Royce observed that modern reformers had discovered in Nietzsche’s thought a source of and justification for their overpowering iconoclastic individualism that threatened to tear the bonds of ethical and communal affiliation. However, he contended that the popular view of Nietzsche’s Übermensch as a tireless crusader against social conventions, which was popularized by Shaw, London, and Mencken and bandied about in the popular press, misunderstood Nietzsche’s broader vision. The “modern agitator,” the “typically restless child of our age,” noted Royce, believed that Nietzsche’s philosophy
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