An informative and concise documentary detailing the events of Friedrich Nietzsche's short and tragic life. https://youtu.be/IAIEsqTMRhE

1. God is Dead: The Life of Friedrich Nietzsche
wiseoldman.org
“Without music, life would be a mistake.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche, Twilight of the Idols

2. Early Life
“The true man wants two things: danger and
play. For that reason he wants woman, as the
most dangerous plaything.”
—Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra
In 1844, Friedrich Nietzsche is born in
Röcken, in the Prussian Province of
Saxony.
Nietzsche’s father—a Lutheran
minister—dies when he’s 6, his younger
brother dies six months later.
Nietzsche then moves with his mother
and sister to Naumburg where they live
with their grandma and father’s two
unmarried sisters. It’s here Nietzsche
begins to grow wary of the female.
I’m Nietzsche, bietzsche!

3. Education
● Nietzsche attends private school, then receives a scholarship to
Schulpforta where he studys Greek, Latin, Hebrew and French
while also composing music and poems.
● Upon graduating, Nietzsche continues his studies in theology and
classical philology at the University of Bonn in hopes of
becoming a minister. But after one semester he loses his faith and
to the dismay of his mother, quits his studies.
● Nietzsche contests that historical research discredits the
fundamental teachings of Christianity.
“Faith means not wanting to know what is true.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche, The Antichrist

4. “Hence the ways of men
part: if you wish to strive
for peace of soul and
pleasure, then believe; if
you wish to be a devotee of
truth, then inquire…”
—Nietzsche, on his loss of faith in a letter to his sister, Elisabeth

5. Here, Nietzsche devours the
works of Arthur Schopenhauer
whom he owes his philosophical
enlightenment, naming
Schopenhauer one of the few
thinkers he respects.
Nietzsche also becomes
enamoured with the writings of
Charles Darwin and begins to
question authority and the
authenticity of aristocratic
morals and traditions.
Further Education
“A man can be himself only so long as he is alone; and if he does not
love solitude, he will not love freedom; for it is only when he is alone
that he is really free.”
― Arthur Schopenhauer, Essays and Aphorisms
Nietzsche begins studying philology under
Professor Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl and
subsequently follows him to the University
of Leipzig.

6. Post-Grad
At 24, Nietzsche receives an honorary
doctorate from the University of
Leipzig and then accepts a position at
the University of Basel where he
becomes one of the youngest tenured
professors on record.
However, before moving to Basel,
Nietzsche renounces his Prussian
citizenship, but still serves in the
Franco-Prussian War as a medic
where he contracts diphtheria,
dysentery, and perhaps even syphilis.
In 1867, Nietzsche volunteers for the
Prussian artillery division in
Naumburg and begins to climb the
ranks until he tears two muscles in
his side. The injury forces him to
return to his studies.

7. Decline in Health
Nietzsche's health begins to
deteriorate and by 1879 he is
forced to give up his post at
Basel at the tender age of 35.
For the next ten years Nietzsche
writes furiously and travels
throughout Europe in search of
a climate more conducive to his
health. In order to cope with his
pain, he begins taking massive
doses of opium.
Rise as an Independent Writer
“What does not kill me
makes me stronger.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche, Twilight of the Idols
Gott ist tot!

8. 1879-1889
As Nietzsche’s body and eyesight deteriorates, he writes The Gay Science, Thus Spoke Zarathustra,
Beyond Good and Evil, Twilight of the Idols, The Antichrist, and Ecce Homo.
“He who fights with monsters should be
careful lest he thereby become a
monster. And if thou gaze long into an
abyss, the abyss will also gaze into thee.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil

9. 1889-1900
Madness
and Death
Legend has it Nietzsche snapped
upon witnessing the flogging of a
horse...he ran to the horse, threw
his arms up around its neck trying
to protect it, and then collapsed to
the ground writhing in physical
and psychological pain.
Nietzsche then suffered two
strokes between 1898-1899,
contracted pneumonia, then had
another stroke and died at the age
of 55. His friend and secretary Gast
gave his funeral oration,
proclaiming: "Holy be your name to all
future generations!"
The Crucifixion

10. Subscribe
wiseoldman.org
“The higher we soar the smaller we appear to those who cannot fly.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra