Beyond Good and Evil

Friedrich Nietzsche opens Beyond Good and Evil with a bold assertion that the entire foundation of Western philosophy rests on a false belief in objective truth. For millennia, philosophers such as Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, and Kant had assumed that through reason, humans could uncover absolute truths about morality, the universe, and the nature of being. Nietzsche demolishes this assumption, claiming that all knowledge is interpretation, not discovery. Truth, he argues, is a human invention—an instrument for survival and control rather than an eternal reality.

Nietzsche likens truth to a “mobile army of metaphors” — words and concepts that humans have created, repeated, and eventually forgotten were invented. For example, when people say “the sun rises,” they’re not describing reality but a convenient linguistic construct. The same goes for ideas like justice, reason, or morality. These are not discovered principles but cultural products shaped by centuries of psychological, political, and linguistic evolution.

He blames Plato for setting philosophy on the wrong path. Plato’s “theory of forms” divided reality into two realms: the flawed, sensory world and the perfect, immutable realm of ideas. This split, Nietzsche says, created a deep-seated hostility toward life—the real, changing, sensory world was dismissed as inferior. Plato’s metaphysical dualism inspired Christian theology, which turned away from earthly experience toward an abstract, “higher” truth. For Nietzsche, this obsession with absolute truth marked the beginning of philosophy’s great delusion.

Nietzsche also critiques René Descartes, who sought certainty through rational introspection (“I think, therefore I am”). Nietzsche argues that even this statement depends on cultural assumptions—what it means to “think,” to “be,” or to call oneself an “I.” Descartes believed he could strip away bias and reach pure objectivity, but Nietzsche insists that such neutrality is impossible. Even logic, he says, is a human creation that reflects our instinct to simplify the chaos of reality into manageable patterns.

Instead of pursuing “Truth” with a capital T, Nietzsche urges us to accept that truths are perspectives—useful fictions that vary depending on who speaks them and for what purpose. One person’s truth may empower them; another’s may enslave them. What matters is not whether something is objectively true but whether it enhances life and vitality. A belief that gives strength—even if technically false—may be more valuable than a truth that weakens.

For example, the belief that life has meaning, though unprovable, can inspire individuals to act creatively and courageously. Conversely, a “truth” like nihilism (“nothing matters”) can destroy vitality. Thus, Nietzsche shifts the question from “Is it true?” to “Does it serve life?”

The Real Motive Behind Philosophy: The Will to Power

Having dismissed the illusion of objectivity, Nietzsche examines what truly drives philosophy—and indeed, all human behavior: the will to power.

He defines the will to power as the fundamental drive within all living things to expand, dominate, express strength, and impose form upon the world. It is not merely a desire for survival, as Darwin suggested, but an urge to grow, to overcome resistance, and to shape reality according to one’s will. Even the simplest organisms, Nietzsche suggests, ...