Born: 10/15/1844   Died: 8/25/1900

Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche, born in a small Prussian town near Leipzig, began his career as a philologist (classicist) before turning to philosophical writing. His sharp critiques of culture - science, history, philosophy, art and religion - were highly influential on modern and postmodern philosophy, art, and theology. Nietzsche's literary boldness, exemplified in his famous proclamation, 'God is dead...And we have killed him.', declares the challenge of modern nihilism. While not a systematic thinker, his philosophical theme has been characterized as 'perspectivism', which is a strategy of interpretation used to demonstrate that values can be reverted when seen from a different position. His well-known works include The Birth of Tragedy, Human All Too Human, The Gay Science, Thus Spake Zarathustra, On the Genealogy of Morals and Twilight of the Idols. Some of his famous 'doctrines' include the 'eternal recurrence of the same' and the will-to-power. His influence in the political arena is still a hotbed of controversy today.