This is one of the most important works written by Nietzsche and represents his attempt to sum up his philosophy. The great nineteenth-century philosopher refines his previously expressed ideal of the superman in this work, a fascinating examination of human values and morality. It takes up and expands on the ideas of his previous work, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, but approaches it from a more critical, polemical stance. In nine parts, this book is designed to give listeners a comprehensive idea of Nietzsche's thought and style.
In Beyond Good and Evil, Friedrich Nietzsche attacks past philosophers for their alleged lack of critical sense and their blind acceptance of Christian premises in their consideration of morality. The work moves into the realm "beyond good and evil" in the sense of leaving behind the traditional morality, which Nietzsche subjects to a destructive critique, in favor of what he regards as an affirmative approach that fearlessly confronts the contextual nature of knowledge and the perilous condition of the modern individual.
Of the four "late-period" writings of Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil most closely resembles the aphoristic style of his middle period. In it he exposes the deficiencies of those usually called "philosophers" and identifies the qualities of the "new philosophers": imagination, self-assertion, danger, originality, and the "creation of values." Religion and the master and slave moralities feature prominently as Nietzsche re-evaluates deeply-held humanistic beliefs, portraying even domination, appropriation, and injury to the weak as not universally objectionable.
Download and start listening now!
"Sometimes I get bummed out because I feel alone because people don't really seem to see the world the way I do. What's more, I actually start to believe that there is something wrong with ME, because I can't relate well to other people. And then I read this book, or others like it (Lacan) and I realize that this is just the way things go for people like me. I definitely relate to Nietzche's idea of the superior man, and his call for more FREE thinkers, and his condemnation of the common man. He also pointed out some ways in which I wasn't as 'superior' as I ought to be. An excellent read. Highly recommended!"
— Dana (5 out of 5 stars)
" I am still reading this one. I got a bit stuck on a section where he is just tossing out little one sentence thoughts. I find it very distracting when they use a latin phrase and then immediately follow it with the english translation. I can only hope that this was not how the original text was written. I expect to get back to it but for now... it will gather some dust. "
— Nathan, 2/20/2014" I appreciate this great thinker, but he is just too depressing and without hope. "
— Kate, 2/6/2014" This is essential reading for anyone interested in philosophy of ethics and the best introduction to Nietzsche. BGaE is an important work as it critically examines the ethical and philosophic systems that preceeded it. Nietzsche's writing is throught provoking and often difficult. Many will not find it convincing as many of his ideas are put forward without support or in a manner of building agreement with the reader. I find Nietzsche's ethics troubling as they seem to come from a position of superiority to the average person and based on a very dim view of humanity in general. One can draw a straight line from Nietzschean ethics to Ayn Rand's cold objectivism and perhaps the Nazis conception of the ubermensch (many have made this connection) A system of ethics needs to be based compassion for humanity, even its ordinary members and in spite of our weaknesses. Tolstoy sees this. Nietzsche does not. Also, I think a philosopher can benefit from some humility and the understanding that there are many ways to be wise. It is the fault of an elitist to conflate lack of education with stupidity. "
— Jeremiah, 1/30/2014" again prefer the Walter Kauffman translation "
— Ned, 1/25/2014" An easier philosophical text to read. I enjoyed his elucidations of master-slave morality in aphorisms 211-2, and also the shorter, one-sentence aphorisms in the middle of the book that were generally enlightening and astute. "
— Yousef, 1/25/2014" Beyond insupportable and beneath contempt. "
— Mark, 1/20/2014" This classic of philosophy is in the public domain, with a free electronic copy available here. "
— arg/machine, 1/20/2014" I have to say not everything in this book will one agree one but he definitely hits the nail on the head when he mentions the concept of independence and not following a sheep herd mentality. Some of the topics he covers and tackles can quickly become some of your own daily thoughts on situations in life. I felt some what empowered after reading it , knowing that i had some ideologies that matched his. "
— Azam, 1/19/2014" My first Nietzsche. Shows the importance of art in expressing the soul. Provides a fascinating critique of Walker Percy's "Lost in the Cosmos" and Tocqueville's "Democracy in America" "
— Jacob, 1/18/2014" Nietzsche can be puzzling, mainly due to his aphoristic style, but also amazingly lucid. As with all his writings, this is a book of short segments of reflection on various topics, not all of which the reader will agree with, but then at times it's not at all clear whether Nietzsche is being literal, rhetorical, metaphorical, cynical or (typically) some combination of all of those. Definitely worth one's time. Some of the author's interests have become dated due to their removal from us in time, but in principle they still hold tremendous worth. "
— Wavegenerator, 1/17/2014" dope book, liked this one alot. "
— Fergus, 1/13/2014" I have read many philosopheres and have enjoyed them. But I can do not like Mr. Nietsche. I understand he was writing to the elite but his language and tone are not understandable. "
— Agnes, 1/13/2014" way too disorganized to be a useful philosophy text. Dude jumps from topic to topic with no discernible order. "
— Chris, 1/12/2014" Beyond insupportable and beneath contempt. "
— Mark, 1/6/2014" Nietzsche has always stirred me to explore new paradigms of thought by toying with presupposed proposition, as he does with the concepts of good and evil quite professionally. Extremely compelling. "
— Austin, 1/1/2014" Forse il libro piu' complesso/difficile che abbia mai letto. Non ho capito granche'. Andrebbe riletto. "
— Pasquale, 12/2/2013" well worth my time. What was it about? I do not recall, he talks and he talks wonderfully about nothing in particular. Some good nuggets. "
— Anastassiya, 11/17/2013" In between various complaints about feminism, philosophy & philosophers and Europe are interesting and valuable insights and ideas. "
— Shaun, 11/15/2013" Best book by Nietzsche, imho. Read over and over again. "
— Slava, 11/3/2013" Learned some, cross-applied it to everything before, learned everything, became a new person. "
— Josh, 10/13/2013" Thinks highly of himself. A lot of funny one-liners. "
— Anthony, 10/8/2013" I need to reread this one... "
— Otty, 10/3/2013" An aphorist, bitter, and informative intro to Nietzsche's... "
— Maziar, 9/2/2013" Nietzsche is my very favorite wrestling partner. "
— Raicheal, 8/10/2013" i like pretty much anything that questions the dichotomy of binary opposites (i.e. good vs. evil, etc.) good introduction to nietzche, as this book is one of the most approachable of his books. if you like camus and derrida, you will probably enjoy reading this. "
— Doina, 8/3/2013" Jim Morrison apparently liked Nietzsche... couldn't get into it "
— Eric, 6/20/2013" Perhaps unjustly poor rating, but just could not get through it. Stumped in the first fourth. "
— Lotte, 5/5/2013" An eyeopener for me at the time. "
— Arnþór, 5/4/2013" Often illuminating, occasionally humorous, Beyond Good and Evil is largely a dry and demoralising affair. Nietzsche's analysis of Christianity is powerful, however his blatant sexism and arbitrary condescension of social classes 'below' him are readily discarded. "
— Joel, 3/8/2013" I put this book down for a long time once Shakespeare season started up and just finished it last week. A good read for anyone that is interested but if you're looking for something not so dry (as I am) I would recommend Zarathustra. "
— Sara, 2/26/2013" One of the most insightful books ever written. "
— Halli, 10/24/2012" A re-reading from my college days. Still good. "
— Darkling, 6/21/2012" My first Nietzsche. Shows the importance of art in expressing the soul. Provides a fascinating critique of Walker Percy's "Lost in the Cosmos" and Tocqueville's "Democracy in America" "
— Jacob, 6/13/2012" the best philosophical book ive read "
— gray, 12/7/2011" Best book by Nietzsche, imho. Read over and over again. "
— Slava, 11/25/2011" A must read for revolutionaries. "
— Yoshin, 7/25/2011" this is one of the few books that changed my life. "
— Vionwinnie, 7/11/2011" Some books are just weird to rate. "
— Erin, 6/3/2011" one of the most compelling books of nietzsche. a gospel of completely new and revolutionary moral theory. a fascinating writing style. "
— Usuyitik, 5/27/2011" My first Nietzsche. Shows the importance of art in expressing the soul. Provides a fascinating critique of Walker Percy's "Lost in the Cosmos" and Tocqueville's "Democracy in America" "
— Jacob, 5/16/2011" An eyeopener for me at the time. "
— Arnþór, 5/9/2011" Long, unaccessible, very tasteless. But he speaks the unconvinent truth about human morality that makes the reader speechless. Throughout this book I either loved Nietzsche or hated him at any given moment. "
— Hlöðver, 5/9/2011" I appreciate this great thinker, but he is just too depressing and without hope. "
— Kate, 4/15/2011" I read this at about 14 and it changed my life forever. I'm not sure you can really get what he's satin without having your life change fundamentally. Beautiful, brilliant, and enthralling. I love this piece. "
— Sarah, 4/15/2011" "Whatever is done out of love is beyond good and evil." "
— Matthew, 4/10/2011" To read an author, the best is toread his books. Basic writings? Everyone should choose which are every author's basic writings... "
— Rachel, 3/16/2011" Absolutely outstanding read from the godfather of existentialism that provided me with a lot more answers than questions. "
— Shaun, 2/2/2011" Whew! This was a tough one to slog through. There were many interesting ideas, but I can see why some really hate Nietzsche. At least now I can honestly say I've read something of his, just don't ask me to discuss it closely because I often had to read and re-read passeges. "
— Roseann, 1/23/2011" It's been some time since I read this in undergrad, along with several of his other titles, but I do recall being challenged both spiritually and intellectually. I would recommend. "
— Cody, 1/23/2011" "The falsehood of an opinion is no objection to it." Sorry, but it is.<br/><br/>Also, I'm alarmed at how few people on goodreads seem actually to understand Nietzsche. "
— Steve, 12/1/2010" I'm reading/enjoying every second of this book "
— Stephen, 11/11/2010" Loved this when I studied it back in college (political theory); I'll have to go back and re-read as I feel like I've forgotten a lot of what I used to know. "
— Drew, 1/19/2010" a very good collection of selected nietzsche main works. "
— Billy, 9/22/2009" Good stuff. Still go back to it once in a while. "
— Olivia, 9/9/2009" Aside from the prose style, what's not to like? "
— Dianne, 7/21/2009" We only read half of the text for 'The Birth of Tragedy' in class. I'd like to finish it, but my impressions so far are not too dissimilar from Nietzsche's own opinion of his work in that it's sloppy, confusing, bloated, and mostly directionless. Not his words exactly... "
— Scott, 4/27/2009" one of those books i keep coming back to. "
— Danny, 3/19/2009Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) was a nineteenth-century German-born philosopher and classical philologist. He wrote critical texts on religion, morality, contemporary culture, philosophy, and science, using a distinctive German language style. In 1889 he exhibited symptoms of insanity and lived his remaining years in the care of his mother and sister. His ideas exercised a major influence on several prominent European philosophers, including Martin Heidegger, Albert Camus, and Jean-Paul Sartre.
Stephen Van Doren is new to the narration side of audiobook production, having spent some years on the production side, and over a decade in the completely unrelated field of online software development. He lives in Denver and is working on completing his first novel.