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Posted by Fritz's Ferret on 7/21/2007, 10:55 pm, in reply to "What Nietzsche might have said.." --Previous Message--
75.2.46.X
I'm not sure who's been telling you to stay true to yourself, but Nietzsche understands the source of your need to deceive yourself. It originates in what he calls the "basic will of the spirit" (BGE 230), which prefers comforting falsehoods to hard truths. Philosophy requires a degree of cruelty against oneself that is beyond the capacity of most people. Should philosophers therefore respect the "right" of people like you to self-deception? In Nietzsche's view, it all depends on the consequences that flow from the lies you believe, in particular what they mean for the overall flourishing and advancement of the human species (BGE 4). In an age of religious zealots who aim to destroy the gains of modern civilization, we may no longer be able to afford the luxury of indulging certain people in their alleged "right" to self-deception.
: You tell me to "stay true" to
: myself? But I reserve the right to decieve
: myself, to RUN AWAY from myself, to run away
: WITH myself -- I reserve the right to
: decieve myself; take care that YOU are not
: decieved.
:
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