Topics Philosophers

Question Was Nietzsche in some sense of the word a pagan? I keep reading he is an atheist but I keep coming across stuff that suggests that he affirmed a vision of the world inspired by the Greeks of vast, beautiful- but indifferent to sentimental morality, forces at the heart of nature.

Accepted:
May 31, 2012

Comments

An interesting question, and the waythat you put matters at the end of your question is excellent. Aprimary issue is that the notion of 'religion' conflates together anumber of different phenomena on Nietzsche's analysis. Let usdistinguish between at least three types of religion: 1. A religionthat projects as its ideal a mode of living specificallycharacterised by fears and weaknesses (for example, Judeo-Christianity, as Nietzsche conceives it); 2. A religion that projectsas its ideal some specific mode of life characterised by a reactionagainst life more generally (again, aspects of Christianity as wellas Nietzsche's rather basic understanding of oriental thought); 3. Areligion that projects as its ideal a mode of life that ischaracterised by an increasing affirmation of all that lifecomprises. Now, depending upon how one defines 'paganism', it couldeasily fall under any of these three descriptions. What isdistinctive about Greek religion, Nietzsche suggests, and perhapsonly in some places or periods, is that it falls under the thirdtype.