THUS SPOKE NIETZSCHE

DANIEL SAMPAIO marks
some interesting anniversaries

Among the topics Nietzsche's name may evoke, a trinity of remarkable, oft-cited ones quickly emerges, composed of Nazism, religion, and imposing moustaches. The last one is naturally due to the mighty specimen of facial hair that adorned his upper lip, and the second is a subject on which he wrote extensively, but the connection between Nietzsche and proto-Nazism often comes from a superficial interpretation of the concept of the Übermensch, the superhuman (or superman, in some translations). In a more legitimate way, Wagner too is linked to Nazism, in particular due to a certain anti-Semitism, and the fact that he wrote essays explaining the origins of 'our' dislike of Jews doesn't help him at all — the original version of 'Judaism in Music', published in 1850, is a good example. Nietzsche was roughly thirty years younger than Wagner, but not only did the two forge a friendship, the composer was an object of admiration for the philosopher...

FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE

RICHARD WAGNER

DER RING DES NIBELUNGEN

GEORGES BIZET

CARMEN

RELIGION