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Who is Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche?
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900) is a German Philosopher from the 19th Century. Nietzsche was vehemently opposed to religion in his life, especially Christianity. Friedrich Nietzsche felt life should be affirmed and lived fully rather than denied and oppressed. Nietzsche felt we should question all values and eventually come into our own values. Nietzsche's influence has been felt throughout history and has inspired many artists, philosophers, writers, and many more. You can read the Biography Section (Coming Soon) to get a detailed look into the life of Friedrich Nietzsche.
Nietzsche's Influence
Many people are probably asking this question due to the lack of reference to Nietzsche in any school classes, aside from philosophy classes. But the list of people that Nietzsche influenced is quite broad. First and foremost the Nazi's incorrectly used his ideas to support the holocaust and the ethnic cleansing they did, notably Alfred Baeumler in his reading of The Will to Power. However, Nietzsche disapproved of the anti-Semitic views held by his sister and others. In psychology Nietzsche helped influence the fathers of psychology, Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. Jung and Freud both cited Nietzsche as an influence that helped them form their theories on human character. An individual psychology was developed by Alfred Adler and in it he called for striving towards superiority, or known today as self realization or self actualization. Ayn Rand's philosophy has hints of Nietzsche in it too. jfeNietzsche also influenced many writers too. Herman Hesse was inspired by Nietzsche and his two works, Steppenwolf and The Glass Bead Game explored the individual overcoming social training and traditions. Thomas Mann was influenced by Nietzsche and often wrote about characters struggling to define their own ideas and torn between romanticism and rationalism. Other writers were Nikos Kazantzakis, Mikhail Artsybashev, Jack Kerouac, Philippe Sollers, Jack London and many more.
Of course there were philosophers that Nietzsche influenced too. Nietzsche influenced Theodor Adorno, Georg Brandes, Henri Bergson, Jean Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Martin Heidegger, and many more. Yes, it almost seems as if everyone was influenced by Nietzsche at some time or another.Nietzsche even influenced musicians too. Jim Morrison read The Birth of Tragedy and was heavy influenced by the Dionysian view of life. Nietzsche also influenced David Bowie and Trent Reznor.
It's easy to see that Nietzsche has influenced tons of individuals throughout history and will continue to do so until someone decides to ban his works or destroy.