26: Eternal Return, part 2: Bite! Bite!

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Feb 8, 2022

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INSIGHT

Eternal Return as Mythological Parable

Nietzsche presented eternal return as a parable rather than a strict philosophical argument, allowing room for multiple interpretations.
He embedded eternal recurrence into a new mythology within Thus Spoke Zarathustra to unify philosophy, art, and religious inspiration.

INSIGHT

Nietzsche's Inner Duality Explored

Nietzsche's work balances his skeptical philosopher side with his myth-making poetic side, showing his internal conflict.
This duality creates both profound philosophical insight and mythological storytelling in his works like Zarathustra.

INSIGHT

Epicurean Solitude in Nietzsche's Life

Nietzsche's idea of retreating to solitude mirrors Epicurean philosophy's hidden life, valuing simplicity and tranquility.
This withdrawal was both a real ambition and a symbolic stage for nurturing profound philosophical thought.

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In part two, we look at eternal return in its full implications - the eternity of all that is low and contemptible in human beings, contrasted with the eternity of all that is great and has great potential in human beings. The depressing fact that mankind's smallness and Christian weakness is written into infinity is what Zarathustra calls his "most abysmal thought". He is also tormented by his own faults, his own human-all-too-human nature, and taunted by the "Spirit of Gravity" - who tells Zarathustra that whatever goes up must come down, and that his own downfall is inevitable, even from the great heights into which he has cast himself... perhaps even especially so. Zarathustra's answer to this is courage and the Nietzschean demand for life-affirmation. After exploring Zarathustra's many visions, and his need to return to solitude in order to "ripen" and prepare himself to preach the terrible doctrine of eternal recurrence, we conclude this in-depth analysis of eternal recurrence with a reading of two sections (or perhaps "verses") of The Drunken Song, which is a cheerful celebration of eternity and of the willingness to take all of life with all its joys and sorrows, set near the very end of Thus Spoke Zarathustra. In a nice parallel to season one, after our inaugural episode - which focused on a central idea of Nietzsche's upon which the entire next season is an elaboration - this second episode returns to the mythos of Nietzsche (or in this case Zarathustra) as a "Wanderer", with the mountains to himself. This episode is about taking the eternal return idea and taking it to higher and more deadly vistas. From the edge of this cliff, looming over the great depths of human experience whilst glimpsing the highest and farthest things, Zarathustra must learn to overcome his nauseau, and dare to still carry out the task of elevating our individual human lives. Nietzsche and Epicureanism (previous of a paper available on Academia.edu): https://www.academia.edu/49101903/Great_Politics_and_the_Unnoticed_Life_Nietzsche_and_Epicurus_on_the_Boundaries_of_Cultivation Episode art: Lena Hades - Gemälde "Zarathustra und Zwerg" + An Oroborous (all courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)