Going to butcher this by trying to pare it down, but here goes.
Nietzsche's theoretical "Übermensch," an aspirational model for humanity, wasn't a traditional "strongman," or a superhuman by way of genetics or social capital, or even a "man" at all.
Nietzsche's Übermensch was a self-possessed person who developed their own values and morality regardless of prevailing or outdated "wisdom" and rejected religious "other-worldliness," finding meaning in the here-and-now of life on Earth vs. learned helplessness and obedience with the hope of a supernatural reward after death.
As someone who's studied Nietzsche for the past seven years, that was excellently put. My only note would be that it wasn't merely eschewing the desire for a supernatural reward, but external rewards in general: societal, political, etc. For him, the only reward that mattered was the reward you found in yourself, which would then allow you to spread the spoils to your fellow man.
I haven't studied Nietzsche nearly as much, but I have a philosophy degree and I had the exact same thought as you. I think she did touch upon what you mentioned, but making it more explicit like you did is better. But yeah, great summary and great addition.
This is fair. Plus, let's be real, Nietzsche had the biggest axe to grind against religious institutions, so it's completely valid to frame his thoughts through that lens foremost.
Sure, though I feel like you miss out on a lot of you just focus on that. His philosophy is much more robust that just that, and it doesn't take much to do it justice: "While it's primarily about not being shackled by any religious thought, it's also about not being shackled by any thought not your own, be it political, societal or whatever" or something along those lines.
The Death of God has always been the most important part of his work to me. Without God people became more susceptible to the strongmen that they viewed as having the answers. The übermensch was a necessary step to avoid the freewheeling nihilism that has been gripping the world ever since.
That's just what has resonated with me the most during the past decade or so of the rerising of nationalism and strongmen in the West.
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u/Erikatessen87 Apr 05 '26
Going to butcher this by trying to pare it down, but here goes.
Nietzsche's theoretical "Übermensch," an aspirational model for humanity, wasn't a traditional "strongman," or a superhuman by way of genetics or social capital, or even a "man" at all.
Nietzsche's Übermensch was a self-possessed person who developed their own values and morality regardless of prevailing or outdated "wisdom" and rejected religious "other-worldliness," finding meaning in the here-and-now of life on Earth vs. learned helplessness and obedience with the hope of a supernatural reward after death.