The Birth of Tragedy

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The Birth of Tragedy

• Friedrich Nietzsche

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Context

• Nietzsche was born on October 15, 1844 in Germany
• He was named after the Prussian King, Friedrich
  Wilhelm IV, whose birthday he shared
• Nietzsches father and brother died when he was
  young
• Nietzsche attended the University of Bonn in 1864
  as a theology and philology student
• One year later he followed one of his professors
  to the University of Leipzig where he wrote
  essays on Aristotle and other philosophers
• Nietzsche read Schopenhauer's The World as Will
  and Representation and F. A. Lange's History of
  Materialism and Critique of its Present
  Significance which both impacted his future
  writings greatly
• Nietzsche loved music and became very close with
  the composer Richard Wagner

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The Birth of Tragedy

• Originally called Greek Cheerfulness
• After Wagner recommended that Nietzsche connect
  his music with Nietzsches writing, the title of
  the book was changed to The Birth of Tragedy Out
  of the Spirit of Music
• The book contained examples of the role of music
  in tragedy and references to Wagner
• It was published in 1872 and highly criticized
• People did not understand the books confusion of
  philology (the interpretation of classical and
  biblical texts) with philosophy
• Some say this book destroyed Nietzsches career
• Fifteen years after the book came out, Nietzsche
  wrote a supplementary preface for it
• In it, he said, "Today I find it an impossible
  book I consider it badly written, ponderous,
  embarrassing, image-mad and image-confused,
  sentimental, in places saccharine to the point of
  effeminacy, uneven in tempo, without the will to
  logical cleanliness, very convinced and therefore
  disdainful of proof, mistrustful even of the
  propriety of proof, a book for initiates?"

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About the Text Gods

• Nietzsche focuses his first 15 chapters on the
  nature of Greek Tragedies
• He discusses the tension between the Greek gods
  Dionysus and Apollo
• Dionysus is the patron god of the Greek stage, or
  more specifically Attic Tragedy. He was the god
  that granted Midas the power to turn whatever he
  touched into gold and was known as the Liberator.
  He played the flute and was also the god of wine
  and ecstasy.
• Apollo is god of the sun. He was associated with
  law, philosophy, and the arts. He is also the
  god of poetry and music and was a mortal medical
  healer.
• Nietzsche believes that these gods have different
  beliefs about the arts and thinks of them as as
  the god of light (Apollo) and the god of ecstasy
  (Dionysus). He creates a strong opposition
  between them.

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About the Text Music

• Music has a big influence on Nietzsches writing
• He believes it is the chief level of a universal
  language and it is the greatest form of art
• Music has the power to access the will directly
  and connect with the Dionysian essence
• Music, or more specifically the chorus, is the
  soul of Greek tragedy
• The Chorus was a group of men that looked on at
  the tragedy as it progressed. Nietzsche did not
  believe that the Chorus was a body of spectators,
  rather he believed that they exists in an
  idealized natural state and it observes
  natural beings
• They spoke about the actions of the tragedy in
  highly poetic and difficult to understand
  language
• Nietzsche believes that the tragedy would be
  nothing without the Chorus

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About the Text Suffering

• In Greek tragedy, there is also suffering
• According to Nietzsche, the Greeks used tragedies
  to solve their suffering
• They knew that underneath all of the light and
  beautiful things around them was darkness. This
  darkness is what controlled their destiny
• Nietzsche introduces his idea of Primal Unity
  which is what saves men from suffering
• It is when everyone can live in the ecstasy of
  Dionysus and transcend their suffering

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Hope

• Nietzsche ends this book with hope
• He believes that German music, like that of
  Wagner, can move people on their way towards the
  rebirth of tragedy
• As opposed to Christianity, Nietzsche believes
  that men must focus on their life on earth,
  rather than reaching heaven. In doing this, man
  will be able to find the Dionysian path
• Dionysus is the way to overcome suffering

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Questions?