The Big 1.6.7 for Friedrich Nietzsche!

A big happy birthday for 19th century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist Friedrich Nietzsche! Nietzsche who will be turning 167 next week is best known for his views in the realm of existentialism, nihilism and postmodernism. He was appointed chair of classical philology at the University of Basel at the age of 24, the youngest in the University's history. Nietzsche moved on as an independent philosopher traveling across Europe. During this time he wrote his most notable works, such as Thus Spoke Zarathustra, The Gay Science, and Beyond Good and Evil, amongst others. 

Tragically, in 1889 Nietzsche had a mental breakdown and consequently died on August 25th 1900. After his death, however, his works became more popular. Nietzsche had followings in the 1890’s amongst left-wing Germans, while conservative Germans wanted to ban his works for being subversive. In the 1900’s his works were associated with anarchist movements and by World War I Nietzsche was inspiration for right wing German militarism. To this day Nietzsche remains a controversial figure for his views but his stance on individualism still resonates in the 21st century. Celebrate his birthday by reading Nietzche For Beginners.