Tim Livolsi
PHI-144
March 21, 2014
Nietzsche’s Superman
In one of Friedrich Nietzsche’s most popular pieces of literature, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, he illustrates what would turn out to be one of his most notable philosophical ideals – that of the overman. The term “overman” refers to Nietzsche’s perception of a person who has prevailed over himself and human nature. Essentially, an overman is an individual who has surpassed the constraints of the human condition and achieved a point of freedom – limitless and allowing for creativity. This condition can be viewed as the status of a person in his entirety, an individual unfettered by the pressures and societal requirements of civilization and other people. Furthermore, the overman wills his own destiny, creates his own values, and dances with the game of life to the tune of his own spirit. In Thus Spoke Zarathustra¸ Nietzsche writes of three spiritual metamorphoses that must be undergone for the individual to reach the state of the overman. These transformations are somewhat narrow in nature, and thus can be seen as a type of guide to becoming the overman, or liberating one’s spirit. In this paper, I will interpret the three stages in the metamorphosis to becoming the overman, and provide an evaluation of how the concept of an overman can apply to us specifically. The first metamorphosis described by Zarathustra – Nietzsche’s mouthpiece – is that of the camel. He asks:
What is difficult? asks the spirit that would bear much, and kneels down like a camel wanting to be well loaded. What is most difficult, O heroes, asks the spirit that would bear much, that I may take it upon myself and exult my strength? Is it not humbling oneself to wound one’s haughtiness? Letting one’s folly shine to mock one’s wisdom? (138).
Subsequently, Zarathustra proceeds to list multiple items that can be included amongst the most challenging or wearisome of life’s potential experiences, such as “loving those who despise us” or “offering a hand to the ghost that would frighten us”; thus, signifying that the camel must invite these hardships into its life (138). By providing these examples, Zarathustra is telling us that prior to becoming an overman, a person must initially carry a significant amount of burdens. One must struggle with fear, love, truth, death, confusion, an unquenchable thirst for meaning, and other facets of human nature that make us unique in the scope of existence. In other words, the camel does not flee from the sufferings of life; nor does it distract itself. In a sense of duty, the camel is strengthened by way of embracing all adversity in a confrontational manner. Only through undergoing these trials does the camel garner the capacity and spirit needed to reach the second metamorphosis: that of the lion. Zarathustra illustrates how the camel eventually arrives at “the loneliest desert” prior to becoming a lion (138). The interpretation of this metaphor can be seen as follows: As discussed, the camel has pursued and welcomed the troubles of which life is comprised. As a product of this pursuit, the camel has become withdrawn from others. Having become unlike others in its society, it is now seen as an outcast. It finds itself deliberating on everything, both its place in society and significance of its pursuits. The desert can be interpreted as a point of crisis in life; a point where the camel wonders whether or not there exists any universal laws or guidelines to bestow purpose upon its life. In the eyes of Zarathustra, such universal laws or guidelines do not outright give purpose to one’s life; nor does it exist. The camel has no choice but to tackle this prospect, and, therefore, the camel must transform into a lion. Zarathustra states that in the loneliest desert:
…the spirit becomes a lion who would conquer his freedom and be master in his own desert. Here he seeks out his last master: he wants to fight him and his last god; for ultimate victory he wants to fight with the great dragon. Who is the great dragon whom the spirit will be no longer call lord god? “Thou shalt” is the name of the great dragon. But the spirit of the lion says, “I will.” “Thou shalt” lies in his way, sparkling like gold, an animal covered with scales; and on every scale shines a golden “thou shalt.”
My brothers, why is there a need in the spirit for the lion? Why is not the beast of burden, which renounces and is reverent, enough? To create new values – that even the lion cannot do; but the creation of freedom for oneself for new creation – that is within the power of the lion. The creation of freedom for oneself and a sacred “No” even to duty – for that, my brothers, the lion is needed. To assume the right to new values – that is the most terrifying assumption for a reverent spirit that would bear much (138 – 139).
When the camel learns of the non-existence of universal purpose and virtue, it has two decision: it can denounce life as worthless and potentially commit suicide, or it can embrace its individual autonomy and form its own purpose and virtue. Ultimately, it has no choice but to accept the latter if it is to achieve the status of the overman. In order to accomplish this, the camel has to surpass the most difficult blockade on the path to true autonomy: the duties and virtues forced by custom and society. This roadblock is embodied by the dragon in the story. Since the beginning, the camel had been at the will of the dragon, accepting adversities that it encounters in life but constantly being constrained by the values enforced upon it.
To progress, the camel must renounce the dragon, but is unable to do so while in its present, duty-obeying ways. Hence, the camel must transform into a lion. Its tribulations have given it the capability to transom into a lion that is the embodiment of strength, bravery, and even anger. Only in this form is it capable of providing the “sacred ‘No.’” This “No” is a metaphor for the rejection of outside control and values imposed by society, delivered with a fortifying roar.
Once the lion has established the “sacred ‘No’”, it is still required to undergo a final transformation to achieve the status of overman. It now must transform into a child. Zarathustra states:
But say, my brothers, what can the child do that even the lion could not do? Why must the preying lion still become a child? The child is innocence and forgetting, a new beginning, a game, a self-propelled wheel, a first movement, a sacred “Yes” is needed: the spirit now wills his own will, and he who had been lost to the world now conquers his own world (139).
Zarathustra says that the lion is required to undergo a transformation in order to forget. The spirit has experienced much constraint and chaos in its progression, but it needs to purify its memories of its past. By delivering the “sacred ‘Yes’”, the child upholds the present, upholds ambiguity, and upholds the fluidity of existence. Ultimately, the child’s life becomes one of playfulness. To Zarathustra, this moment of playfulness brings about absolute creation. When an individual is capable of attaining a childlike-mind — a mind engrossed in the present and full with spirit and playfulness — then that individual has the capacity to have a will of his own, build his own virtue, and thus form his own reality. In enduring this final metamorphosis, the spirit surmounts itself, conquers its domain, and accomplishes the status of overman. At this moment, the spirit attains liberation. Moving away from interpretation of the text, I am sure many people would argue that Nietzsche’s concept of an “overman” is an unattainable idealization. While it is remarkably difficult to achieve, I personally believe that the notion of an overman can highlight important and useful principles on which many people should deliberate; one of which being the idea that pain is necessary for positive growth and should be welcomed. Pain (emotional, physical, etc.) is a facet of life that is unavoidable. Many, it not all of us, let it become a facilitator of anxiety or depression because we naturally question why this happens to us. Alternatively, we should appreciate that it is through our moments of adversity that we become strong and more grateful for life. Therefore, we should accept that agony is something that one cannot evade. Another principle is the idea that in order to free ourselves, we must combat control from outside influences. If our behavior, thoughts, and actions are being affected by external variables, we are unable to truthfully recognize ourselves. The lives and mindsets of others are still able to motivate and influence our own, but it is crucial to question others rather than follow them ignorantly. It is important to learn to consider the ideas of others without accepting them. We must learn to formulate our own ideas, molding them into ones that are unique to us. The last principle is that we have to find strength to sever the between ourselves and those controlling us. There is a cause for the individuals who go through life in ignorance – it is frightening to go down an unfamiliar route. Deciding to follow the path of complete truth and liberation is a wearisome, lonely life. Although, the incentives to do so are gratifying. The feelings that accompanies the pursuit (i.e. happiness, fulfillment, wholeness, power, etc.) are grandiose for human existence. However, we must transform into lions to proceed down this route of growth.
In this paper, I have provided interpretations of the three stages in the metamorphosis to becoming the overman, and gave examples for how the idea of an overman can specifically apply to us. The overman is not a person who belongs to a particular individual, ethnicity, or group. Rather, he is a mindset that humanity should be aspiring to reach in order for it to grow past the limitations that are constricting its beautiful and unique essence.