Sem. Renz Gierald B.

Caballa 4th Year | TUBOD Class

Rev. Fr. Herman Licayan Postmodern Philosophy
A Book Review on “The Birth of Tragedy”

Personal Background
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was born on October 15, 1844 in the small town of
Rocken, Germany. He was named from the Prussian King, Friedrich Wilhelm IV, on
whose birthday he was born, and who was responsible for appointing his father as town
minister. Just five years later, Nietzsche's father lay dead of a brain ailment, followed by
his younger brother six months later. Shortly thereafter, Nietzsche moved with his
mother to Naumburg.

The Apollonian and Dionysian

There are twenty-five chapters and a foreword in The Birth of Tragedy. The first
fifteen chapters are on the origins of Greek tragedy, which Nietzsche argues arose
when the Apollonian and Dionysian worldviews collided. The Greek model is used in the
last ten chapters to analyze the situation of modern culture, both its fall and potential
revival. The text has a motivational tone to it. "Dare now to be tragic men, for ye shall be
redeemed!" says Nietzsche at the close of chapter twenty. Such exclamations make it
more difficult to take his book seriously. However, if we look past the flowery language,
we may uncover some extremely intriguing concepts. At the same time, we must
address Nietzsche's huge bias, particularly in determining what constitutes "art," as
Nietzsche establishes a very stringent definition of art that eliminates things like
subjective self-expression and opera. Despite his criticisms of human society, Nietzsche
believes in the human soul and urges us to abandon our Socratic pretensions and
embrace the Dionysiac culture once more.

Before the impact of Dionysus, Nietzsche views Greek art as unsophisticated and
concerned solely with appearances. The spectator was never completely joined with art
in this notion of art since he stayed always in calm contemplation with it, never
immersing himself. Apollo's looks were created to shield man from the world's inherent
sorrow, and thus bring some solace and consolation.

Then there was Dionysus, who astonished the Apollonian man of Greek civilization with
his high-spirited celebrations. In the end, however, redemption from the world's misery
could only be achieved by immersing oneself in the Dionysian essence of Primordial
Unity. Man discovered in Dionysus that his existence was not restricted to his particular
experiences, and so a way to avoid the fate of all men, which is death, was discovered.
Because the Dionysian essence is timeless, connecting with it provides a new source of
life and hope. As a result, Nietzsche portrays Dionysus as an uplifting alternative to
Christianity's salvation, which requires man to completely abandon earthly life and focus
solely on heaven. Because, to be saved by Dionysus, one must immerse oneself in life
right now.

While man can only find salvation in Dionysus, Apollo is required to disclose Dionysus'
essence through his manifestations. The chorus and players in tragedies were
manifestations of Dionysus' essence, which was given a voice to communicate through
them. Man was able to enjoy the joys of redemption from worldly misery through them.
These Apollonian appearances also served as a barrier against Dionysus' uproar,
allowing the audience to be entirely immersed in Dionysian ecstasy. The elements of
Dionysus and Apollo were inexorably linked in true tragic art, according to Nietzsche.
Music was the life of the tragic art form, as words could never aspire to dive into the
depths of the Dionysian spirit.

Music resides beyond of the sphere of language, allowing us to transcend

consciousness and experience our connection to the Primal Unity. Music is superior to
all other arts in that it represents the "global will" rather than a phenomenon.

Euripides, according to Nietzsche, is the "murderer of art," as he was the one who
brought the Socratic fixation with knowledge and ultimate faith in human reason to the
stage. Euripides eliminated the musical aspect that is essential to the Dionysian
experience by focusing solely on the individual. Euripides expelled Dionysus from
tragedy, destroying the delicate balance between Dionysus and Apollo that is essential
to creativity. Nietzsche discusses the current repercussions of this transition in Greek
philosophy in the second half of his article. He claims that we are still in the Alexandrian
epoch of culture, which is nearing the end. He writes that science cannot explain the
secrets of the universe, and that we must now acknowledge this truth owing to Kant and
Schopenhauer's work. The hour has come for tragedy to resurge and sweep away the
dusty remnants of Socratic culture. The beginning of this metamorphosis, according to
Nietzsche, is German music, particularly Wagner's. While German culture is
deteriorating, the German character is thriving, as it has a glimmer of primordial vigor
coursing through its veins. Nietzsche is optimistic about the future and has created this
book to help us prepare for it.