> Human All Too Human : A Book for Free Spirits to give its full name
For some reason i don't often see this book mentioned. Perhaps i am biased (this was my introduction to Nietzsche) but i have always found this to be more nuanced, incisive, insightful and less polemical than his other works. Also the fact that it is basically a set of aphorisms (of varying para lengths) on very many topics means that you can read it from any page for short periods of time and still find something of value.
And, almost as a contrary, Tolstoy, My Religion. For example, he claims that
- the teachings of Jesus are a reflection of human needs; break them and you will suffer,
- every form of oath taking is forbidden; every time you align yourself with some external authority, you will suffer or do evil,
- no form of judging another is ever allowed; even the criminal justice system is against the teachings of the Christ,
- any form of non-monogamy leads to suffering; even just fantasizing about a woman who is not your wife will lead to suffering.
There’s more.
I’m not a Christian or religious. But this is radical. And interesting.
For some reason i don't often see this book mentioned. Perhaps i am biased (this was my introduction to Nietzsche) but i have always found this to be more nuanced, incisive, insightful and less polemical than his other works. Also the fact that it is basically a set of aphorisms (of varying para lengths) on very many topics means that you can read it from any page for short periods of time and still find something of value.