I) Nietzsche – On the Advantage and Disadvantage of History for Life

According to Plato, Socrates famously stated, “that the unexamined life is not worth living,” and argued in favor of philosophy as the best way to understand how to live. Subsequently, some of humanity’s most famous thinkers have either tried to support or rebut not only Plato’s beliefs, but also his metaphysical/philosophical approaches to knowledge. By the 19th Century, and after several thousand years of grand philosophizing from the Aristotelians, the Kantians, and the Utilitarians, the skeptics and the nihilists Friedrich Nietzsche began to wonder openly whether anything had been accomplished. Nietzsche, in his On the Advantage and Disadvantage of History for Life, considers this very question – what is the point of studying the past – especially the ideas, morals, and philosophies of prior generations?

To answer this question, address the following specific topics.

1) Define and provide textual examples of what Nietzsche means by the term “history.”

2) Evaluate both the pros and cons of using history to guide a person’s life.

3) To what extent do you agree with his definition of history and his analysis of it?

4) Next, which of the philosophers that we have decided, do you believe that Nietzsche would argue is still worthy of study? Make sure to support your answer with plenty of examples from the text.