Thus Spoke Zarathustra Analysis

Friedrich Nietzsche introduces the Übermensch in Thus Spoke Zarathustra as the next progression in Human evolution. The Overman (der Übermensch) is an evolved being, and mankind in its present state is simply the bridge from ape to Overman, from beast to a higher form of mankind. This is evident in Zarathustra’s selection of only a few followers as a opposed to addressing the masses to present this new goal of humanity, showcasing the Overman as an overcoming of mankind and an ascension, as well as the depiction of other beings going “under” for the sake of the Overman’s forthcoming. All can be tied to the ecological process of evolution, and Zarathustra’s vision of a future world of evolved human beings. The Overman embodies the progression

Previously stating that humanity as of present lacks a common goal, “a thousand goals have there been so far, for there have been a thousand peoples. Only the yoke for the thousand necks is still lacking: the one goal is lacking. Humanity still has no goal. But tell me, my brothers, if humanity still lacks a goal-is humanity itself not still lacking too?” 172 The intent of any species, ecologically speaking, is to persist, to survive, but even greater so to evolve, to dominate, and to thrive. This happens through natural selection, which is at its core, random and undirected, only a matter of chance and circumstance. The survivability of the fit is ever changing and essentially attributable to serendipity. However, here Nietzsche is straying from Darwinism in the sense of an evolution in the direction of the highest thinking individuals, not necessarily the fit. Rather those he sees as superior, faithful to the earth, able to determine their own rules and conventions, the Overmen. Once seen as lacking in a goal, Zarathustra is giving Humanity a goal of progress as advancement in the mind. “Remain faithful to the earth, my brothers, with the power of your virtue. Let your gift-giving love and your knowledge serve the meaning of the earth... Lead back to the earth the virtue that flew away, as I do-back to the body, back to life, that it may give the earth a meaning, a human meaning.”

Necessary to the coming of the Overman, is the overcoming of the present man, but it is a progression toward a superior being of intellect and thought which Nietzsche presents. The Overman is a being who gives meaning to earth, and is faithful to the earth, another allusion to the ecological underlying message. The Overman has not yet been achieved; rather Zarathustra he sets forth a trajectory for mankind to strive for it. This is why he addresses only the few, his followers, and asks them to pass on his teachings, but also to question them. They are meant to create their own values and conventions. The name “Overman” itself implies ascension and superiority, that one must cross over a bridge to achieve it, to be higher than the current state. Inversely there can also be descent under the loom of the Overman for those who cannot attain it, not seen as destructive, but rather a part of the process of moving forward. The evolution of the human mind may not entirely follow the principles of natural selection, but it does embody Darwin’s theory of development from earlier forms of life, which is deeply rooted in natural systems of the earth, just as is mirrored in the Overman’s connection to the earth. As the human mind evolves, so does the human being, perhaps toward the