Beyond Good and Evil

By: Friedrich Nietzsche

Narrated by: Alex Jennings, Roy McMillan

Length: 8 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

Continuing where Thus Spoke Zarathustra left off, Nietzsche's controversial work Beyond Good and Evil is one of the most influential philosophical texts of the 19th century and one of the most controversial works of ideology ever written.

Attacking the notion of morality as nothing more than institutionalised weakness, Nietzsche criticises past philosophers for their unquestioning acceptance of moral precepts. Nietzsche tried to formulate what he called "the philosophy of the future".

Alex Jennings reads this new translation by Ian Johnston.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2008 Naxos Audiobooks (P)2008 Naxos Audiobooks

Great Book, great Audio Narration

I won't drone on about the wealth of knowledge in this book. I will say i've listened to it twice since i got it two weeks ago, and i will keep listening to it. I find it very practical.
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The narration and production of this book is exceptional. Like any book, it's difficult to read to others, and communicate the nuance. Jennings & McMillan bring this production through with excellence. Even Jennings tone, a slight snear, really plays well, because Nietzsche himself writes with a slight snear.
Contrast this production with one i downloaded from "Librovox". Librovox allows non-professionals to record a book, and upload it. I downloaed Nietzsche's "The Gay Science", and i couldn't get through the first chapters. The narrator couldn't communicate the spirit and intent of the book. This production achieves that.

Troubled Genius

Nietzsche's analysis and critique of false authority, master-slave relationships, herd morality, rationalistic/scientific barriers to living fearlessly are amazing critiques for the time he wrote, and flew in the face of the rationalistic zeitgeist of Kant, Hegel and science.

His critique is very psychological, in that he does not himself present a rationalistic argument for or against his views (although he reveals brilliant thinking), but rather a series of observations/aphorisms which we automatically string together as his "philosophy" (and then wonder what he said). He makes scathing observations of the Jews being the cause of the despised master-slave relationships, and compounded by Christians. For sure, he despises weakness.

Because of his own questioning of human motivation leading to the destructive master-slave devaluation of human, I find myself analyzing his own motivation for his concerns. While his interpretation of women parallels hatred of weakness everywhere, his misogyny, mistrust and devaluation seems embedded in every pore of his being, and explains most of his philosophy as a rant against how his mother (including father) treated him. He describes women as like a cat, they do their own thing, they have claws waiting to strike and are fundamentally manipulative and shallow.

If my impression of Nietzsche's devaluation of human relationships (esp. with women) is accurate (his self/other esteem is relationally absent), then he is blind and in contempt (indignant) of any relational resolution to his existential predicament. His primary target therefore is anyone who presents a threat to him, his thinking, his power/right to live fully.

More interestingly, this theory helps explain the either/or, master/slave position which he takes as the truth of the human condition. Since psyche (which is conditioned by society he states)/people/society/ bad philosophers/scientists/politics/countries are not to be trusted, the first goal is to avoid being a slave of your own weak conscience or that of anyone else's, have the courage to be master of your own soul, and do not be afraid of your passions/instincts/impulses, but let them give you instinctive taste/guidance, power, freedom of will, nobility--not made weak by conscience.

His use of the term "Truth" is almost always stated in some disdainful way against others, especially philosopher metaphysicians who go around telling others what "Truth" is. His effort is to invert this terrible misconception, and restore the meaning of truth as ones own Will to Truth (which becomes Will to Power), the power to be who you are based on your own value. The ultimate truth in life is thus to embrace the value of your own power. He often speaks positively of artists who engage in their expressive, empowered freedom in life (i.e., Wagner).


He states that "all organic functions [including sexuality] could be traced back to this Will to Power" (36)--this is his claim about reality/truth. There are thus two reading of Nietzsche--the amoral, harsh, cynical, heartlessness, and the one that some of us would like to believe: that his thoughts just haven't been developed clearly and that he is more artistic in his nature (and that Santa Claus and Heaven are not in jeopardy). It is not hard to see why his ideas became usable for Hitler's regime. We can thank subsequent philosophers who salvaged his genius out of his darkness.

Awsome

Great read, great narrator, interesting, thought provoking, and surprisingly funny at times. If you have never read any Nietzsche this is a good one to start with.

This was not what I expected...

I'm not sure what I expected from Nietzsche, but it most certainly wasn't a constantly contradictory, self-pitying diatribe about how all of the problems in the world are everyone elses fault and how Nietzsche, himself, is some sort of advance guard for a super-awesome totally kick-ass mega race of philosopher kings who need to be put in charge of everything because they are our superiors and we are just herd animals waiting to be led by them!

Nietzsche take perfectly logical presumptions- like "there is no singular morality"- and twists them into value judgments- like "there is no singular morality, therefore some morality must be superior morality and some inferior morality, and the inferior people who have inferior morality must subjugate themselves to the superior". WTF?!

In the end, Nietzsche falls prey to the brier patch of the small minded- the absolute. If a man is not one way, he must then be the absolute opposite, if a man does not completely believe one thing, he must completely believe the absolute opposite, if a man is not a master, then he must be a slave. And all the while condemning this very act in others.

Over and over again, Nietzsche takes reasonable, and sometimes very wise, ideas and twists them to fuel his own self-gratification and sense of superiority.

It is important to read Nietzsche to understand the kind of childlike thinking that we must avoid in ourselves. Of course, if Nietzsche wrote this as a satire and is laughing at us from the grave (like Machiavelli), then I take all of this back. If that is the case the man has done us the great favor of giving us a glimpse into our own, darkest nature.

hold the commentary.

the flow of the book is constantly interrupted by editorializing. please, Mr. Jennings and mcillan Do Not think you are a better writer than Nietzsche, or smarter than the listener.

important classic with Ian Johnston's notes

"Beyond Good and Evil" is a well-known classic, so I will not review the work itself.

The narration by Alex Jennings was excellent. He kept my attention throughout with his lively speech.

And, Ian Johnston was more than a translator. He also wrote commentary which is included in this audio. The commentary is excellent: accurate and helpful for understanding Nietzsche's background and ideas.

John Christmas, author of "Democracy Society"

Great Read, Inconsistent Material

The narration was by far the best part! To be sure, Nietzsche is dynamic and insightful writer, it's just overall imbalance in chapter quality. Like he'd have a deep understanding of social pressures and corrupted morality followed with how "inadequate" women are. Or how logical positivism cancels itself followed by a vague chapter on the German spirit. The aphorisms section was by far the most tedious.

hmm

Nietzsche doesn't write stories. He destroys your ideals with amazing yet simple realizations. His language is somewhat hard to understand at times.

This is not a book for those with little ability to concentrate. His ideas move so quickly that you will disintegrate when you finally catch onto his full meaning; a pleasure I myself have not yet reached.

complicated but fun

A good amount of this went over my head, no gonna lie. But I got the great courses explanation of his philosophy so I'm going to go read that too. Nietzsche is the sassiest philosopher hands down. That's what I learned here.

mental.

Reading as part of a larger project on psychology,. I was far more impressed with Jung. although he nailed it on Germany and the Jews.

Not for the uninitiated!

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I came into this book as a complete philosophical novice, and I must say I've had an awful lot of difficulty grappling with the verbosity and name dropping of Nietzsche.

I've had some moments of lucidity where I think I've benefited from listening to Beyond Good and Evil, but mostly it has been impenetrable.

So if you're looking to dip your toe into western philosophy, I'd recommend looking for something more gentle to start with!

Has Beyond Good and Evil put you off other books in this genre?

Certainly not. But I'll be looking for a more broad introduction to the genre next.

What about Alex Jennings and Roy McMillan ’s performance did you like?

The narrator's sharp, snide intonations of Nietzsche's put downs and humiliations of other philosophies really help bring things to life.

Knocks down better than it builds up

The analytical, deconstructing aspect of this book is outstanding. Incredible to think WHEN this was written given it's deep insights which are relevant even today. This is where Nietzsche's intellect shines. Though his motivations lie deeper than he lets on, there is a real anger he holds towards society. He is compelled to reduce our known values into a kind of anarcho-relativistic nothingness, and he does this so well.

Though in attempting to build a picture of how the world should operate after this fact, the "beyond" of the story, he doesn't do so well. The "will to power" seems like a new angle on the popular French philosophy of his time and actually detracts from the picture he so brilliantly painted just prior. What lies behind this story is a man whose ultimate frustration likely arises from his lack of success with women, and a resulting bitterness towards society and its associated rules. Ironically, his ideas of a will to power are a projection of his own sense of power that he achieves through this process; a sublimated sexual satisfaction from undermining the very thing which undermined him. The will to power was therefore a way foreword for him, beyond society's "good and evil", though doesn't really hold the universality that should be expected from a theory about how to live one's life.

beyond essential, if that were possible

Simply put, no one can make any claim to rounded intellectual rigour without a familiarity with this book.

Beautiful

I loved it. It blew my mind. It made me realise that the destination is insignificant in comparison to the journey. That a value oriented live is better than chasing your goals

Beyond a Good Review

How can one rate the philosophy Friedrich Nietzsche? How can a book written in 1886 be more relavent, brutal, beautiful, and uncompromising than anything and anyone today. Western society was falling in 1886, and this book holds a mirror to the modern soul.

Beyond single reading material

This is deep this is a philosophy for already philosophers it's. big its bigger than you can think you have to read it more than twice two understand you trying to say. (the poem in the end is really emotional)

A must read

Alex Jennings reading is a facilitator for Nietzsche's words. It might be the case that Nietzsche's language was intended for a small crowd as he himself says: "one fear the philosopher has is to be understood", but I would say that it's not that hard to grasp.

did not enjoy

did not enjoy this book but not sure if its the book or personal preference. Got bord at time, struggled to maintain interest and found it hard to follow at times.

A good writer, but not much of a philosopher.

Nietzsche is a great writer! His stylistic prose in destroying every thinker before him is almost harlarious. He is no doubt poetical and a suggestive thinker, but he is not a strong writer. He rants in a funny way and is far from methodical, probably concluding in one of the biggest pseudo philosophers I have read yet.

Ps. The narrator is very good. A little condescending in tone, but maybe deliberate, hitting the right note.

Nietzsche misogynistic

This sounds like Islam grooming literature, totalitarian silent enforcing of women what to do in the name of ‘refinement’.