Questions tagged [nihilism]
Nihilism is a type of philosophical view that variously considers life as without objective meaning or without intrinsic value.
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Can Jim Morrison be considered a nihilist? [closed]
This question echoes this one about Brassens' philosophy.
I know Morrison was heavily influenced by Nietzsche, who is considered by some people as a nihilist (although his oeuvre was meant to go ...
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Is everyone's sense of power always predicated on diminishing that of someone else's? [closed]
Why think that everyone's sense of power always predicated on diminishing that of someone else's, and is it the case? I think the question isn't a trivial "no reason to think it".
power ...
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Which philosophers have defended both the claim that any attitude can ground meaning and moral error theory?
Which philosophers have defended both the claim that any attitude (a pro attitude to anything) can ground meaning and moral error theory? It may even be the the received view among the population in ...
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Do alethic nihilists think that all deception and secrecy has the same moral value that "lying" would to non-nihilists?
Do alethic nihilists think that all deception and secrecy has the same moral value that "lying" would to non-nihilists?
This seems strange if taken to extremes. So what separates a virtuous/...
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I think I finally understand alethic nihilism
So the definition of truth is that p is true if and only if p.
However, since the Liar Paradox states that p is true if and only if p is false, this is a contradiction.
So the words truth and falsity ...
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How Does Alethic Nihlism Address The "Changing Of Subject" Objection?
I recently read this article in my pursuit to understand wtf alethic nihlism is trying to say:
https://philarchive.org/archive/ASASIT
One of the objections to alethic nihlism is that alethic nihlism ...
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Alethic Nihlism
I read this article:
https://aeon.co/essays/on-the-advantages-of-believing-that-nothing-is-true
I just don't understand how someone can believe something is the case but is not true. It's like saying ...
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Was consciousness a mistake?
"I think human consciousness is a tragic misstep in human evolution.
We became too self aware; nature created an aspect of nature separate
from itself. We are creatures that should not exist by ...
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What is Alethic Nihilism?
I recently came across this reddit post:
https://www.reddit.com/r/askphilosophy/comments/15chen5/comment/jtwnkkw/
I think it has something to do with denying the truth predicate without denying the ...
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What would be a reasonable response to this take that we shouldn't ponder abstract propositions about the meaning of life?
X says: “That moment when you realise that you've spent your entire life endlessly pondering abstract propositions about the meaning of life instead of actually feeling like you've led a meaningful ...
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Are there any philosophers who work on ideas related to cosmicism (H.P. Lovecraft's literary philosophy)?
I was reading up on this idea of cosmicism that H.P. Lovecraft espoused. Wikipedia summarises the view nicely saying, "Cosmicism shares many characteristics with nihilism, though one important ...
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If the external world indeed exists, would the ontological nihilism idea be conclusively refuted?
Descartes’ cogito has been discussed and, in many’s minds’, refuted ad nauseam. Anywhere you’ll read about ‘nothingness’, you’re likely to encounter some discussion on Descartes and his self-believed ...
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Why care for anything in life? [closed]
Great philosopher friedrich Nietzsche in his Thus spoke Zarathustra told us a man should become an ‘ overman ‘ or ‘ ubermensch ‘i.e. someone who believes in the nihilism of the universe (Believing ...
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What to make of "time" and "time rightly spent" in the context of "the purpose of life"?
Friedrich Nietzsche in his Thus spoke Zarathustra told us a man should become a "overman" or "ubermensch" i.e. someone who believes in nihilism of universe (believing that life has ...
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Do humans need some agency over the world around them for their lives to have some sense or purpose?
This is a follow up to this question I was told to revise: If all work is automated, what will humans be able to do? After consideration I think that the only way to salvage that question is to break ...
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What is the point of Human Existence?
I have no experience in formal philosophy, so I apologise for the crudeness and generalism of everything I say here.
The Issue-:
Every time I try to motivate myself by logically connecting the ...
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What is the difference, after death, of a 90-year-old and a one-year-old?
If there is a person who died at the age of 90 and a baby who died at one year old, what is the difference between them afterwards? They are both in a state of nothingness, they cannot remember or ...
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Reference Request: Defense of the A-priori/A-posteriory distinction against psychological attacks
I was thinking over the concept of a priory reasoning coming from intuition that comes from the development of our intuitions through the duration of our lifes. Therefore Natural Heuristics does no ...
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Were there philosophers who viewed nihilism in a positive light?
I’d like to know if there were philosophers who proposed the basic presupposition of existential nihilism as the reason to live life passionately. Put otherwise, were there philosophers who explained ...
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If moral nihilism doesn't imply right or wrong, why is the common response filled with vitriol along the lines of "you must think murder is okay"? [closed]
If nothing is right or wrong, then murder would be neither right or wrong. If you're a moral nihilist, "morality" ultimately just becomes a set of wants and a matter of preference for the ...
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Is Egoism of Max Stirner idealization of Free consciousness?
In more simple language when Stirner talks about having no fix ideas or not treating ideas as sacred somehow makes it (Egoism of Stirner) having a fix idea itself ? Is creative nothing an idea or ...
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How to correctly understand the positions of ontological nihilism?
Lately I have been investigating ontological nihilism. However, different sources give completely different definitions of this philosophical position, which I have divided into two main groups.
The ...
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Can one be a nihilist?
From Wikipedia:
[Nihilism]... rejects general or fundamental aspects of human existence, such as objective truth, knowledge [...]
Rejecting something means to me, claiming that something is not true ...
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Why would it be rational to believe in Nihilism?
I am personally quite sure that there is no thing that gives meaning to our lives, there is no physical law that decides whether an action is good or bad and there is no purpose. Believing this seems ...
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Does an Absurdist try to create his/her own meanings?
I was reading about Existentialism in Wikipedia and in The Absurd section there are two sentences that seem conflicting to me. First we have:
The notion of the absurd contains the idea that there is ...
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What sort of thought is nihilism?
The basic question for nihilism (as I understand) is "Why do I exist?" As they try to deny it.
I was wondering that this is not a well defined concept. The argument is as follows, I exist ...
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Does Japan and Chinese Buddhism Teach Solipsism or Nihilism?
Do the modern schools of Buddhism Soto, Rinzai, Jodo-shu, Jodo Shinshu, Nichiren, Shingon in Japan teach Buddhists, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas any varieties of solipsism and any varieties of nihilism?
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What was the Nietzsche's argument against theory of evolution?
I had read about it a decade ago, but it looks like now I have forgotten his point. Can I know what was his argument against Darwin?
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Is there a philosophy of not-knowism?
I believe that we humans are forever trapped in our (conditional, limited, and flawed) perception which separates us from the reality. In simple words, I don't and will never know anything and never ...
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Is morality possible under mereological nihilism?
My understanding of mereological nihilism is that the only things that truly exist are fundamental particles. There are no humans, no planets, no stars, no animals, no trees, etc. There are only ...
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In what way is immoralism good for the Übermensch?
In what way is immoralism good for the ubermensch?
And, if there is no fact of the matter that I, you, or in deed anyone, is or isn't Nietzsche's higher type, as the SEP seems to say, then does that ...
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How to deal with nihilist approaches to live a productive life? [closed]
Right off the bat, I'm a high school science student with no academic background in philosophy, other than mere personal interest. I've read meditations (like everyone else), general articles and have ...
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Does existential nihilism draw the false conclusion that humanity is insignificant?
This question is based on the assumption that the information on Wikipedia on existential nihilism is correct.
I mean to question the validity the following text, quote:
Existential nihilism is the ...
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Is absurdism the next step after nihilism
I believe I am nihilist. I had the realization that there's no meaning to life and everything we've created is just to fill that empty void, every social construct is merely a "philosophical ...
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How does the superman have value, if morality and humanity don't?
What does 'beyond good and evil' mean really? A lot of commentators seem -- to me -- to write as if talking about someone so perfect that they are beyond moral vices, and with that, judgments of ...
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Is Nietzsche's goal -- for the "overman" and "higher type" -- just 'forgetfulness'?
Is Nietzsche's goal -- for the overman and higher type of human being -- just the Buddhist concept of "forgetfulness" or dukkha?
I am asking because it makes sense in my -- somewhat -- ...
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Could NIetzsche be read as saying Aufheben is the meaning of life?
It is unclear what the 'will to power' means, and if it is about the world
The will to power doctrine seems to claim that everything that exists
rests fundamentally on an underlying basis of “...
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Who were the famous moral nihilists (philosophers) of 20th and 19th century?
If existential nihilism claims nothing has meaning does it also take moral values in to account?
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What is the link with nihilism and hypocrisy?
What is the link with nihilism and hypocrisy? I know that Nietzsche mentions hypocrisy. I think to the effect that the old values helped it flourish, that it is now debased, with at least the ...
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Nietzsche’s views on human curiosity
I chanced upon Friedrich Nietzsche’s ‘On truth and lies in a non moral sense’. Although I’m not technically a ‘philosopher’ (but aren’t we all philosophers), I’m not sure I agree with his views on ...
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Where did Nietzsche say he was not the overman?
Where did Nietzsche say he was not the overman?
I know that Zarathustra does too, but seems to be.
I'm interested because I can't easily conceive of a more thorough nihilist, at least without AI ...
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Personal and unviersal existential nihlism
Let's say Alice has logically arrived at existential Nihilism, which is
the philosophy that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value (wiki)
This carries two claims,
Alice's ...
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What do all these types of nihilism mean?
Nihilism manifests itself in various contexts—for example,
individual and collective, historical and psychological—and different
expressions, for instance, ontological, epistemological, ethical,
...
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What is the goal of the Übermensch?
I have been reading Thus spoke Zarathustra, and i understand that Man should attempt to act to be like an Overman, or a bridge to one. But i have a dilemma:
Is the Übermensch the final goal of ...
user36580
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Why does Nietzsche think suffering is great?
"But not to perish from internal distress and doubt when one inflicts great suffering and hears the cry of suffering : that is great, that belongs to greatness." The Gay Science, Fourth Book, 325
How ...
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Is Schopenhauerian pessimism truly passive nihilism?
Nietzsche referred to Schopenhauerian pessimism as passive nihilism. Does the categorization happen to be true or is Nietzsche's analysis somehow flawed?
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How to avoid nihilism as an agnostic?
As an agnostic I end up as a nihilist on morality. Philosophers say we need a framework for morality but if that framework is religious, which itself is not empirical and sometimes is contradictory, ...
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Is there an aspect of the person that is outside time and or size? Does anyone argue that to defeat nihilism?
Is there an aspect of the person that is outside time or scale? Does anyone argue that to defeat nihilism, and does that come up in discussing value nihilism?
I just think that anyone who claims that ...
user35983
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Nihilist paradox
As Nietzsche is an obvious example, I am focusing on him.
I think that there are no nihilist philosophers, because if someone is a nihilist, why would the nihilist even bother telling us? As a ...
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Why did Nietzsche say he would not live his life again?
Why did Nietzsche say he would not live his life again?
Kaufman Gay Science p. 19 introduction...
“Nietzsche in ... one of his
notes... “I do not want life again. How did I endure it? ...
user35983