Crisis of Meaning
Death of God / Nihilism
Nietzsche’s diagnosis of a civilizational loss of metaphysical guarantee and the struggle to survive its consequences.
Read the guideAn independent guide to reading Nietzsche
Read closely.
Think for yourself.
Work through Nietzsche’s questions about morality, truth, suffering, and affirmation. Begin with a guided course, then follow the arguments across his books.
Edited by Bob Smith
A place to begin
Values, truth, and affirmation
Seven sessions, from the crisis of value to the question of affirming a life. Each offers an exact reading assignment, context, questions, an objection, and a short writing exercise.
7–9 hours at your own pace.
Use your own edition or the linked texts.
Follow a question
Three ways into the arguments
Morality and Value-Creation
Master / Slave Morality
Nietzsche’s account of noble self-affirmation, reactive moral inversion, and the psychological creativity of resentment.
Read the guideAffirmation and Time
Eternal Recurrence
Nietzsche’s deepest test of affirmation: whether one can will necessity, repetition, and one’s entire life without resentment.
Read the guideGo further
Keep the passage in view
Read through the books
Place a passage in its work and historical setting. Follow Nietzsche’s changing concerns from tragedy to his final writings.
Browse book guidesTrace a passage
Search the indexed selections by theme, work, and period. Follow connections and return to a saved reading view.
Open the passage navigatorThe Will to Power
Explore the posthumous notebook compilation with editorial cautions and companion references to Nietzsche’s finished works.
Read the compilation guideA guide to interpretation, with room for disagreement.
Distinguish the text, the commentary, and your own judgment. Our reading method explains the approach; the editions guide explains the references and translations.