Friedrich Nietzsche - Human, All-Too-Human Part 1
In Nietzsche's fourth book, Menschliches, Allzumenschliches, from 1878, we enter the midstage of his authorship. This is Nietzsche's longest book, and it turns its focus inwards onto ourselves. In this book, Nietzsche also introduces his well-known writing style that will come to define much of his later writings – aphorisms.
Aphorisms are short, well-structured, standalone arguments like a proverb or an idiom. The book thus reads more like a set of observations about the human condition, describing what Nietzsche thought about a variety of subjects. Some of his insights are keen comprehensions, others are more obvious observations, and a few are just provocative perceptions. Human, All-Too-Human is a book you can pick up, flip to any page, and start reading, and still be able to follow Nietzsche's thoughts.
It's hard to find a single aim with this book, but if there is one, it seems to be to expose humanity. Young Nietzsche was, as I have shown, focused on culture and art, but adolescent Nietzsche digs his claws into our very being. In this project, he begins to illuminate and demystify who we truly are. It is worth remembering that this book was published before psychology had become its own scientific field.
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