Nietzsche School Of Existentialism

Introduction The Enlightenment Period of human history, while without a definite “beginning” or “end” as far as historians may dictate, was a transitory period of human development that brought forth many different schools of thought in order to make sense of our (and likewise, the universe’s) existence. Born out of opposition to the zeitgeist of Empiricism and Rationalism, both of which seeking to forgo human nature and spiritual quandary to focus on the notion of science and rational reality, Existentialism chose to instead have its core philosophical model address the meaning of choice, the notion of free will, and the uniqueness of individuals. The philosophical school of Existentialism is wrought with many well-known and oft-revered influencers,

Among these influencers include the likes of Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, who himself is regarded as the “father of Existentialism”, and the more contemporary French philosopher, Jean-Paul Sartre. However, the individual most associated with the school of Existentialism by the general populace, as well as possibly the most influential of these figures in the field of psychology, is the German philosopher and self-dubbed psychologist Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche. Known primarily as the creator of Nihilism, Nietzsche contributes much to the discussion of the meaning (or lack thereof) of human existence, and how striving to improve our lot in life affords us the ability to live as authentic individuals. And while some of his philosophical facets had been repurposed and twisted in the mid-20th century by fascist regimes, most notoriously the Nazis during World War II, Nietzsche’s legacy has seeped into much more beneficial realms and has influenced many different facets of psychology throughout its development, particularly influencing the biggest contributors of the school of psychoanalysis, as well as more “recent” developments such as Humanistic Psychology and, to some extent, the psychology of happiness

The most notable influence in this regard would be the works of fellow German, Arthur Schopenhauer, a Romanticist whom Nietzsche would heavily base and expand upon in his discussion of the “Will to Power” and the two aspects of humanity. And while counter-intuitive, other sources of Nietzsche’s philosophy may be stemmed from the schools of Rationalism and Empiricism, despite the notion that Existentialism was created in direct opposition to those schools and the zeitgeist. This may be seen with ties to the rationalist philosopher George Hegel, as well as ancient Grecian philosophers such as Plato (Hergenhahn,