Beyond Good and Evil · Character

Plato

The grandiose idealist whose mise-en-scène style Epicurus mocked as theatrical, and whose noble morality the narrator dissects as self-glorification.

supporting

Also known as Plato

First appearance: I: Prejudices of Philosophers

As a supporting figure in Beyond Good and Evil, Plato is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Referenced as a foundational figure in the tradition of dogmatic philosophy that is being critiqued.

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Plato stands in the book as the archetype of the philosopher as actor — staging grand dramas of truth while his valuations remain physiological demands in disguise. The narrator uses him to illustrate how noble morality separates the exalted from the despicable and calls itself truthfulness. He matters because the critique of Plato's idealism is where the book's revaluation of all values begins in earnest.

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See Plato in I: Prejudices of Philosophers

Character Web

7 connections

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Relationship types

Rivalry
Professional
Other

Character groups

Ancient Greek Thinkers
Philosophical Archetypes
Protagonist
European Cultural Pantheon

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

The passage reveals the Wanderer's ultimate psychological exhaustion with seeking truth, climaxing in his desp…

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Relationships

Epicurus
rivalry · negative
They are presented as opposing philosophical types, with Epicurus often favored for his… How this plays out →
Socrates
professional · positive

Relationship notes

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See Plato in I: Prejudices of Philosophers

In the story

Plato appears across 12 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Beyond Good and Evil
Referenced as a foundational figure in the tradition of dogmatic philosophy that is being critiqued.
I: Prejudices of Philosophers
Critiqued alongside his followers for their 'grandiose manner' and 'mise-en-scène style,' presented as an example of philosophical posturing.
The Will to Truth
Implicitly referenced as part of the philosophical tradition whose reverence for truth is being interrogated.
7
Target of Epicurus's joke; associated with a 'grandiose manner' and 'mise-en-scène style' that Epicurus scorned. Represents the theatrical, inauthentic philosopher.
Chapter 9
Implicitly referenced as part of the 'old and everlasting story' of philosophy creating the world in its own image, a tradition the Stoics continue.
14
Exemplifies the aristocratic mode of thought that resists obvious sense-evidence, using pale, cold conceptional networks to master the 'mob of the senses' and achieve a higher form of world interpretation.
28
His 'secrecy and sphinxlike nature' is meditated upon; the discovery of Aristophanes' book under his pillow highlights a complex relationship with the culture he repudiated.
Chapter 30
Referenced indirectly as part of the Greek philosophical tradition that distinguished between exoteric and esoteric teachings, based on a belief in gradations of rank.
134
Implicitly referenced as a key representative of the philosophical tradition that distrusts the senses, which this statement opposes.
Chapter 190
Described as too noble for the core 'Socratism' in his moral philosophy; portrayed as the 'most daring of all interpreters' who reinterpreted Socrates in his own image.
191
Described as more innocent than Socrates, expending great philosophical strength to try to prove that reason and instinct lead spontaneously to the same good goal, setting a precedent for later theologians and philosophers.
Chapter 204
Referenced as one of the 'royal and magnificent anchorites of the spirit,' contrasting sharply with the contemptible modern philosophers.

Chapter companion notes

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