Counter-Currents
Remembering Friedrich Nietzsche (October 15, 1844–August 25, 1900)
Greg Johnson
Phil Eiger Newmann, Friedrich Nietzsche, 2020.
846 words
Friedrich Nietzsche was born this day in 1844 in the small town of Röcken, near Leipzig, Saxony, in the Kingdom of Prussia. He died in August 25, 1900, in Weimar, Saxony, in the Second German Reich. The outlines of Nietzsche’s life are readily available online.
Nietzsche is one of the most important philosophers of the North American New Right because of his contributions to the philosophy of history, culture, and religion.
If you are thinking of reading Nietzsche’s works, the best introductions are The Twilight of the Idols and The Anti-Christ, preferably in the R. J. Hollingdale translations. The next volume should be Beyond Good and Evil: Prelude to a Philosophy of the Future, which Nietzsche described as the prose presentation of his entire worldview. I recommend the Judith Norman translation from Cambridge University Press.
Thus Spake Zarathustra is Nietzsche’s poetic presentation of his philosophy, but it should be saved for later. It is the worst possible introduction to Nietzsche. It has been many people’s first Nietzsche book, and for all too many it has been their last.
Such Nietzsche books as On the Genealogy of Morals, The Birth of Tragedy, Untimely Meditations, and The Gay Science are highly valuable, but should be saved till later. Daybreak: Thoughts on the Prejudices of Morality and Human, All Too Human: A Book for Free Spirits are products of a brief flirtation with certain Enlightenment ideas and are thus quite misleading as introductions. Ecce Homo, The Case of Wagner, and Nietzsche Contra Wagner should be saved for last. As a rule, the Cambridge University Press translations of Nietzsche should be preferred.
You can buy Greg Johnson’s From Plato to Postmodernism here
The introductory books on Nietzsche are mostly disappointing. I do recommend H. L. Mencken’s The Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. Julian Young’s Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Art and Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Religion are very clear and exciting books that examine the development of Nietzsche’s ideas throughout his career. Because of the importance of art and religion to Nietzsche, they serve as excellent overviews of his philosophy. Young has also published an important biography, Friedrich Nietzsche: A Philosophical Biography, which combines overviews of Nietzsche’s life and works in a single volume. Although it is a long book, it is well worth the investment of time. (I recommend it despite the fact that Young has been accused of plagiarizing another biography of Nietzsche. Young’s “crime” strikes me as simply an editorial mistake. It is certainly not plagiarism of the kind practiced by Alan Dershowitz or Martin Luther King.)
Nietzsche is probably the author most often tagged on this website.
Here are the main works we have published by and about Nietzsche:
By Nietzsche:
- “Nietzsche on the Code of Manu.”
- “Nietzsche on Freedom.”
- “Nietzsche’s Critique of Modernity.”
- “Nietzsche on Conservatism.”
About Nietzsche:
- Alain de Benoist, “Jünger, Heidegger, and Nihilism.”
- Kerry Bolton, “Nietzsche and Spengler.”
- Kerry Bolton, “Norman Lindsay,” Part 1, Part 2
- Jonathan Bowden, “Credo: A Nietzschean Testament” (Swedish translation here)
- Jonathan Bowden, “Paganism and Christianity, Nietzsche and Evola.”
- Jonathan Bowden, “Theseus’ Minotaur: An Examination of Friedrich Nietzsche’s Thought.”
- Jonathan Bowden, “The Uses and Abuses of Nietzsche.”
- Jonathan Bowden, “Nietzsche’s On the Genealogy of Morals.”
- Collin Cleary, “Evola’s Nietzschean Ethics: A Code of Conduct for the Higher Man in Kali Yuga.”
- Collin Cleary, “Nietzsche & the Psychology of the Left,” Part 1, Part 2
- Collin Cleary, “What is the Metaphysics of the Left?,” Part 2
- William de Vere, “Raising Aristocrats.”
- Mark Dyal, “Nietzsche, Physiology, and Transvaluation.”
- Mark Dyal, “Nietzsche’s Loneliness.”
- Julius Evola, “Nietzsche for Today” (Translations: Czech, Portuguese)
- Julius Evola, “Nihilism and the Meaning of Life in Nietzsche.”
- Julius Evola, “The Overcoming of the Superman.”
- Guillaume Faye, “Guillaume Faye on Nietzsche” (Czech translation here)
- Mark Gullick, “Leaving Father’s House: The Early Nietzsche.”
- Mark Gullick, “Nietzsche, Context, & the Islamic Assumption.”
- Mark Gullick, “Raised Lutheran: The Life of Friedrich Nietzsche.”
- Greg Johnson, “Freedom, Determinism, and Destiny” (Spanish translation here)
- Greg Johnson, “Heidegger on Nietzsche, Metaphysics, and Nihilism” (Spanish translation here)
- Greg Johnson, “Historicizing the Historicists: Notes on Leo Strauss’ ‘The Living Issues of German Postwar Philosophy,'” Part 1, Part 2
- Greg Johnson, “Notes on Nihilism” (Translations: French, Spanish)
- Greg Johnson, “Ronald Beiner’s Dangerous Minds.”
- Kurwenal, “Wagner, Nietzsche, and the New Suprahumanist Myth,” Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
- Anthony M. Ludovici, “Hitler and Nietzsche.”
- James J. O’Meara, Review of Julian Young, Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Religion, Part One and Two
- Michael O’Meara, “Only a God Can Save Us” (French translation here)
- Sir Oswald Mosley, “Christ, Nietzsche, and Caesar” (Translations: French, Russian, Ukrainian)
- Kathryn S., “The Bard Across Three Reichs: Germany, Shakespeare, and Andreas Höfele’s No Hamlets, Part I.“
- Ted Sallis, “The Overman High Culture: Future of the West” (Translations: French, Portuguese)
- Ted Sallis, Review of Abir Taha’s Nietzsche’s Coming God
- Oswald Spengler, “Nietzsche and His Century.”
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7 comments
Reg:
Ted Sallis, Review of Abir Taha’s Nietzsche’s Coming God
https://counter-currents.com/2014/09/abir-tahas-nietzsches-coming-god/
Well, there is an apparent contradiction within Nietzsche’s philosophy.
You can not be a “spiritual racialist” (a de facto universalist) and an anti- christian thinker at the same time (as many people believe he was).
I have a hard time to believe that a man of his caliber did not understand it.
Could it be that Nietzsche was actually a “Project Nietzsche” aka an Intel project whose goal was to deliver a predetermined outcome ?
I hope somebody will dive into it and deliver an answer. Stay tune !
There is nothing ‘universalist’ about ‘spiritual racialism’. I can give you a materialist justification for the notion of ‘spiritual races’. Every behavior or cluster of behaviors presents in a given population in the form of a ‘bell’ curve of some shape or another. Pick a trait and find populations that have that trait and compare their expression between the populations. The overlap is the material expression of ‘spiritual race’.
Well, let’s consider this photo:
Pope Francis washes and kisses feet of Muslim, Hindu and Christian refugees
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/pope-francis-washes-and-kisses- feet-of-muslim-hindu-and-christian-refugees-a6951771.html
Assuming these lucky fellas pass your Bell Curve test, they are the perfect future Supermen according to Nietzsche and Pope Francis.
So much for your “materialist justification for the notion of ‘spiritual races’”.
Let’s pray now.
I’m very happy to see recommended translations. It has been my experience that you either get translators who capture the rhythm, vibrancy and humor of Nietzsche’s literary style or you get translators who are most concerned with capturing the integrity of Nietzsche’s philosophical argumentation. Historically, Nietzsche was considered one of the great prose stylists of German prose (along with Goethe) but you wouldn’t know it by most of his translations. I’m partial to the Helen Zimmern translation of Beyond Good and Evil but only because I thought she captured some of Nietzsche’s snark.
Dear Greg Johnson,
I agree with you that remembering the birthday of Friedrich Nietzsche is important for white nationalism. Many of his notable ideas are still important today. In fact, many of his books should be required reading not just for white nationalists but for anyone interested in history, philosophy, international relations or linguistics.
Here are three books that will help you and your writers to understand many of his ideas.
The first book is by the late American philosopher Robert C. Solomon and his wife Kathleen M. Higgins. The title of the book is “What Nietzsche Really Said.”
Link#1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0805210946/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tpbk_p1_i4
The second book is by the late American writer Henry L. Mencken. The title of the book is “Friedrich Nietzsche.”
Link#2
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1560006498/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tpbk_p3_i10
The third book is by the late Jewish philosopher Walter A. Kaufmann. The title of the book is “Nietzsche: Philosopher, Psychologist, Antichrist.”
If you or any of your writers have any questions email me.
I recommend just taking very small pieces of Nietzsche… don’t try to read a whole book from cover to cover as they don’t have linear plot lines with a beginning, middle and end.
Yeah, he says a lot of interesting stuff. Some of it comes of as well, kind of stupid:
“That which doesn’t kill me makes me stronger “…..
Oh, yeah – what if you get run over by a truck and they have to amputate both your legs. What if you get divorced by a mean American bitc* woman and are alimony enslaved for the rest of your life. What if you get jumped, and homo raped by Afghans or Haitians – if it didn’t kill you…. Oh please.
I do like the Nietzsche quote featured in Grimstad’s “Anti Zion” (still up under the Colchester Collection”) Which is IMO the best, expose of the Je* cult Judeo Christianity as deliberately planned and implemented by the racial Je* St. Paul the former High Pharisee Priest Rabbi Saul of Tarsus:
Nietzsche wrote about the St. Paul NT gospels “The Point to remember here is that you are amongst Js. It’s a racial matter. Better to hob nobb with Polish Js than with early Christians, neither smells good” (At least that’s how I remember it)
That St. Paul Quote trying to reassure White Pagan Greeks that all their problems with Js in the past, that would all be in the past as everyone would accept JEEEEEEEEEESUS Christ and shortly bring about a New World Order of universal peace and brotherhood of man (women, homos).
Here’s that St. Paul/Rabbi Saul quote as I remember it:
“There are no (divisions) between Greeks and Jews, between male and female or between free and slave – just those who’ve accepted Jesus Christ as their savior”.
I think Paul/Saul was spreading these obvious lies on the road to Damascus Syria where Israel is now sending massive missile attacks and where ISIS was holding open child sex slave auctions a few years bad. So St. Paul/Saul’s prediction didn’t come true, at least not yet.
JR
Personally, my favorite part of Nietzsche is the aphorisms. As with all of his writings, they’re often stated in bombastic, absolutist terms. You can’t take it too literally. For example, he also has a statement that all female scholars have a sexual abnormality. It’s very clever observation, close to the truth, but not in all cases. Some female scholars are sexually normal, but a high proportion are lesbians, and other things. It’s also true of males, to a lesser degree. He encodes an important truth in a simple cryptic statement. The fun of reading Nietzsche is unpacking it.
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