We really ought to free ourselves from the misleading significance of words!
I was recently compelled into reading this work by Friedrich Nietzche. My previous contact with the said author had not extended much further than a few chapters in ‘Der Antichrist’ (and that in Estonian) but those few chapters I read I also enjoyed. This book was rather different — now, I am admittedly unsure whether this difference was due to the language, the quality of the translation, or the work itself.
What I do however know is that I didn’t enjoy it very much at all — most of it went rather slowly, and Nietzsche’s arrogance became too much for even me to bear. I am quite certain that if he truly was the only one to know everything and to be correct about everything, his need to belittle most everyone else could have been somewhat lesser.
Overall, there is not much else for me to add — some of the chapters (points, rather, maybe?) were enjoyable (these were few and far between) while most of it was just a dark dark land for me that I really didn’t look forward to but felt I had to just because it had been on my reading lists for ages. So, that’s that — and I am thinking of reading an English Antichrist just to see if I find the style and language as tiring as it was over here.
“I like man, and often think how I can still further advance him, and make him stronger, more evil, and more profound.” — “Stronger, more evil, and more profound?” I asked in horror. “Yes,” he said again, “stronger, more evil, and more profound; also more beautiful.” – and thereby the tempter-god smiled with his halcyon smile, as though he had just paid some charming compliment.
