The Genealogy of Morals (Dover Thrift Editions)

Rating:
Summary: Life changing
Review: Nietzsche, like no other philosopher that I have read, has changed the way that I see the world. This is a book to read if you want to learn something about yourself. Nietzsche may have gone insane and had delusions that he was God, but he revolutionised modern thought. There is a special place in hell for German philosophers, but it's a place that's worth visiting.

Rating:
Summary: THE HIGHLIGHT ABOUT MORALITY
Review: This is a REAL HIGHLIGHT out of the last "creative period" of Nietzsche, dating from about one and a half year before he fell in that cruel mental illness (NOT syphillis, as is told in the streets...), that lead him to his death: HE WROTE THIS BOOK IN ONE BREATHE, WITHOUT INTERRUPTION, IN 3 WEEKS: FROM JULY 10th UNTIL JULY 30th OF 1887 !!! In his "Genealogy" we find back some basic concepts, principles of ethics as there are "GOOD AND EVIL", "GUILT AND CONSCIENCE" and "THE ASCETIC IDEAL". These subjects stay central anywhere in the book. But the author DOES NOT AT ALL "TREAT" these notions conform to their normal usage in the philosophy of morality. He is NOT INTERESTED IN WHAT THEY (the morals) MEAN, or in THEIR VALUE in whatever kind of morality, NOR in their NORMATIVE VALUE OR MERIT. Instead he is in search of their "BIRTH", their "ORIGIN" and in how they "FUNCTION" in an organised society.

Again, it is NOT IMPORTANT to Nietzsche what is the VALUE of this or that action. WHAT IS REALLY OF IMPORTANCE HERE IS THE VALUE/MERIT OF THIS OR THAT VALUE ITSELF. As he wrote (and said so many times): "WE NEED A CRITICISM OF MORAL VALUES: FIRST OF ALL, THE VALUE OF THESE VALUES MUST BE QUESTIONED." As to him there doesn't exist anything like a linear, progressive development of morality: the latter is the RESULT of the eternal combat between "masters and slaves", between "those who govern and those that are being reigned over". Each of these "GROUPS" tries - ALWAYS AND EVERYWHERE - to acquire as much power as possible versus the other.
MORALITY ("MORALS") IS THE MOST IMPORTANT INSTRUMENT - IF NOT BY EXCELLENCE - IN THIS FIGHT, THIS COMBAT, WHICH IS THE RESULT OF THE DRIFT, THE PASSION OF EACH MAN OR GROUP: THE WILL FOR POWER.

This MASTERPIECE from the giant German philosopher DOES NOT READ like a novel. BUT THE BOOK IS SO IMPORTANT FOR THE THOUGHTS, THIS HIGHEST-LEVEL THINKING of this genius concerning morals which he describes, even DISSECTS here. "Not an easy read" DOES NOT MEAN that it can't and/or shouldn't be read! ON THE CONTRARY: THANKS TO THE ENORMOUS LITERARY TALENT OF NIETZSCHE, THE THEMES AND THOUGHTS THAT TOUCH, AFFECT ALL OF US EVERY DAY, THIS WORK "NEEDS" OUR ATTENTION (and vice versa).
TO EVERY READER WHO KNOWS THE IMPORTANCE OF INTROSPECTION, AND WHO WANTS TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE ORIGIN OF "OUR MORALS", I RECOMMEND THIS "GENEALOGY" (OH YES, HE CHOSE THE RIGHT WORDS...) OUT OF MY HEART AND REASON. NONE OF YOU WILL EVER REGRET HAVING READ THIS SO "MATURE" MASTERPIECE, WHICH TOUCHES ALL OF OUR BEINGS AND SOULS.

Rating:
Summary: Not your normal 'God is dead' type of heresy
Review: This is the intelligent man or woman's bible. It shows just how morals came to be. How they have dictated our lives ever since they have been created. How they have changed our society, and especially how they have silenced the common man. Nietzsche is, for lack of a better word, brillant. His writing never ever loses its passion. He believes in what he writes and he supports it even more, with not just what Christians call "athiest dogma" but with theory and evne fact.

He outlines how "Good and Evil" really came to be. How what we define as good is only what the people in power (the rich and people of religion) tell us is good. They only share with us the good that keeps us in line, not what sets us free. This is what Nietzsche outlines so very well. This book is brillant, one of a kind, and possibly one of his most important novels.

No matter your race, religion, or creed, I hope you check this book out. It is worth your time, trust me. What he talks about affects us all and should be shared in the public. It really is a shame that even today, long after his death, his words still have not had the affect they should have had.