People use that refrain to exert power and persuade us they are sophisticated. But to me it is an expression of having developed an allergy to life. Nietzsche said that it is very easy to become more and more sensitive to life. A strong tree has a sturdy base and spine, but as cultures age and people get older, they develop thin, twiglike mentalities, shivering in every breeze.
To view this tendency to shake and quiver as a sign of knowledge of reality only tells half the story: It also signals premature aging. One no longer cares to know more than one already knows. One believes one has had enough. It is all dirty. Disgusting. Life itself repels us.
But younger cultures don't seem to care as much. It is only the Westerner who has learned to hate his image in the mirror. But that is because he has grown thinner, uglier, more like a twig.
A Nietzschean parable.
To view this tendency to shake and quiver as a sign of knowledge of reality only tells half the story: It also signals premature aging. One no longer cares to know more than one already knows. One believes one has had enough. It is all dirty. Disgusting. Life itself repels us.
But younger cultures don't seem to care as much. It is only the Westerner who has learned to hate his image in the mirror. But that is because he has grown thinner, uglier, more like a twig.
A Nietzschean parable.
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