Book Review: Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche

Beyond Good and Evil: Prelude to a Philosophy of the Future by Friedrich Nietzsche, translated with commentary by Walter Kaufmann

Friedrich Nietzsche is a popular and infamous figure in western philosophy. People generally love or hate him, with a preponderance of hate since he was adopted by the Nazis as a muse. His writings are very opinionated and often contrarian, making them both entertaining and frustrating. It's easy to find stuff to agree with and stuff to be offended by. In this book published later in his life, Nietzsche gives a summation of his philosophy, covering a wide variety of ideas. He discusses other philosophers and artists, freedom, religion, morality, and nationalism. 

The title of the book reveals a guiding principle in Nietzsche's writing. "Beyond Good and Evil" is not a call to disregard morality or consider oneself above such a distinction. Rather, Nietzsche expects the true philosopher to be less simplistic, less "black and white" in their thinking. Most things and situations are more complicated and need more than a cursory investigation. The truth is often hidden deeper inside. 

The text is very lyrical and at times genuinely insightful or evocative. Writing about Wagner's music, Nietzsche give this nugget: "This kind of music expresses best what I think of the Germans: they belong to the day before yesterday and the day after tomorrow--as yet they have no today." [Section 240] The two most famous quotes in the book are together in one section: "Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And when you look long into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you." [Section 146] The evocative expressions are a two-edge swords--sometimes they create clarity and insight, at other times they cause confusion and make the text open to misinterpretations. The varied opinions about his philosophy are not at all surprising since the writing can be read in many different ways.

The translator, Walter Kaufmann, is a Nietzsche scholar and a philosopher in his own right. He had tried to revise an earlier English translation. He found so many errors that he decided it would be easier to make his own translation. He provides footnotes to explain complicated or misinterpreted passages.

This book is a lot clearer and easier to read than The Birth of Tragedy which I read last year. It's still not easy reading. It requires a lot of patience and sympathy, which is a bit hard to maintain when you run across unsympathetic parts.

Mildly recommended--it's probably better to find a reliable summary of Nietzsche (probably something by Kaufmann would be best) than to jump right into his works. At least the translator provides some help in this book.