“So what do ascetic ideals mean?” With this question Nietzsche begins to develop his third essay, and, through this question, he begins to delineate and build up to what ascetic ideals mean in reference to philosophers and ascetic priests.
To begin with, Nietzsche contrasts, with complete thoroughness, how philosophers and ascetic priests hold opposing views to the valuation of life. In the beginning of section 9 Nietzsche says that “a hard and hearty renunciation with a good will, belongs among the most favourable conditions for the highest spirituality…” (81). This, apparently, is referring to the philosophers who go about into the “desert.” This positive renunciation is healthy in Nietzsche’s account because these strong individuals are built for the affirmation of existence in all its forms. In a very simplified way, Nietzsche holds the philosophers to this highest spirituality because they “are thinking of themselves…” (77). This, perhaps, is in relation to what he states in the preface: that “we are unknown to ourselves…” (3);
As for the ascetic priests, in Nietzsche’s view, they hold the ideals of the weaker part of humanity—and for several reasons; the main one being their rejection of this world and of themselves (85). In articulating their apparent negation of life, Nietzsche also says that within this notion of the ascetic priest lies an inherent contradiction. This contradiction is that, in negating the life of this world—because of their inborn weakness?—they are affirming life, they are giving a “yes” to life (88).
But the question comes back to itself, “what do ascetic ideals mean?” Nietzsche states it very clearly on page 88 that the ascetic ideal is used as a form of comfort in regards to the problem of existence. The ascetic priests, because they belong to the weaker part of humanity, and also because of the deprived situation that they are born into—their weak nature—give yes to life through their negation of life; in other words, it is a way of coming to terms with their weak natures.
All in all, all this talk of ascetic ideals ties into his talk of noble and slave morality. There is a change in interpretation of what ascetic ideals mean when viewed through the scope of the strong and spirited natures and what they mean for those of the weaker nature. Ascetic ideals, for the strong and spirited natures, is a way of coming to know themselves, whereas for the weaker ones it is used as a cover because they harbor a “deep disgust for themselves…” (85).
Your statement that priests say "yes to life through their negation of life," led me back to this quote from section 1 of the third essay: "Man prefers to will nothingness rather than not will" (68). Nietzsche begins and ends the third essay with this statement, which emphasizes its importance to his discussion of the ascetic ideal. Man suffers and it is not the suffering he fears, but the meaninglessness of the suffering (120). Without meaning, life becomes unbearably empty. Nietzsche asserts that the importance of the ascetic ideal to man reveals its "horror vacui," its fear of emptiness (68). So man wills nothingness to fill his fear of emptiness. He renounces life's pleasures to give meaning to life's suffering. He withdraws from life to justify his life. He would rather believe in existence as punishment, something to be endured, than exist in a world without meaning.
ReplyDeleteAscetic ideals, according to Nietzsche, is what we use to differentiate humans from animals. I think ascetic ideals ties into bad conscience, which Nietzsche argues is unique to humans (16). Ascetism idealizes spirituality, reflection, and idealism at the cost of our body, our "animality" (68, 81). By denying our animality or devaluing it to weak nature, ascetic deals relates strongly to bad conscience, for example, the guilt we feel when we give into our desires. Furthermore, ascetic ideals -- life acting against itself -- stresses the repression of sensuality and bodily experiences, which are solidified using guilt and bad conscience (as we see in Christianity).
ReplyDeleteAscetic ideals in my view are the standards of beauty or morality that the priests have over others (commoners). Beauty being in the eye of the beholder and all makes the term sound ambiguous and that being said, hard to pinpoint. It is ascetically right to have certain ideas and ideals that everyone agrees are positive and pleasing, what make one better than the other is not morally based but purely what the powers that be make them. I see it as the noble dictating what is right and the slave, the person who is defined by not what he has but what he doesn't have, ever being full of emptiness and resentment toward his priest, noble master and etc...
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