Philosophers#
Summary#
Philosophers appear across these texts as both revered exemplars and targets of critique. Marcus Aurelius invokes Socrates, Plato, and Epicurus as models of intellectual integrity and indifference to suffering, while Nietzsche distinguishes between “philosophical workers” like Kant and Hegel who formalize existing values and genuine philosophers who create new ones. For Nietzsche, the true philosopher is a “commander and lawgiver” whose knowing is creating, whose will to truth is Will to Power, standing in contrast to the ancient noble spirits like Heraclitus and Plato who philosophized with magnificent dignity before philosophy was diminished by modern academic timidity.
Socrates ↖ Beyond Good and Evil ↖ Meditations
Plato ↖ Beyond Good and Evil ↖ Meditations
Aristotle ↖ Beyond Good and Evil
Epicurus ↖ Beyond Good and Evil ↖ Meditations
Heraclitus ↖ Beyond Good and Evil
Spinoza ↖ Beyond Good and Evil
Schopenhauer ↖ Beyond Good and Evil
Descartes ↖ Beyond Good and Evil
Berkeley ↖ Beyond Good and Evil
Montaigne ↖ Beyond Good and Evil
Voltaire ↖ Beyond Good and Evil