Friedrich Nietzsche And His Philosophical Perspectives In Education

Philosophy and Education

The role of Philosophy in education is deeply rooted and the two fields are inextricably intertwined. Many a philosophers have created arguments to support the role philosophy has to play in establishing the process of education and pedagogy. Education is present in all cultures and societies and is used as a tool to furnish young minds with the right ideas and the knowledge to induct them into the world they live in. The educators engage in ways and techniques to impart ideas and knowledge to those who seek education in order to assist them in understanding the mechanisms of the society they reside in and the true origin behind the culture and traditions they follow. “To elaborate, education is a purposive activity that aims to endow its subjects with worthwhile abilities, knowledge and understanding through enabling learning, usually under the guidance of a teacher, in order to prepare them for life. ”

Several philosophers agree with the concept of introducing philosophy into the realm of education, however, many disagree with the way it is being used as a tool for improving the pedagogic processes to focus solely on traditional form of instruction that caters to the logical and rational side of the mind and not the creative side. Friedrich Nietzsche was one such philosopher who was fairly vocal about the education system’s process of instruction that often repressed or ignores the creative aspects of an individual’s brain. In his book “The Birth of Tragedy” he focused on two formats of instruction: Apollonian and Dionysian. Where Apollonian stood for the systematic and structured format of education, Dionysian was the reverse of its counterpart. Dionysian focused more on stimulating the creative and innovative parts of an individual’s brain. The Dionysian method of instruction was fairly unorthodox and too avant-garde for the traditionalists who believed that it promoted negligence and created lackadaisical individuals. However, Nietzsche believed that a proper balance between both formats would promote logical as well an innovation within individuals engendering the development of erudite young professionals.

Friedrich Nietzsche and his Contribution to Education

Friedrich Nietzsche (October 15, 1844 – August 25, 1900), a German philosopher and critic, was one of many philosophers to recommend different styles of instruction in pursuance of delivering true education to the masses. One of Nietzsche’s most renowned style of teaching in high schools and universities was the adaptation of Dionysian format of teaching along with the Apollonian format in order to not only follow a specified curriculum, but also to stimulate creativity. The Apollonian and Dionysian formats of education were originally followed by the Greek schools of thought and they essentially hold different techniques of instruction. While Apollonian format follows order and organization, Dionysian format follows jettisoning the systematization of institutions and encourages idealization of humanity and the human creativity.

Nietzsche, a professor of classical philology at the age of 24 years was considered as an academic prodigy. At the age of 27, he wrote and published his very first book “The Birth of Tragedy” which received mixed reviews among his peers. Soon, he released the “Attempt at a Self-Criticism” in order to critique his work and address the comments about the gaps in his knowledge that were made by the fellow philosophers and professors. He was a strong follower of Nihilism- a belief that life is meaningless and devoid of real existence and was highly critical of the existing education system as he believed that it did not account for the creative and imaginative side of the students. Nietzsche was also a fervent opponent of religion and religious beliefs and traditions and often claimed that teachers and instructors should leave all religious and moral ideologies behind as they enter a classroom in order to keep an open mind about the material they were teaching and to offer a completely unbiased subject matter. Nietzsche, at several levels, had flawed belief systems especially with the ideology of Nihilism, however, his contribution to education and to the system of education as a whole cannot go unappreciated as he brought about the beginning of something that would go on to being practiced several decades after his death.

Educational Implications of Nietzschean Philosophy

All educational processes involve a few cardinal principles. The most basic of these principles is to cater to the needs of the educational institutions, educators, education seekers (students) and the curricula. These are the main aspects that comprise of an education system and have undergone several transformations in order to best fit the needs of those who employ this system based on the changing times. The role of philosophy here is crucial as it helps provide insight in to what methods and processes of delivering an education would be well suited for the people who seek knowledge. It helps identify the gaps in the methods of instruction, the conflict and opposition between ideas and their execution, and clarifies the underlying concepts of theories related to education. Through philosophy, a smooth mechanism is created in the realm of instruction where the aforementioned aspects function as cogs that may seem insignificant in the grand scheme of pedagogy but are in fact extremely important components that ensure the machinery of education works devoid of any obstructions. A wrench in a single cog would topple the entire educational system. Therefore, philosophy has a significant impact on the process of education and cannot easily be separated from it.

Nietzsche understood the importance of the intricate role that philosophy plays in education and believed that a system bereft of a guiding credo would falter even before it could be implemented. His model of education was focused mainly on the students, whom he referred to as the receivers of education. Although, not specifically pupil-centric, his model did emphasize the importance of the role students play in the educational process. The model talked about constructing an education system that endorsed the development of the “ubermensch” or the superhuman. According to Nietzsche, ubermensch was the higher state of being a human was to aim for as a justification for the human existence. This could only be achieved with an education plan that appeased the analytical as well as the artistic, inventive side of each student. Based on this belief, a four element theory was posited by him that was designed to promote critical thinking as well as innovative thinking within the primary consumers of education. The four elements were:

1. An understanding and connection between the educator and the learner.
2. Promotion of healthy competition which was inspired by the Greek tradition of Agon or ‘contest’.
3. Abide by the doctrine of Amor Fati- a love of fate. This essentially promoted the acceptance and love for everything that happened in an individual’s life.
4. Education of the whole person; creating awareness within the person regarding the education they receive.

Nietzsche’s proposition was said to be applicable to not only contemporary education, but also proved to be a useful tool in understanding the problems that plague the educational systems as a whole.

Nietzsche was of the belief that self-overcoming was of utmost importance to truly comprehend the essence of contemporary education. In order to apply this belief to the current educational processes and institutions, his view of the “self” needs to be identified. In an ontological sense, Nietzsche never grew weary of polemicizing the “atomism of the soul” as he believed it was a reductionist approach to such a complex concept that self is. Despite the agonizing diatribes he engaged in regarding the self, a substantial idea was finally developed which stated that mankind could manage to free itself from the shackles of moral obligation and incarceration. For the most part, self-overcoming involves self-mastery with a cogent justification for the passions. To further Nietzsche’s beliefs, the idea was applied to the students and paralleled with the role of school. The students were introduced to the concepts of self-overcoming and nihilism. With arbitrary things losing their importance and purpose, the sense of self seems to inflate and a better understanding of the philosophical aspect in education was exposed. The schools, however, failed in their “role as agents of cultural transformation” and instead focused on the subject matter that merely introduced various cultures but did not expose the students to the experience, making them informed and wiser for their future. “. . . schools have continually re-casted their aims to meet the vapid and ephemeral requirements of state bureaucracy and national economy. ” “The schools with which we are familiar do not set out to raise individuals who may become the great ‘‘architects’’ of culture, or else a ‘‘stone in a great edifice’’”, “. . . through a rigorous and forward-looking education man can learn to sublimate and create the values which eventually engender a noble culture. ”

As Nietzsche viewed it, the presiding education system during his time taught students to expertly lie and follow orders without thinking or reasoning the commands they were being given. His belief was that any education system was supposed to teach a child self-respect and act on the principles they stood for.

For a child to learn obedience, morals play a significant role. Nietzsche claimed that obedience was taught in schools so diligently not only to keep the students in line but also to teach them to follow historical, cultural rules; a moral imperative for the whole mankind. “The nature of morality inspires us to stay far from an excessive freedom and cultivates the need for restricted horizons. ” Human beings are creatures of need and connection and cannot exist peacefully without a moral obligation to fulfill and rules to follow. However, “. . . subordination to the rules of a system of morality should not be understood as a deplorable restriction of an individual’s possibilities and the creative freedom; on the contrary, it is the necessary determination and limitation of the conditions under which anything can be conceived as possible. ”

Nietzsche’s idea and view of how human beings are when they come into interaction with the world also sheds light on why he wanted the education system to evolve in order to accommodate the aspects of human interaction to their society and world as a whole. He posited a theory that would teach and enable a child to learn self-overcoming which would help a child identify his own stance and meaning in the world. Without self-overcoming, a child is forced into a mould that is detrimental to the idea of self of the child and leads them to believe a false version of themselves crafted by a staunch school. This is dangerous when the child is finally exposed to the world and has to interact with it. According to Johnston (2005) a child’s foremost task in an educational setting is to become what they are and not be forced into being something they are not meant to be solely to satisfy the demand of the society.

Conclusion

Throughout the essay, we aim to establish how the ideas, works and beliefs held by the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche have been influential, useful and at times, redundant. Nietzsche had some strong beliefs regarding the education system and wanted the right people to hear and act on his concerns. He could recognize what effects the changing times had on the pedagogical methods, how it affected the relationship between the educator and the student and how it managed to retain so redeeming qualities still.

The implication of his ideas and beliefs has been significant in contributing to the betterment of the educational system and institutions. His work as an educational philosopher has been noted and followed intricately by those who appreciated and valued his contribution. Despite having some hostile thoughts about the future of education, he still felt that the educational process wasn’t too far gone and could still be salvaged and saved. Based on this philosophy, many philosophers and cultural commentators have set up a discourse to commence the improvement of the current method of pedagogical instruction, providing hope that the gaps in the current system be filled and certain redundant practices are discontinued and new, more efficacious techniques be adopted.

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