Nietzsche is known for his pioneering deductions and highly controversial views on religion, human nature, and ultimately the natural and societal forces and laws that govern the entirety of a person’s life. In truth, historical figures like Friedrich Nietzsche challenge the status quo merely by expressing themselves; however, one of his ideas in particular has made significant resonance – the idea on the origin of morality. Specifically, in regard to this, the collection of essays titled On the Genealogy of Morality has received the grandest share of attention from readers. For this reason, the following work examines the main themes that Nietzsche postulates in the body of the work. Those are the polemic on the etymology of the good and bad and the condition of the modern man connected to his main argument on the origin of morality.
The central problem of On the Genealogy of Morality can be found in the first essay titled Good and Evil, where the skeletal structure of the state-of-the-art of morality is depicted by Nietzsche. This particular part of the treatise is often viewed separately from the other two, as rightfully noted by Meredith, for its compelling clarity of discourse that separates it from the other chapters (248). It is also the part that received the most scholarly attention, and surely, not without a reason, however, Meredith says, that the morality principles discussed in the Good and Bad are far from exhaustive (248). Restricting oneself to the first essay inspires to compose distorted and limited interpretation of the concepts proposed Nietzsche. It is for this reason in particular that the current work aims to compile an overview as close and as comprehensive as possible.
What appears to be quite obvious for Nietzsche concerning the origin and the true nature of morality appears at least extraordinaire for the reader at first. Nonetheless, the philosopher’s arguments become increasingly convincing as the work progresses. In the preface, the philosopher inquires, “under what conditions did man invent the value judgements good and evil?” – and this can be named as the prime interest of his in the On the Genealogy of Morality (Nietzsche 4). In the following chapters, he then proceeds to analyze the origin of moral code as it is, returning to prehistoric societies with its inherently natural, untouched state of the values. His philological deductions constitute major interest, as they appear particularly convincing and relevant to the emergence of “noble” and “slave” types of moralities – and self-sufficient in their wholesomeness. To give an example of his linguistic explorations, which he conducts masterfully, it would be appropriate to refer to the German “schlicht” – “plain, simple” with no derogatory connotation – gradually transforming into “schlecht” – “bad” (Nietzsche 13). The formation of this word with its current meaning can be referenced to the times of formation of the duality of morals, which developed in the same manner.
The shifting meaning of words like “schlecht” clearly demonstrates the shaping process of values. However, this investigation defines only the early origins, and does not expound upon the nature of morality according to Nietzsche – he introduces the main concepts of priestly caste and the warrior / aristocratic caste further. The most significant distinction in the first chapter is the juxtaposition of these two and one of the main historical examples that spawned many variants of false reading of Nietzsche: “it was the Jews” (Nietzsche 17). In this case, the Jewish nation serves only as a suitable example, as the philosopher distills the values of good and evil, guilt and responsibility, and ascetism from the Christian paradigm. His main argument is rather concerned with the way the values were turned upside down by priests – namely the Jews – and the effects it had on the subsequent current condition of the modern man.
The role of ressentiment has an important connotation as well – it serves as a base for the whole operation of the reversal of values from aristocratic to slave. It is a force binding it together – a force of hatred and resentment, which is why it is particularly effective. It is the “a reactive and negative sentiment against the oppressive masters” of the slaves revolting and proclaiming themselves, the poor, the crooked, the weak as righteous (Nietzsche 27). Thus, he presents his central argument: moral values were purposefully reverted and the current moral norms are derived from the perspective of the weak; the original, noble values promoted faded away and need to be restored.
The conditions and circumstances replace each other according to the stages the society. Nietzsche’s depiction of different conditions shows the progression of the principles he discusses, whether it is responsibility, guilt, conscience, or the notion of ascetism. For instance, in the second treatise, he shows how “morality of custom finally reveals what they were simply the means to: we then find the sovereign individual as the ripest fruit on its tree” (Nietzsche 36). Similarly, the circumstances of the time On the Genealogy was conceived, clearly shows the degradation of morality and its subsequent nihilistic nature of the philosopher’s modernity. Thus, his thoughtful deconstruction of the circumstances influencing the appearance and nature of morality contributes immensely to the understanding of the so-called Modern Man.
However, as mentioned before, the main role in the treatise is given to the moral dualism of the noble caste and the priestly caste. Nietzsche’s analysis certainly inspires the feeling of the author being somewhat biased in this matter, however, being able to retain integrity. As can be seen in the text, he clearly leans towards the noble morality being this pristine, original, and rightful concept. The priestly caste, on the other hand, is something that perished the human society, bringing it to the current devastated form. This can be deduced by the quite emotional assessments that Nietzsche makes regarding every new idea he introduces into the text. The point of view of a man of ressentiment is “re-touched, re-interpreted and reviewed through the poisonous eye” of hatred (Nietzsche 22). Therefore, up to the point of introduction of slave/noble and priest/noble categories, it appeared that Nietzsche was aiming at objectivity: however, his wording concerning the nobles proposes a different interpretation. He compares the noble races to birds of prey: “there is no reason to blame the large birds of prey” (Nietzsche 26). Despite the subjectivity, his analysis of slave-noble dualism appears utterly rational and logical.
The correlation between the ressentiment and punishment is not as obvious. Clearly, according to Katsafanas, the images of punishment and cruelty are “to forcefully instill new desires in an animal through images of pain so that it’ll behave as its masters require” (156). Nonetheless, despite this being the main link between punishment and slave morality, Nietzsche gives a variety of interpretations for it. In the treatise, punishment is viewed “as a means of rendering harmless”, “as payment of a debt to the creditor” or as means “to prevent further spread of the disturbance” (Nietzsche 53). In this sense, the following interpretation can be proposed – punishment, albeit being the tool to ensure power of the dominant force, instead serves to uphold ressentiment and slave morality as a whole. Punishment is deeply connected with responsibility, which is inherently an enforced concept and thus, fits perfectly into the moral system depicted by Nietzsche in the form of a useful tool of maintaining it.
Overall, On the Genealogy of Morality constitutes a convincing critique of Nietzsche’s contemporary state-of-the-art in the social morality dominant at the time. He reviews different aspects of morality, borrowing them mainly from Christianity: the notions of good and evil are thoroughly expounded upon – from etymology to specific historical accounts. His main concept concerning the origin of morality revolves around the dual nature of aristocratic morality and priestly morality. The latter gives birth to slave morality, which, by the way of ressentiment, views only the weak and the crooked as righteous – the paradigm in power. It is particularly compelling to draw parallels between the historical accounts he offers and the condition of the modern man that the notions described have resulted in. Nietzsche employs the deconstructive method in order to arrive at his conclusions concerning punishment, guilt, responsibility, and the true nature of ascetism – and offering a unique interpretation of the world relevant to this day.
Works Cited
Katsafanas, Paul, editor. The Nitzschean Mind. Routledge, 2018.
Meredith, Thomas. “The Radical Goals of Slave Morality in Nietzsche’s on the Genealogy of Morality”. The Review of Politics, vol. 82, no. 2., 2020, pp. 247–268.
Nietzsche, Friedrich. On the Genealogy of Morality. Cambridge University Press, 2006.