Truth and Deception - are they really any different? Nietzsche appears to suggest that Truth and Deception, seemingly opposites, are the same thing. He questions every instance of truth and states that we are all being deceived by a common deception, a standard of deception that governs our language, morals, and beliefs. He claims that "truths are illusions about which it has been forgotten that they are illusions", and that people "lie collectively in a style that is mandatory for everyone" (250). Truth and deception appear to be opposites, but perhaps they are one in the same.
Nietzsche claims that "truth" is merely a deception in some form; yet, he declares some phrases to be truthful with statements "in truth"(254) and "a truth is brought to light"(251). How can Nietzsche make such claims while debunking the entire concept of truth elsewhere? In addition, he explicitly associates truth with the freedom from delusions (256). So, it appears that truth is both the freedom from and a cover for delusions. In other words, truth shelters us from the lies behind it. Nietzche claims that "words are never concerned with the truth" - we believe we speak the truth because we can't see the deception behind it.
-Jason Beyers
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment