Nietzsche, Volumes 3&4: The Will to Power as Knowledge and as Metaphysics & Nihilism

Nietzsche #3-4

by Martin Heidegger, David Farrell Krell

A landmark discussion between two great thinkers--the second (combining volumes III and IV) of two volumes inquiring into the central issues of Friedrich Nietzsche's philosophy.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Theory, 20th Century, Reference, Metaphysics

608 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1961

About the author

Martin Heidegger (1889-1976) was a German philosopher whose work is perhaps most readily associated with phenomenology and existentialism, although his thinking should be identified as part of such philosophical movements only with extreme care and qualification. His ideas have exerted a seminal influence on the development of contemporary European philosophy. They have also had an impact far beyond philosophy, for example in architectural theory (see e.g., Sharr 2007), literary criticism (see e.g., Ziarek 1989), theology (see e.g., Caputo 1993), psychotherapy (see e.g., Binswanger 1943/1964, Guignon 1993) and cognitive science (see e.g., Dreyfus 1992, 2008; Wheeler 2005; Kiverstein and Wheeler forthcoming).

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

According to Nietzsche and referring to himself and his philosophical project he wrote: “We are conducting an experiment with truth! Perhaps mankind will perish because of it! Fine; let’s get on with it!” Is this some silly boast, the saying of a mad man, or are we indeed inside and at the end of Nietzsche’s experiment with truth? The interesting thing with Nietzsche is that 150 years ago almost no one understood him; these days most of his writings are rather obvious to us. Is this because we and our worlds eventually turned more Nietzsche-like?
Heidegger here is taking this saying, its spirit, and the entire Nietzsche’s project quite seriously and he seems to believe that we are indeed inside Nietzsche’s experiment and closing on a three-thousands-years-old-project that is coming to an end. More concretely, nihilism is the name of this dead-end in our Western culture; and nihilism drives and runs through all of our metaphysical projects - like modern philosophy, religion, science, technology, history, art, politics, culture, subject, objects, and so on. According to Heidegger, nihilism fundamentally means that nothing/nihil happens to Being and that we all believe that there is nothing/nihil to Being. Nietzsche himself declared that Being is nothing more than the “last wisp of evaporating reality”.
According to Heidegger, nihilism can be overcome only by us humans acknowledging our need of Being, by thinking and pursuing the truth of Being, by letting Being be, by rediscovering and accepting our essence in connection with Being, and by stepping outside metaphysics and inside the history of Being. But Being is not something abstract, the prime cause, ground, or some kind of supreme being - even the one highest in value - as philosophical, scientific, and theological thinking suggest before dismissing Being for good. In fact and according to Heidegger - "because it is more essential, and older, the destiny of Being is less familiar than the lack of God”.



Original 2020 review:
According to Heidegger, metaphysics started with Plato who interpreted Being as an idea. Nietzsche was the last in this metaphysical history and he brought it to an end. Nietzsche asked “what does nihilism mean?”; and he answered “that the uppermost values devaluate themselves.” Moreover, he stated that “the aim is lacking; the 'why?' receives no answer.”
Thinking within the Greek distinction of Being/Becoming (as permanent/unstable), in order to promote values that preserve/enhance life, and as an attempt to overcome nihilism through will - Nietzsche proposed: “to stamp Becoming with the character of Being – that is the supreme will to power”. Eternal recurrence of the same is to Nietzsche this constant permanentizing of the unstable. Moreover, Nietzsche's metaphysics of will to power re-interprets all the fundamental metaphysical positions that precede it in the light of valuative thought. As such, this devaluation/valuation metaphysical process is not just one historical event among the others, but is the fundamental event of Western history.
The devaluation of the highest values makes the world seem valueless. The values are gone, but beings as a whole remain. Beings possess objective actuality, overshadow and no longer need their Being, and the Being collapses into oblivion. When metaphysics asks “what is the being as such?”, since the question is addressed to the being and not to the Being, the answer is already implied in the question: being as such exists with respect to essentia and existentia. That is, metaphysics is inherently theology (as the quest for the first causes, essence, or will to power) and ontology (existence, permanence, or the eternal occurrence of the same). According to Heidegger, Nietzsche's “God is dead” is nothing more than inverted theology and ontology; that is, still proper theology and ontology.
Nietzsche carries out to the most extreme consequences other essential decisions from the history of metaphysics: the subjectivism is brought to completion by making the body the guideline in interpreting of the world, the Cartesian certitude and truth are established by transforming and securing beings in their perfectly disposability and malleability, the Greek distinction Being/Becoming (true/apparent) is inverted as the selfsame of eternal recurrence of the same and will to power, the Platonic idea is replaced by the “revaluation of all values”, and so on.
In order to provide an answer to the above “why?” of nihilism, Heidegger reminds us that: nihilism started with Plato and with the beginning of metaphysics when these values were posed in the first place, that metaphysics is not a human invention, that metaphysics can only think being and that Being itself must necessarily remain unthought, that according to metaphysics there is nothing to Being itself, and so on. As such, there is a more fundamental nihilism here at work when compared with Nietzsche's nihilism; that is metaphysics as metaphysics is nihilism proper.
According to Heidegger we must overcome our compulsion to lay our hands on everything, understand that our struggle to master beings means nothing more than to interpret them metaphysically without being able to understand their essence, that we no longer perceive the confrontation between the power over beings and the truth of Being, that in the age of fulfilled metaphysics we hardly encounters in thought what is simple, and so on. In order to overcome this destitution, there is a need to experience our need for Being. However, since it is more essential and older, the destiny of Being is less familiar to us than the lack of God – God that Nietzsche declared dead with such insight and joy.

[Braden Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heidegger is the master interpreter of Nietzsche, not because he understands him (which it seems he does anyhow) but because he demonstrates where Nietzsche does not go far enough in the upheaval of metaphysics. A book about another philosophers work that is in itself a highly original work.

[Erik C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading Volume 3 right now. It's Heidegger leading the reader (or listener, as it is his notes from a lecture course) along the 'thought path' that lead Nietzsche to formulate the Will to Power. The Will to Power is, as Heidegger says, Niezsche's essential thought, and the culmination and end of western metaphysics.

Instead of interpreting what Nietzsche means by "Will to Power" Heidegger attempts to reconstruct (using Nietzsche's published writing but mostly unpublished notes) what went into Nietzsche's formulation of the idea.

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

See my review of volumes 1 & 2.

[safavid dreamer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great lecture series - Heideggers interpretation of Nietzsche links together Nietzsche”’s main concepts “Will to Power” “Nihilism” “Eternal Recurrence” “Revaluation of all values” into a coherent whole. Nihilism is the devaluation of the highest values during the time of Nietzsche. These values are the Christian God, Platonic Truth & Christian Morality. These values were deemed as eternal and held over and against Life. With the onset of nihilism these values come to be seen not as eternal truths in of themselves - but psychologism/humanisation of the world for our need.

In steps in will to power which is the new ground/principle to reevaluate values - Life no longer is conditioned by Abstract values but life itself as will to power - values and evaluates according to its need to expand & command. Truth becomes not true in of itself but useful to willing as establishing fixity & permanence for humans to be able to calculate and manipulate. The Overman is this new human being who self-consciously commands and wills - The overman is conscious of the metaphysical principle of Being being Will To Power. With this Nietzsche attempts to overcome Nihilism as the “World” inherently has no Why or Purpose but man as a evaluating Will can set up and command Purpose and a Why!

However in this book unlike the first book - Heidegger pronounces his critiques of Nietzsche as not a radical thinker who overturns metaphysics but is in the long line of metaphysics who omits the question of “Being”.

Overall Heidegger interpretation of Nietzsche is fascinating and is incredibly important to understand the modern world. There’s so much depth I have left out of this review because it would take forever to write it all down - I would highly recommend reading this book. It will enhance and enrich both your understanding of Heidegger & Nietzsche

[Leila Jia · Rating 4 out of 5]

For some reason not clicking as v1-2, but the whole nihilism unpacking is incredibly fascinating. Seems to land tho more on H’s own formulation of Da-sein and concealing of Being as shelter (the necessity of nihilism) along being as will to power (critique of N?; not sure about Being being in relation w Becoming (N’s stamp Becoming with Being

[noblethumos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Martin Heidegger’s monumental work, “Nietzsche Volumes 3 & 4,” represents a formidable contribution to the corpus of Nietzschean scholarship and existential philosophy. These two volumes, constituting the culmination of Heidegger’s decades-long engagement with Friedrich Nietzsche’s oeuvre, provide a profound and complex interpretation of Nietzsche’s thought. In this review, I will endeavor to elucidate the major themes, methodological approach, and critical insights presented in Heidegger’s work.


Heidegger’s endeavor in “Nietzsche Volumes 3 & 4” is twofold: to elucidate Nietzsche’s philosophy in its entirety and to synthesize his own existential-phenomenological framework with Nietzschean ideas. The volumes are structured thematically rather than chronologically, which mirrors Nietzsche’s own eclectic and multifaceted writings.


Heidegger begins by addressing Nietzsche’s central concepts, such as the “will to power” and the “eternal recurrence.” He interprets the will to power as the fundamental driving force of existence, representing the incessant striving and becoming of all things. The eternal recurrence, according to Heidegger, is the ultimate test of one’s authenticity, challenging individuals to affirm their lives in the face of infinite repetition.


One of the most significant aspects of Heidegger’s interpretation is his emphasis on Nietzsche’s critique of metaphysics. He contends that Nietzsche’s philosophical project is a radical departure from traditional metaphysical thinking, which Heidegger explores through the concept of “nihilism” as the negation of metaphysical values.


Heidegger also delves into Nietzsche’s views on art, culture, and language, demonstrating how these domains are essential to understanding the full scope of Nietzschean thought. Nietzsche’s perspectivism, for instance, is seen as a fundamental aspect of his philosophy, emphasizing the plurality of interpretations and the rejection of any absolute truth.


Heidegger’s methodology in these volumes is quintessentially Heideggerian, rooted in existential-phenomenological analysis. He engages in a hermeneutical exercise, carefully dissecting Nietzsche’s texts, elucidating their hidden meanings, and situating them within the broader context of existential inquiry.


While Heidegger’s work on Nietzsche is undoubtedly a tour de force of philosophical scholarship, it is not without its challenges. The profound density of Heidegger’s prose and his penchant for neologisms can make the text inaccessible to some readers. Additionally, his highly interpretive approach may be seen as a departure from the more straightforward exegesis sought by some scholars.


“Nietzsche Volumes 3 & 4” by Martin Heidegger represents a monumental contribution to Nietzschean studies and existential philosophy. Heidegger’s intricate interpretation of Nietzsche’s thought, his exploration of themes like the will to power and nihilism, and his methodological rigor make these volumes indispensable for scholars and students of both philosophers. While the text is not without its challenges, its intellectual richness and profundity are sure to reward those willing to engage with it.


These volumes stand as a testament to Heidegger’s enduring influence in contemporary philosophy and his ability to shed new light on one of the most enigmatic figures in the history of thought, Friedrich Nietzsche.

GPT

[Celie · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you want to learn even more about the unity of will to power and
eternal recurrence of the same.

[Lamar · Rating 5 out of 5]

How to understand perspetive.