Author Description

Analyzes Nietzsche's perception both of contemporary Jews and of ancient Israel. After a period of antisemitism in his youth and during his association with Wagner, he became its decided opponent. He saw in the Jews an essential element in the breeding, by hybridization, of the new European ruling elite: they would contribute "Geist" (spirit, intellect), which was missing in the Prussian aristocracy. By "Geist" he meant "caution, patience, cunning, dissimulation, adaptability, strength of faith", and, above all, tenacity - all attributes for which Jews were generally blamed but which Nietzsche admired because they created a strong hold on life and enabled the Jews to survive through the ages. Both the Jews' despicable and their admirable racial qualities evolved, according to Nietzsche, in Lamarckian fashion through the influence of the environment - persecution and enslavement on the one hand and the rule of priestly law on the other. Analyzes Nietzsche's changing and ambivalent views on the role of the Jews in the history of peoples, religions, and morals, showing that in many cases - e.g. the influence of the priesthood - Nietzsche compares Judaism and Christianity to the disadvantage of the latter.