Thus Spoke Zarathustra · Chapter
LVI: Old and New Tables explained
Zarathustra sits among old and new tables, waiting for his hour of descent.
What happens
Zarathustra sits among old and new tables, waiting for his hour of descent. He reflects on his past teachings, the creation of new values, and the need to surpass humanity. He calls for the destruction of old moral tables and the embrace of the Superman, redemption through creating, and the overcoming of weariness and sloth. He warns against parasites and preaches the joy of willing and creating.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
This is the dramatic climax because Zarathustra achieves the ultimate psychological peak of the *Yes-saying* p…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- The Übermensch and Self-Overcoming
Zarathustra teaches that man is a bridge to the Superman, a goal to be surpassed through creation and redemption of the past.
- Death of God and Revaluation of Values
Zarathustra calls for breaking old tables of good and evil, and creating new values through the will to power.
- Will to Power and Creation
Emphasizes willing as creating, and the need to compose and collect fragments into unity, redeeming the past through creative will.
Characters to notice
- Zarathustra
Sits among old and new tables, waiting for his hour of descent and reflecting on his teachings.
- The Superman
Referenced as the goal beyond man, the bridge to be surpassed.
- The Higher Men
Addressed as 'my brethren' throughout, called to break old tables and create new values.
Key passages
“When cometh mine hour? —The hour of my descent, of my down-going: for once more will I go unto men.”
Zarathustra waits for the moment to descend again among humanity.
Sets the stage for his return to the world.
“I taught them all my poetisation and aspiration: to compose and collect into unity what is fragment in man, and riddle and fearful chance; —As composer, riddle-reader, and redeemer of chance, did I teach them to create the future, and all that hath been —to redeem by creating.”
Zarathustra taught that the purpose is to unify the fragments of humanity and redeem the past through creative will.
Highlights the theme of redemption through creation.
“What falleth, that shall one also push! Everything of today—it falleth, it decayeth; who would preserve it! But I—I wish also to push it!”
Zarathustra advocates for actively pushing what is already decaying, rather than preserving it.
Emphasizes the need to destroy old values to make way for the new.
