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Beyond Good and Evil: Prelude to a Philosophy of the Future Audiobook
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Publisher Description
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.
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"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)
Beyond Good and Evil Listener Reviews
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" 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
About Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich 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.
About Stephen Van Doren
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.