:
Length:
77 minutes
Released:
Sep 28, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode

Description

This episode is the culmination of several weeks of episodes on the topic of morality, drives, the body, free will, reason v/s the passions, and the master and slave morality. With all that we've learned as a foundation, in this episode we will give a generic definition of the phenomenon of morality from the Nietzschean perspective, and explore Nietzsche's explanation for why man engages in morality-building. At the deepest foundations, Nietzsche believes that mankind moralizes from the same underlying, driving force that is behind all life: the will to power. We will explore just what the will to power means, which Zarathustra says is synonymous with the process of self-overcoming. We will then examine how it is that the will to power produces our second-order drives, such as the will to truth, or the drive to obey the community's morality. We'll conclude by examining the practical applications of Nietzsche's level of "moral meta-analysis", how we can use this analysis to turn a critical eye to different world-historical moral systems, and, finally, what this understanding will to power means for our lives. 
This episode draws on the arguments of Walter Kaufmann from his book, Nietzsche: Philosopher, Psychologist, Antichrist. I also recommend this very helpful post by Lebensmaler on the Nietzsche subreddit: Polysemy of the Word Morality in Nietzsche's Writing. 
Episode art: Rembrandt -- Moses with the Ten Commandments (Courtesy of Wikimedia commons)
Released:
Sep 28, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode

Titles in the series (100)

A podcast about Nietzsche's ideas, his influences, and those he influenced. Philosophy and cultural commentary through a Nietzschean lens. Support the show at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/untimelyreflections A few collected essays and thoughts: https://untimely-reflections.blogspot.com/