Illness, Suffering, Thought. Nietzsche and Human Existence

Abstract

Thomas Mann asserts that Nietzsche also has another name: illness. In fact, when you look at life of philosopher of Röcken, it’s impossible not to come across his pathology: beyond the delirious madness that marks the last decade, the whole his existence appears indelibly marked by illness. And in Nietzsche the autobiographical theme of illness is inseparable from the philosophical problem of suffering. By considering his personal experience of illness as crucial, Nietzsche desires to experiment up to the point thought can resist and in which direction it takes whenever it is under the pressure of evil. His sharp investigation shows how the negative cannot be eliminated from existence, nor justified, but it constitutes a necessary ingredient: without tears, man would signify too much joy and one would never arrive at the laughter.