The Genealogy of Morals · Character

Schopenhauer

Schopenhauer treated sexuality as a personal enemy and needed his enemies—Hegel, woman, sensuality—to keep him in good humour and writing.

supporting

First appearance: the genealogy of morals

As a supporting figure in The Genealogy of Morals, Schopenhauer is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Nietzsche's great teacher, who deified pity and self-sacrifice as intrinsic values, leading Nietzsche to question their worth.

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As the philosopher who paid homage to ascetic ideals, he serves Nietzsche as both a personal case and a typical one, the most eloquent voice of philosophy's rancour toward sensuality. Without his enemies he would have run away from existence; his wrath was his balm, his recreation, his remedium against disgust. He matters because his pessimism lets Nietzsche ask what a philosopher really wants when he bows to ascetic ideals—and hints that he wishes to escape a torture.

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Character Web

6 connections

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Relationship types

Psychological
Rivalry
Other

Character groups

German intellectual decadence
Moral and cultural archetypes

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

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Relationships

Richard Wagner
psychological · ambivalent
Wagner was deeply influenced by Schopenhauer's philosophy, adopting his pessimism and… How this plays out →
Kant
rivalry · negative
Thomas of Aquinas
psychological · negative

Richard Wagner
Wagner was deeply influenced by Schopenhauer's philosophy, adopting his pessimism and ideas of the will, though Nietzsche saw this as a betrayal of art.
Kant
Schopenhauer built upon and fiercely criticized Kant's transcendental idealism, rejecting his categorical imperative as a disguised Christian morality.
Thomas of Aquinas
Schopenhauer's asceticism and denial of the will echo Aquinas's Christian renunciation, which Nietzsche condemns as life-denying.

Relationship notes

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In the story

Schopenhauer appears across 8 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Chapter 5
Nietzsche's great teacher, who deified pity and self-sacrifice as intrinsic values, leading Nietzsche to question their worth.
Third Essay: What Is the Meaning of Ascetic Ideals?
Cited as a philosopher who championed the ascetic ideal, using art and denial of the will as means of redemption.
Separating the Artist from the Work
Mentioned as an influence on Wagner's later style, which Nietzsche criticizes as Schopenhauerian and Nihilistic.
What Is the Meaning of Ascetic Ideals?
Schopenhauer's philosophy provided authority for Wagner and is examined as a case of a real philosopher paying homage to the ascetic ideal.
Chapter 6: Schopenhauer, Kant, and the Aesthetic Problem
Nietzsche critiques Schopenhauer's interpretation of Kant's aesthetic theory, particularly his view that beauty calms the will, which Nietzsche sees as a personal, pathological projection.
Chapter 7
Presented as a philosopher who raged against sexuality, woman, and sensuality, using enemies to sustain his existence and humor.
The Ascetic Ideal and the Philosopher
Mentioned in the context of the aesthetic state; Nietzsche critiques Schopenhauer's view that sensuality is removed by beauty, arguing instead that it becomes transfigured.
The Guilty Methods of the Ascetic Priest
Mentioned as having written much about himself, with his executor Dr. Gwinner destroying his papers.

Chapter companion notes

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See Schopenhauer in Chapter 5