Under the symbol of Dionysus, god of annihilation, metamorphosis, tragedy, Nietzsche succeeded in fusing elements of the mythological with a new philosophical world view culminating in an anti-ethic «beyond good and evil». «Dionysian Aesthetics» delves into the three periods of Nietzsche's productivity, systematically analyzing the relationships between major works and adhering closely to Nietzsche's «Werdegang». The focus for an understanding of the aesthetic is shifted from «Die Geburt der Tragödie» to the late works of the philo- sophical-Dionysus period.

The superhuman (Übermensch) is a human being attuned to his or her environment in such a way that human and environment function as a whole, in keeping with Zarathustra’s prophecy that the superhuman is the meaning of the Earth. Nietzsche’s rhetorical embrace of the Earth in Thus Spoke Zarathustra is actually grounded in the works of the 1870s, in particular Human, All Too Human, whichdoes not receive its due in critical engagement but which requires serious critical revisitation if the ecological (...) Nietzsche is to be heard above his own rhetoric. When Nietzsche’s writings are considered from the standpoint of ecology, it emerges that the phrase “the superhuman shall be the meaning of the Earth” is not so much focused on a debatable vision of future humanity, but instead addresses strategies for inhabiting our finite Earth in a spirit of creativity, partnership, and meaningful daily interaction. The hotly debated doctrine of will to power, for example, undergoes clarification and grounding when subjected to ecological standards, resulting in a will to empowerment whose beneficiaries are not only humans who assume proper stewardship of the Earth, but all Earthly life forms insofar as the meaning of Earth must include them. (shrink)