Reflection Prompt

Does Origin Undermine Authority?

On Nietzsche's genealogical challenge to moral knowledge

Nietzsche's genealogical project makes a strong claim: that our moral concepts, specifically the concepts "good" and "evil" that organize Western moral consciousness, did not arise from insight into moral truth. They arose from ressentiment, from the psychological needs of the weak, from a slave revolt against the values of the powerful. If Nietzsche is right about the origin of these concepts, what, if anything, follows?

This is the question for your reflection. It is genuinely open: serious philosophers have argued for very different answers, and the best reflections will be ones that think through the problem rather than assert an answer.

The prompt

Take a position on the following question: If Nietzsche is correct that our moral concepts originated in ressentiment and the slave revolt in morality, does that give us any reason to doubt or revise those concepts?

your reflection should:

  1. State your position clearly. Does the genealogical origin Nietzsche describes give us a reason to doubt our moral concepts? Yes, no, or something more nuanced? Your opening paragraph should make your answer plain.
  2. Support your position with a specific argument. If you think origin does undermine authority: explain exactly how, and why the psychological or historical source of a concept bears on its validity. If you think origin does not undermine authority: explain why the origin is morally irrelevant, and what would be required to actually evaluate a moral concept rather than just trace its history. If your position is more qualified, say what the qualification is and why.
  3. Engage with Nietzsche's text. Your argument should refer to something specific in the Preface or First Treatise, not just to Nietzsche's position in general. What exactly does he say, and how does it bear on your answer?
  4. Address the strongest counterargument to your position. If you say origin does undermine authority: acknowledge that this might commit you to a problematic conclusion (that any morality with a historical origin is suspect, which arguably includes all of them). If you say origin does not undermine authority: acknowledge that this risks being too quick to dismiss the challenge, since Nietzsche might not be making only a genetic argument. Meet the objection rather than ignoring it.

Test your own answer

Once you have taken a position, push the argument forward instead of stopping at agreement or disagreement. If you argue that origin does undermine authority, ask yourself: does that apply to all origins, or only origins rooted in resentment? Would a moral concept that arose from love or reason be immune from the same challenge? If you argue that origin is irrelevant, ask yourself: what would a Nietzschean say in response, and can it be answered? The best reflections are the ones that make you think more carefully about what you claimed.

You can also bring in the other thinkers from this course. How would Aristotle, Kant, or Mill respond to Nietzsche's challenge? Is one of their accounts of moral foundations better positioned than the others to answer it?

Your Reflection

This is a thinking space — your response is not saved or submitted. Copy your work if you want to keep it.