Compare and Contrast the philosophies of Plato and Nietzsche

Compare and Contrast the philosophies of Plato and Nietzsche

the philosophies of Plato and Nietzsche

Final Essay Even though they were separated by thousands of years, hundreds of miles, and different cultures, the philosophical views of Friedrich Nietzsche and Plato can be examined and weighed against each other in many different ways. Friedrich Nietzsche, born in 1844, was a German philosopher whose main goal was to erect a new image for the people and to create a free spirit in them. Plato, born in 427 B.C., was a Greek philosopher whose main goal was to create a new way of thinking about the world itself, knowledge itself, philosophy itself, and the individual. Both philosophers have obvious similarities; their literary style of writing is perhaps the most apparent, but also their desire …show more content…

He believes that knowledge has the ability to not take itself too seriously. Nietzsche is an advocate for uniting knowledge and play. He supposes that we create our values ourselves and do not discover them from nature or reason, as supposed by Plato. However, both philosophers believe that knowing your own ignorance and having a willingness to accept the fact that we are sometimes wrong and at fault is a vital step in creating the morals and values that we hold.
Another main similarity between the philosophies of Nietzsche and Plato is the belief that the greatest individual is not the wealthiest, but the thinker, the artist, the musician, and namely, the philosopher. Both hold the love of wisdom in high regard (although Plato holds it in higher regard that Nietzsche). The goal of this is to pass on the views of one to many, therefore changing the views of society. With or without meaning to, both of these philosophers are trying to evoke a rise in society. Plato and Nietzsche both were suspicious of government and wanted people to be at war with their time. From doing so, they hoped to create a change on an individual’s outlook on life.
As with most philosophers, the philosophical method of both Plato and Nietzsche was influenced by philosophers before them. Plato is the well-known protégé of Socrates. Many of Plato’s dialogues include Socrates in them or are written about Socrates, such as The Apology, which is Plato’s