FINAL #03

3. Now reflect on what you think Nietzsche would say about Gandhi's ethics? Would he be impressed or disgusted and WHY??? Make sure to thoroughly explain your answer in light of what you read in the autobiography and what you read by Nietzsche. Be specific.

nietzsche would definitely be disgusted. gandhi's high regards of passiveness in his ethical theory is completely opposite of nietzsche's ethical theory. nietzsche claims that human beings have to use force in order for them to persevere. unlike gandhi, nietzsche have high regards for confrontation; nietzsche claims that confrontation is the only way human beings can evolve for the better. his perfect image of a human being is the superman, one who is able to refuse traditional values and dominate nature as to act the way the superman wills it to be. for nietzsche, evolution means becoming a person who can surpass humanity and master nature. nietzsche's conception of good and evil relates to nature; whatever conforms to nature is good, and whatever contrary is bad, but nietzsche's nature is that of darwin's definition: the survival of the fittest, and nietzsche seems to be taking it literally. he thinks that in nature only the strongest can survive and therefore everyone must strive to be stronger. to this he introduces the idea of "will to power." nietzsche claims that will can be the source of one's power, and with power, one can evolve to be the superman nietzsche regards as the perfect human being.

this idea is completely opposite from gandhi's. gandhi claims that peace and non-violence is the solution to everything, and in his experiment with truth, he has proven that his theory was correct. nietzsche would be disgusted of gandhi's ethics, however, especially with gandhi's passiveness and tendency to avoid conflict. nietzsche claims that only by undergoing conflict can a person evolve for the better, and thus is contradictive with gandhi's ethical theory that teaches one to learn to control emotions and pocket insults. for nietzsche, gandhian ideas like this ---if followed--- will never get human beings to the level of the superman, and thus it is only normal for nietzsche to abhor such passiveness.

nietzsche would also be disgusted by gandhi's ethical view on animals. gandhi values the lives of animals as much as he values the lives of human beings, and thus refrains from killing animals for food. this is in opposition to nietzsche's idea of man's domination over nature. nietzsche claims that the highest level of human beings, the superman, is achieved only after man can use the "will to power" to dominate over nature. but dominating over nature would also mean full domination of animals. gandhi, on the other hand, claims that human beings have to use their superiority to protect the inferior ones, the animals. this idea of protecting the weak goes against nietzsche's principle that in nature, only the strong survives. therefore, it is not a wonder if nietzsche and gandhi can never sit and drink tea together.