Nietzsche’s philosophy had a lot in common with Camus’s, the main difference being that Camus framed his ideas in a very “Pop!” and relatively hedonistic way (of the times, not necessarily his doing).
They both essentially focus on the absence of meaning and its tangible effects on the human psyche, while encouraging the individual to persevere in Individuating in spite of there being no pre-defined purpose for doing it - do the growth for growth’s sake, for your own soul’s sake, if you will.
Imo, they also differ in the fact that, I feel, Nietzsche somewhat hinted at the human being taking up the reins of the God it killed, becoming godly unto itself. I don’t think this came out of a sense of superiority, rather that he felt we had a responsibility to pick up the works of the God we killed. (edit:) Which upon further consideration, may actually be born of a sense of superiority after all, in that we can totally pick up the divine reins, no sweat!
Camus just wanted us all to be Promethean offshoots, laughing our asses off in the face of God/absence of God* and doing our own shit.
"And I, too, felt ready to start life all over again. It was as if that great rush of anger had washed me clean, emptied me of hope, and, gazing up at the dark sky spangled with its signs and stars, for the first time, the first, I laid my heart open to the benign indifference of the universe.” this quote by Camus in “The Stranger” always get me. Points out the absurdism of searching for a meaning in this vast, complex and more importantly indifferent universe.
Of course, Nietzsche felt different. He thought we still had an obligation to do great.
To me personally, taoism seems to provide a happy middle ground. Do what you can, try what you want. In the end success or failure brings some pros and some cons. Life is all about navigating the water current. Sometimes, you take control and other times you let the water carry you. It is all about knowing when to do either.
This is exactly why Existentialism is fascinating to me, the question always stays the same, but the answers are as varied as the people who are offering them. Which pretty much leads to the conclusion that THE answer to “what now” is “learn what floats your boat then keep it sailing.”
Nietzsche’s philosophy had a lot in common with Camus’s, the main difference being that Camus framed his ideas in a very “Pop!” and relatively hedonistic way (of the times, not necessarily his doing).
They both essentially focus on the absence of meaning and its tangible effects on the human psyche, while encouraging the individual to persevere in Individuating in spite of there being no pre-defined purpose for doing it - do the growth for growth’s sake, for your own soul’s sake, if you will.
Imo, they also differ in the fact that, I feel, Nietzsche somewhat hinted at the human being taking up the reins of the God it killed, becoming godly unto itself. I don’t think this came out of a sense of superiority, rather that he felt we had a responsibility to pick up the works of the God we killed. (edit:) Which upon further consideration, may actually be born of a sense of superiority after all, in that we can totally pick up the divine reins, no sweat!
Camus just wanted us all to be Promethean offshoots, laughing our asses off in the face of God/absence of God* and doing our own shit.
"And I, too, felt ready to start life all over again. It was as if that great rush of anger had washed me clean, emptied me of hope, and, gazing up at the dark sky spangled with its signs and stars, for the first time, the first, I laid my heart open to the benign indifference of the universe.” this quote by Camus in “The Stranger” always get me. Points out the absurdism of searching for a meaning in this vast, complex and more importantly indifferent universe.
Of course, Nietzsche felt different. He thought we still had an obligation to do great.
To me personally, taoism seems to provide a happy middle ground. Do what you can, try what you want. In the end success or failure brings some pros and some cons. Life is all about navigating the water current. Sometimes, you take control and other times you let the water carry you. It is all about knowing when to do either.
This is exactly why Existentialism is fascinating to me, the question always stays the same, but the answers are as varied as the people who are offering them. Which pretty much leads to the conclusion that THE answer to “what now” is “learn what floats your boat then keep it sailing.”