The Genealogy of Morals
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- Author：Friedrich Nietzsche
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Summary
Written in response to a book on the origins of morality by his erstwhile friend Paul Rée， the three essays comprising The Genealogy of Morals — all three advancing the critique of Christian morality set forth in Beyond Good and Evil — are among Nietzsche's most sustained and cohesive work。
In the first essay — starting from a linguistic analysis of words such as "good，" "bad，" and "evil" — Nietzsche sets up a contrast between what he calls "master" morality and "slave" morality and shows how strength and action have often been replaced by passivity and nihilism。 The next essay， looking into the origins of guilt and punishment， shows how the concept of justice was born — and how internalization of this concept led to the development of what people called "the soul。" In the third essay， Nietzsche dissects the meaning of ascetic ideals。
It is not Nietzsche's intention to reject ascetic ideals， "slave" morality， or internalized values out of hand; his main concern is to show that culture and morality， rather than being eternal verities， are human-made。 Whether or not you agree with all of his conclusions， his writing is of such clarity and brilliance that you will find reading The Genealogy of Morals nothing short of exhilarating。
In the first essay — starting from a linguistic analysis of words such as "good，" "bad，" and "evil" — Nietzsche sets up a contrast between what he calls "master" morality and "slave" morality and shows how strength and action have often been replaced by passivity and nihilism。 The next essay， looking into the origins of guilt and punishment， shows how the concept of justice was born — and how internalization of this concept led to the development of what people called "the soul。" In the third essay， Nietzsche dissects the meaning of ascetic ideals。
It is not Nietzsche's intention to reject ascetic ideals， "slave" morality， or internalized values out of hand; his main concern is to show that culture and morality， rather than being eternal verities， are human-made。 Whether or not you agree with all of his conclusions， his writing is of such clarity and brilliance that you will find reading The Genealogy of Morals nothing short of exhilarating。
Reviews
Akshay Sawant
，
This is brilliant work！！Nietzsche has provided his short but thorough observation on the history of Morals （origin and its evolution）。 Discussion on ideas that domainated in different ages。 Critique on different religions ideas especially the ideas of Christianity。 The part that Science played in this historyIt is the book about humans and their psychology。 The quest of humans to find the meaning in their suffering and how each age had its own answer。
James Hartley
，
First things first: Douglas Smith's translation is amazing。 This is the first time I've read a Nietzsche book and have 'only' had to fight against the ideas， rather than the language too。 I should say I'm no philosopher and read the book for pleasure and I have to admit here that it was pleasurable to read - although you don't really 'read' Nietzsche， you kind of shower in him。 These are the rantings of a madman， self-contradictory， repellant， illuminating， brave and cowardly。 They are indeed a First things first: Douglas Smith's translation is amazing。 This is the first time I've read a Nietzsche book and have 'only' had to fight against the ideas， rather than the language too。 I should say I'm no philosopher and read the book for pleasure and I have to admit here that it was pleasurable to read - although you don't really 'read' Nietzsche， you kind of shower in him。 These are the rantings of a madman， self-contradictory， repellant， illuminating， brave and cowardly。 They are indeed a voice crying out in the wilderness， which makes sense given that Nietzsche （as he says in the third essay） feels he's standing on the precipice of a new golden age。I'm not going to pretend I knew what the hell he was going on about sometimes and although I'm all for taking the high road as far as trying to understand the substance of his arguments goes， there's also no denying that he was a racist， sexist bigot - it's all there in black and white。 Better brains than mine have pointed out the contradictions in his arguments （there in the intro， too） so it seems that what's left with Nietzsche is the blizzard of ideas in support of his theories （well documented）。 The world's upside down， God's dead， everyone's wrong but me。When he hits the spot there's no denying he's onto something and he skewers his own world and ours over and over again （OK， he fires a lot of darts but his hit ratio is high and his shots sting）， but two thoughts played over and over in my mind as I read this。 One was: fuck me， this bloke must have been a real pain in the arse to argue with。 And two: by God， he has a problem with his dad （a priest）。I'll read more Nietzsche translated by Smith for sure。 。。。more
Bohemian Abdul
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مرهق 。。مشتت 。。لاتستطيع الإمساك به ،أكاد اجزم بكل وثوق ان هذه الدراسة كانت البذرة الأساسية لنقد التاريخ من وجهة نفسية 。。واعتقد ان كتابي فرويد （قلق في الحضارة، الطوطم والتابو） قد استندا كثيرا على أصل الأخلاق لنيتشه 。。رغم زعم فرويد بعكس ذلك 。الكتاب يحتاج نفس طويل لمجاراة أسلوبه النخبوي 。。واعتقد اني تجاوزت شيئا منه دون فهم كامل خصوصا وكتابات نيتشه تعتمد كثيرا على تسلسلها الزمني وقت كتابتها 。ربما اعود لاحقا لكتابة مراجعة أشمل ؛،。
Joe Webb
，
by far the most interesting Nietzsche book I've read。 1st essay provides the most substantial， interesting account of his slave/master morality thesis， 2nd essay had a big influence on my perspective upon internalised cruelty and altruism。。。 3rd essay doesn't quite have the zing of the others but it's all super interesting。 feels like the best expose of his ideas - it's more thorough than BGE and *far* less tedious than Z。 by far the most interesting Nietzsche book I've read。 1st essay provides the most substantial， interesting account of his slave/master morality thesis， 2nd essay had a big influence on my perspective upon internalised cruelty and altruism。。。 3rd essay doesn't quite have the zing of the others but it's all super interesting。 feels like the best expose of his ideas - it's more thorough than BGE and *far* less tedious than Z。 。。。more
Lucas
，
Here lies the most cohesive of them all， three acts and everything。 of Morals is where you can more clearly see Nietzsche's ideas that came to heavily influenced posterior thinkers。 One thinks of Foucault's genealogical bag， but more subtly it is the germ of Jung's idea of Individuation， the micro-play of the development of human consciousness told in the book， which I would say is also its main them。 Following this thread I feel tempted to say what Nietzsche's was about。 On the other hand， I th Here lies the most cohesive of them all， three acts and everything。 of Morals is where you can more clearly see Nietzsche's ideas that came to heavily influenced posterior thinkers。 One thinks of Foucault's genealogical bag， but more subtly it is the germ of Jung's idea of Individuation， the micro-play of the development of human consciousness told in the book， which I would say is also its main them。 Following this thread I feel tempted to say what Nietzsche's was about。 On the other hand， I think I can safely say that nobody understands Nietzsche。 So do not take it too seriously。 。。。more
Lucacel Ovidiu
，
I am and will most likely be under this book's spell for quite a long time。 Let me start by saying（again） that if one is easily offended， one must not read Nietzsche。 He tears down the Judeo-Christian values， he mocks all of the left wing policies， he even takes a swing at atheism。 So make sure your values have deep roots before giving this book a go。 He extends the argument in favor of the strong， the vigorous， the healthy， started in Beyond Good and Evil， but also gives new nuances to this i I am and will most likely be under this book's spell for quite a long time。 Let me start by saying（again） that if one is easily offended， one must not read Nietzsche。 He tears down the Judeo-Christian values， he mocks all of the left wing policies， he even takes a swing at atheism。 So make sure your values have deep roots before giving this book a go。 He extends the argument in favor of the strong， the vigorous， the healthy， started in Beyond Good and Evil， but also gives new nuances to this idea， emphasizing the absurdity of our days in which being weak， sick， fragile or delicate has become the new norm for what we consider to be good。 。。。more
Conrad Cardona
，
Although a really hard read for me， the ideas presented were very illuminating。 I had to complement the book with lectures I found online to really make sense of what he was saying because this guy can ramble on in Latin for two pages straight and that's not really my thing。 I still found him to be really personal in some parts， like a friend with his arm on his shoulder showing you something he treasures。 Many more things I could say， but I'll save them for the Beyond Good and EvilBeyond Good a Although a really hard read for me， the ideas presented were very illuminating。 I had to complement the book with lectures I found online to really make sense of what he was saying because this guy can ramble on in Latin for two pages straight and that's not really my thing。 I still found him to be really personal in some parts， like a friend with his arm on his shoulder showing you something he treasures。 Many more things I could say， but I'll save them for the Beyond Good and EvilBeyond Good and Evil review since pretty much everything will still apply。 So see you soon hopefully！ 。。。more
Ahmad Sharabiani
，
Zur Genealogie der Moral。 Eine Streitschrift = On the Genealogy of Morals， Friedrich NietzscheOn the Genealogy of Morality is an 1887 book by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche。 It consists of a preface and three interrelated treatises expand and follow through on concepts Nietzsche sketched out in Beyond Good and Evil （1886）。 The three treatises trace episodes in the evolution of moral concepts with a view to confronting "moral prejudices"， specifically those of Christianity and Judaism。تار Zur Genealogie der Moral。 Eine Streitschrift = On the Genealogy of Morals， Friedrich NietzscheOn the Genealogy of Morality is an 1887 book by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche。 It consists of a preface and three interrelated treatises expand and follow through on concepts Nietzsche sketched out in Beyond Good and Evil （1886）。 The three treatises trace episodes in the evolution of moral concepts with a view to confronting "moral prejudices"， specifically those of Christianity and Judaism。تاریخ نخستین خوانش 1999میلادیعنوان: تبارشناسی اخلاق （یک جدل نامه）؛ نویسنده: فریدریش نیچه؛ مترجم داریوش آشوری؛ تهران، آگاه، 1377؛ در 214ص؛ چاپ دوم 1377؛ شابک 9644160835؛ چاپ پنجم 1384؛ چاپ هفتم 1387؛ چاپ دیگر تهران، آگه، 1388؛ در 213ص؛ شابک 9789643290825؛ چاپ ششم 1385؛ چاپ هشتم 1388؛ چاپ شانزدهم 1397؛ موضوع اخلاق مسیحی و ریاضت از نویسندگان آلمانی - سده 19معنوان: تبارشناسی اخلاق؛ نویسنده: فریدریش نیچه؛ مترجم محمود بهفروزی؛ تهران، جامی، 1378؛ در 191ص؛ شابک 9645620724؛فهرست برگردان جناب «داریوش آشوری»: «دیباچه مترجم ص 7»؛ «پیش گفتار، ص 13»؛ «جستار یکم، خیر و شر، خوب و بد، ص 25»؛ «جستار دوم، گناه، بد و جدایی، ص 69»؛ «جستار سوم، معنای آرمان زهد چیست؟ ص 125»؛ «برابرنامه ص 211»؛تبارشناسی اخلاق، یکی از مهمترین آثار «فریدریش نیچه» است؛ این کتاب مشتمل بر سه رساله، درباره ی سرچشمه، و خاستگاه اخلاق است؛ درباره ی مفاهیم اخلاقی، که از سنت مسیحیت، به ارث رسیده، اما امروزه منسوخ شده اند؛ «نیچه» میخواهند، در این کتاب چند نکته اساسی را، که در کتاب «فراسوی نیک و بد» به اجمال آمده اند، با این نوشتار روشن و کاملتر کنند؛تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 02/02/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا。 شربیانی 。。。more
Alfredo Suárez
，
I really appreciate Nietzsche's way of dissecting a topic， in this case the birth of Morals， Guilt and bad conscience and the dangers of Aesthetic Ideals。 Specially， how in that order， he makes an amazing conclusion at the end of Essay 3。 A bit on the hard side to read， I would say， with a lot of historical references which are best learned prior， or at least to have context around them。 Uses a lot of irony and sarcasm which can make you laugh for sure。 Due to his bias feelings against religion I really appreciate Nietzsche's way of dissecting a topic， in this case the birth of Morals， Guilt and bad conscience and the dangers of Aesthetic Ideals。 Specially， how in that order， he makes an amazing conclusion at the end of Essay 3。 A bit on the hard side to read， I would say， with a lot of historical references which are best learned prior， or at least to have context around them。 Uses a lot of irony and sarcasm which can make you laugh for sure。 Due to his bias feelings against religion sometimes gets off topic， normal across Nietzsche's work in my opinion。 。。。more
Fernando Rainho
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Obra extremamente original em seu pensamento （com pitadas de Dostoevsky， é verdade）。Um livro espetacular。 Gera empoderamento e libertação。 É original porque o autor trabalha os temas desde a origem da humanidade， nas diferentes culturas， até a presente data escrita （e sem mantém bem atual）。Nietzsche cunha ideias como:- Moral dos nobres e moral dos fracos/escravos: de onde vem e como se consolidou o ser afirmativo perante a vida e o seu contraponto， o ser amargurado / reativo。- Ressentimento e cu Obra extremamente original em seu pensamento （com pitadas de Dostoevsky， é verdade）。Um livro espetacular。 Gera empoderamento e libertação。 É original porque o autor trabalha os temas desde a origem da humanidade， nas diferentes culturas， até a presente data escrita （e sem mantém bem atual）。Nietzsche cunha ideias como:- Moral dos nobres e moral dos fracos/escravos: de onde vem e como se consolidou o ser afirmativo perante a vida e o seu contraponto， o ser amargurado / reativo。- Ressentimento e culpa: o autor traça uma brilhante dissecação da origens destes conceitos e como estes evoluíram ao longo do tempo， levando ao absurdo do ser punir a si mesmo ou carregar o peso sobre seus atos como se algum controle sobre eles o tivesse。- A domesticação do homem e de seus instintos como um alto preço a ser pago。 Gerando assim a noção de "alma"。-ideal ascético: toda a ideia objetivada para o "não vida" o não sentimentos e manifestação do instinto humano （que é tudo que temos de palpável）。 A religião， a ciência， a filosofia。 Todos com seus respectivos Deuses e desertos。 "O homem ainda preferirá querer o nada do que nada querer"， na palavra do autor。A moral dos nobres afirma a vida， ama o sofrimento porque é preciso desejar o sofrimento para desejar as alegrias， a vida， os sentidos， a manifestação da potência。 A moral dos fracos sempre volta-se para um não vida， um ideal， racional lógico， além mundo dos sentidos。 。。。more
Calum Sevenoaks
，
What can you say honestly？ It's great; filled with insights far away from his contemporaries。 Nietzsche's writing is dense and sometimes faults with precision or （sometimes） very little evidence in his claims。 Despite this， TGoM functions as a hefty critique of Christendom and eurocentrism。 more or less a love-hate relationship for Nietzsche， who acknowledges Judeo-Christian morality as both highly successful in its exercise of "Will"， but non the less restricting exemplary individuals from thei What can you say honestly？ It's great; filled with insights far away from his contemporaries。 Nietzsche's writing is dense and sometimes faults with precision or （sometimes） very little evidence in his claims。 Despite this， TGoM functions as a hefty critique of Christendom and eurocentrism。 more or less a love-hate relationship for Nietzsche， who acknowledges Judeo-Christian morality as both highly successful in its exercise of "Will"， but non the less restricting exemplary individuals from their potential in modernity。 。。。more
Massimiliano Carta
，
"«A che scopo l’uomo？» – fu una domanda senza risposta; mancava la volontà per uomo e terra; dietro ogni grande destino umano risonava， a guisa di ritornello， un ancor più grande «invano！»。 [。。。] L'uomo non sapeva giustificare， spiegare， affermare se stesso， soffriva del problema del suo significato。 Soffriva anche d’altro， era principalmente un animale malaticcio: ma non la sofferenza in se stessa era il suo problema， bensì il fatto che il grido della domanda «a che scopo soffrire？» restasse se "«A che scopo l’uomo？» – fu una domanda senza risposta; mancava la volontà per uomo e terra; dietro ogni grande destino umano risonava， a guisa di ritornello， un ancor più grande «invano！»。 [。。。] L'uomo non sapeva giustificare， spiegare， affermare se stesso， soffriva del problema del suo significato。 Soffriva anche d’altro， era principalmente un animale malaticcio: ma non la sofferenza in se stessa era il suo problema， bensì il fatto che il grido della domanda «a che scopo soffrire？» restasse senza risposta。 L’uomo， l’animale più coraggioso e più abituato al dolore， in sé non nega la sofferenza; la vuole， la ricerca persino， posto che gli si indichi un senso di essa， un «perché» del soffrire。 L’assurdità della sofferenza， non la sofferenza， è stata la maledizione che fino a oggi è dilagata su tutta l’umanità – e l’ideale ascetico offrì a essa un senso！ È stato fino a oggi l’unico senso; un qualsiasi senso è meglio che nessun senso; l’ideale ascetico è stato sotto ogni aspetto il «faute de mieux» par excellence che sia mai esistito sino a ora。 In esso la sofferenza venne interpretata; l’enorme vuoto parve colmato; si chiuse la porta dinanzi a ogni nichilismo suicida。 [。。。] L’uomo venne in questo modo salvato， ebbe un senso， non fu più， da quel momento in poi， una foglia al vento， un trastullo dell’assurdo， del «senza-senso»， ormai poteva volere qualcosa – e soprattutto senza che avesse la minima importanza in che direzione， a che scopo， con che mezzo egli volesse: restava salvata la volontà stessa。"Non arrendetevi alle prime pagine， la perseveranza vi ripagherà。 。。。more
Natalia Bravo Jiménez
，
Second time reading it。 Nietzsche has always seem to me a little bit intimidating。 It has a really powerful way of writing， one in which his saying something but also you have to pay attention on what his not saying。 Not being a big reader of Nietzsche myself， I would totally recommend this to somebody who's getting started on Nietzsche。 You definitely should read it the first time like you would read a novel， the second time you should read it slowly， asking questions to the author but also ask Second time reading it。 Nietzsche has always seem to me a little bit intimidating。 It has a really powerful way of writing， one in which his saying something but also you have to pay attention on what his not saying。 Not being a big reader of Nietzsche myself， I would totally recommend this to somebody who's getting started on Nietzsche。 You definitely should read it the first time like you would read a novel， the second time you should read it slowly， asking questions to the author but also asking questions to yourself。 There's so much things to discuss about this book and that's why i think it's a really good book for beginners。 。。。more
Manuel Fontana
，
Me costó mucho leerlo。 Creo， aunque me puedo equivocar， que es el libro más completo de Nietzsche， considerando que su obra es "desordenada"。 Me costó mucho leerlo。 Creo， aunque me puedo equivocar， que es el libro más completo de Nietzsche， considerando que su obra es "desordenada"。 。。。more
Letraheridos
，
Canon Letraheridos 2021。
Nabokov Nabokov
，
Ý tưởng của Nietzsche bạt ngàn khủng khiếp， cũng chính vì Nietzsche mà có Heidegger， Sartre， Foucault， Derrida， Deleuze。Foucault là người kế thừa Nietzsche vĩ đại nhất， chứ không phải Deleuze。 Foucault đề ra khảo cổ học tri thức và phả hệ học quyền lực dựa trên phả hệ học của Nietzsche， từ đó tìm ra cách thức khác để hiểu hơn về lịch sử， mối quan hệ giữa nguyên nhân và hệ quả。
bimri
，
Read 📖 the last chapter only if you're in a hurry。 😅 Nietzsche sums up the entire essence of the book there。Read the whole of it， if you're particularly interested in the - low level philosophizing （low level means the fundamental level）。。。 The basic abstractions which can be dull。 But to some degree there are contradictions with this work。 An attribute I've come across in the philosophy circles pertaining Nietzsche's works！ Read 📖 the last chapter only if you're in a hurry。 😅 Nietzsche sums up the entire essence of the book there。Read the whole of it， if you're particularly interested in the - low level philosophizing （low level means the fundamental level）。。。 The basic abstractions which can be dull。 But to some degree there are contradictions with this work。 An attribute I've come across in the philosophy circles pertaining Nietzsche's works！ 。。。more
Kevin Wilcox
，
Nietzsche on his best behavior - clear， focussed， and well-referenced。 A good introduction to the towering 19th century existential philosopher at his most refined and mature。
Lorenzo Scarafia
，
A deeply rooted and fascinating philosophical inquiry about the nature of good and evil， right and wrong passing from an introduction of how the European thought came to represent the good and the bad。 The ascetic ideals make you reflect on how limited our knowledge is， and how wrong we are to mock the ascetic ideals that go beyond perceived and accustomed knowledge。 And the entire inquiry ends with Nietzsche pointing out what might possibly be the future of the European man。I am though still tr A deeply rooted and fascinating philosophical inquiry about the nature of good and evil， right and wrong passing from an introduction of how the European thought came to represent the good and the bad。 The ascetic ideals make you reflect on how limited our knowledge is， and how wrong we are to mock the ascetic ideals that go beyond perceived and accustomed knowledge。 And the entire inquiry ends with Nietzsche pointing out what might possibly be the future of the European man。I am though still trying to comprehend many points of his philosophical dialogue， and I am considering rereading it。 。。。more
Pedro LF
，
No miente Nietzsche cuando dice: "yo no soy un hombre， soy dinamita"。 No miente Nietzsche cuando dice: "yo no soy un hombre， soy dinamita"。 。。。more
Michael Wilson
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I Read This Book。
Alex
，
A must read。 Very clever ideas。 The writing is very emotional and sometimes teased。 My next task for a re-read of Nietzsche's books - to find people that he liked。 One of them was Homer。 He was a very angry man， I suspect that he wrote / complained about his shortcomings and impotence and what it takes to become a superhuman （so a human devoided of that impotence / shortcomings）。 A must read。 Very clever ideas。 The writing is very emotional and sometimes teased。 My next task for a re-read of Nietzsche's books - to find people that he liked。 One of them was Homer。 He was a very angry man， I suspect that he wrote / complained about his shortcomings and impotence and what it takes to become a superhuman （so a human devoided of that impotence / shortcomings）。 。。。more
Lindsay Lane
，
If people （read: I） have to look up the cliff’s notes to make sure I’m understanding what I’m reading， it’s not getting 4 stars。Based on the meaning I researched， other people here define the specifics better than I could， so I won’t get into it。 Essentially， it’s a book on the history of morals， ethics， and self-discipline。 I can see how it was a ground-breaking work when it was published， though I never could get into it because it was wordy and unclear。 I am not ascetic enough to reread this If people （read: I） have to look up the cliff’s notes to make sure I’m understanding what I’m reading， it’s not getting 4 stars。Based on the meaning I researched， other people here define the specifics better than I could， so I won’t get into it。 Essentially， it’s a book on the history of morals， ethics， and self-discipline。 I can see how it was a ground-breaking work when it was published， though I never could get into it because it was wordy and unclear。 I am not ascetic enough to reread this book to solidify my understanding。 。。。more
David Jinkins
，
Watching suffering is good for people， making someone suffer is even better–that is a harsh principle， but an old， powerful， and human， all-too-human major principle， which， by the way， even the apes might agree with。 For people say that， in thinking up bizarre cruelties， the apes already anticipate a great many human actions and， as it were， ‘act them out。’ Without cruelty there is no celebration: that’s what the oldest and longest era of human history teaches us – and with punishment， too， the Watching suffering is good for people， making someone suffer is even better–that is a harsh principle， but an old， powerful， and human， all-too-human major principle， which， by the way， even the apes might agree with。 For people say that， in thinking up bizarre cruelties， the apes already anticipate a great many human actions and， as it were， ‘act them out。’ Without cruelty there is no celebration: that’s what the oldest and longest era of human history teaches us – and with punishment， too， there is so much celebration！With these ideas， by the way， I have no desire whatsoever to give our pessimists grist for their discordant mills grating with the weariness of life。 On the contrary， I want to state very clearly that in that period when human beings had not yet become ashamed of their cruelty， life on earth was happier than it is today， now that we have our pessimists。 The darkening of heaven over men’s heads has always increased quickly in proportion to the growth of human beings’ shame at human beings。 The tired pessimistic look， the mistrust of the riddle of life， the icy denial stemming from disgust with life–these are not the signs of the wickedest eras in the history of human beings。 It’s more the case that they first come to light as the swamp plants they are when the swamp to which they belong is there–I mean the sickly mollycoddling and moralizing， thanks to which the animal ‘man’ finally learns to feel shame about all his instincts。 -On the Genealogy of Morals: A Polemic， Nietzsche My first exposure to Nietzsche was in a political philosophy class I took in college。 The class wasn’t about Nietzsche at all， but the tight-black-tshirt-wearing professor was a big fan， and there was no better way to get him off topic than by mentioning Nietzsche’s name。 I don’t remember the details of his rants about the will to power， but I do remember that they would induce my will to the end of the lecture。Now I finally got around to reading some Nietzsche myself。 Nietzsche signals his style in the title: On the Geneaology of Morals: A Polemic。 In every sentence， if Nietzsche isn’t yelling， he is snarling and simmering。 Scholars apparently consider this book to be his greatest。 Without the aggressive， angry tone， it would have been much less effective at what it does。 The book presents a somewhat plausible system of morality， quite different from my own commonsense morality。 That is not how Nietzsche would have described the main theme of the book。 He writes the story of how modern moral intuitions came to be。 The book is difficult to summarize， but I’ll try my best。 According to Nietzsche， primitive people could not take responsibility for their actions because of their forgetfulness。 Noble rulers created states in which people lived together。 The predictability required for living together in society required that people could promise to follow social customs。 The only way to get primitive people to remember their promises was through terrible punishments， so these early rulers imposed severe suffering on those who broke social rules。Society protected its members from external threats， but it also required them to tame their instincts。 Social people internalized the rules necessary for living in harmony。 This was the beginning of slave morality。 The tamed people were unable to act on their urges to harm others， so they turned back on themselves。 After someone began living in society， he began to hate himself for his human instincts。 The situation was made worse by ascetic priests and philosophers， who tended to be found among populations of tamed people。 These ascetics thought of life as something unfortunate， as merely a bridge to something better。 Worst of all， these self-denying ascetics claimed that they were the good and the just in society， and that the powerful nobles were evil。 The ascetics rejected health， success， pride， and power， and convinced those fortunate and strong that they did not have a right to be happy since there is too much misery in the world。 The Christian ascetics taught that god himself suffered and died because people acted according to their natures， and that these sinners should feel guilty。Fast forward to modern times。 Atheists proudly declare that god is dead， but the moral views they defend are no more than a secularization of Christian slave morality。 The modern ascetic is no longer a priest， but a scientist。 The scientist is equally disconnected from life， distracted by dark matter and social welfare functions， and looking forward to a techno-utopia in the future。 Modern atheists don't buck Christianity enough。 They kill god， but accept everything else。 Along the way to telling this story， Nietzsche takes all sorts of detours and diversions。 He spends quite a few pages criticizing Richard Wagner for praising chastity in his later works， for example （artists should be sensual！）。 One of the diversions that I found most interesting was his discussion of punishment。 Nietzsche writes that although there are many interpretations of the purpose of punishment， its fundamental purpose is to compensate for harm。 If someone steals from you， you punish them。 But a punishment can only be compensation， he reasons， if we find it enjoyable to see someone suffer。 There is indeed something to the idea that it is pleasurable to see the guilty suffer。 On Facebook today， a friend shared a news article about an elderly woman who beat up a young man who attacked her。 Someone left a comment that he hoped the young man was crippled。 My friend responded that his comment made her smile。I find Nietzsche’s account of the beginnings of morality utterly unconvincing as an actual history。 It reads too much like a just-so story in the vein of Locke or Rousseau’s state of nature （incidentally， Nietzsche criticizes them， writing that societies don’t start with a contract， they start with the will of a powerful ruler）。 The book did， however， make me question some of my moral intuitions。 His bombastic style lends an air of plausibility to his moral claims。 Reading the book is like hearing a politician on a stump speech。 Nietzsche passionately shouts at the reader that common sense morality is a sickness， and that a better， life-affirming morality is possible。Upon reflection， though， it isn’t clear why Nietzsche’s morality is better than my own modern sensibilities。 I have my moral intuition that suffering is bad， and a world with less suffering is a better world。 I have an egalitarian intuition that every person has equal value。 There are veil of ignorance arguments that suggest that justice itself is fairness。 On what basis should I privilege Nietzsche’s counter-intuitive moral ideas about strength and power being more important than suffering？The Genealogy of Morals is not a long book， and I gather from talking to a more well read friend that it is relatively easy read by Nietzsche's standards。 It was provocative， and I recommend it。 I had copies on a few devices as I was reading it， all in different translation。 My favorite was the free 2014 translation by Ian Johnston， which is clear and uses relatively simple vocabulary。 。。。more
Evan Moore
，
Nietzsche would have ruined me as a teenager。 I keep thinking of Paul Dano's character in Little Miss Sunshine and know myself to be of that sort--just short of a vow of silence and all。 His work is mesmerizing in its zeal and critique， much to my liking during a time when the world was an enemy to me。 Having read his books later in my life， I am thankful to see his work while my hunger for knowledge is no more fathomed and my experience of the world is richer， if only by a smidge。 To summarize Nietzsche would have ruined me as a teenager。 I keep thinking of Paul Dano's character in Little Miss Sunshine and know myself to be of that sort--just short of a vow of silence and all。 His work is mesmerizing in its zeal and critique， much to my liking during a time when the world was an enemy to me。 Having read his books later in my life， I am thankful to see his work while my hunger for knowledge is no more fathomed and my experience of the world is richer， if only by a smidge。 To summarize in the most depraved， ill begotten way， Geneaology of Morals is a avid mess of genius。 It suffers little from the ranting and the slandering apart from the not-so-infrequent paroxysms of misogyny and old man shaking of the fists。 What do you expect from the 19th century？This is all to say that anything Nietzsche writes is problematic， but that's important in itself。 It's impossible to ignore the passion and I'm liable to forgive or ignore what amounts to unimportant baggage。 How much it will impact your enjoyment is subjective to the t。 Recommended for those who mistrust the day old cup of water。 。。。more
Adrien
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La première dissertation est passionnante et plutôt facile d'accès！ J'ai eu plus de mal avec les deux autres mais des recherches annexes m'ont permis d’approfondir et de mieux saisir les enjeux de l'intégralité du texte。 C'est très puissant tout ça。 La première dissertation est passionnante et plutôt facile d'accès！ J'ai eu plus de mal avec les deux autres mais des recherches annexes m'ont permis d’approfondir et de mieux saisir les enjeux de l'intégralité du texte。 C'est très puissant tout ça。 。。。more
Nv
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Once the acne clears， post-adolescent males should read this a second time to realize everything they （I） thought they （I） knew about Nietzschean philosophy is wrong。 In a world of Youtube creators and Alex Jones， N's polemical style is a bit jarring， but everything he reveals about his conception of philosophy has a remarkably Straussian justification of both itself and the way it is delivered。 In its potently paradoxical combination of complexity and transparency， it is easy to see just how vu Once the acne clears， post-adolescent males should read this a second time to realize everything they （I） thought they （I） knew about Nietzschean philosophy is wrong。 In a world of Youtube creators and Alex Jones， N's polemical style is a bit jarring， but everything he reveals about his conception of philosophy has a remarkably Straussian justification of both itself and the way it is delivered。 In its potently paradoxical combination of complexity and transparency， it is easy to see just how vulnerable it is to La mort de l'auteur and the rampant perversion of his ideas， something the translator/commentator blames his sister for， but really she is just the vergangliche Gleichnis here。 To the sensitive reader who takes the proper nouns and politics too literally， this is a hateful and dangerous book。 To the paranoiac （reading to pass the time before hearing of a rejection from art school perhaps） who mistakes metaphorical teleonomy for insidious teleology， this is a rousing and frightening book。 To the modern rationalist， a confusing work of contradictions， whose take on nihilism and misanthropy is contained more instructively in the fate of the author than the book itself。 To the Neo-Kantian of reasonable pluralism， an embodied expression of a human condition， not the human condition。 It seems to me， though， that it is only fully enjoyed for all its abstrusely disguised hopefulness and beauty， if seen as a work of art， a beautiful truthful lie faithful to the Schopenhauer he inv0kes so often。 As a meta-biography in the vein of Goethe or Mann， it comes closer to Dostoevsky and Stendhal， and is cleansed of its various superficial pathologies。 NotesVermoralisierung vs moralisierungSittlichkeit der Sitte - vs MoralVerbrecher - criminal as a breaker。 The flipside of precise morphology， the use of its original meaning ‘breaker’ needs to be called out specifically for the German reader。 Similar to the confidence illusion judging size of Detroit vs Madison accurately， but Hanover vs Mannheim incorrectly。 Vergeher - transgression， something has gone wrong。Einverleibung - incorporate in the original senseAblosung as redemption （discharge debt）Glaube im Glaubiger - faith in creditor。 Creditor as ‘truster’Verachten （contempt） at least retains acceptance of the concept of respect （Achten） 。。。more
Sharif
，
This book is an absolute revelation。 The most insightful book on the nature of morality and moral philosophy I've ever read。 My life is changed for the better because of it。 This book is an absolute revelation。 The most insightful book on the nature of morality and moral philosophy I've ever read。 My life is changed for the better because of it。 。。。more
Daniel Guarín
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The main idea is brilliant。 Nietzsche has a very good point trying to understand what or why we consider things good of bad。 Sometimes overwhelming， but definitely a great philosophical book。
Gui Grupenmacher
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Just don't do it。 Just don't do it。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Genealogy of Morals
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Genealogy of Morals&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft