Friedrich Nietzsche and Dr. King’s contributions in the field of philosophy remains an integral. Despite both being philosophers, they had divergent perceptions as far as life was concerned. Nietzsche as a philosopher hailed from Germany with the trend of his works depicting the materiality reality model. On the other hand, Dr. King was an African-American. Moreover, Dr. King believed in the existence of God whereas Nietzsche was an atheist. Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil underlines a critique of the societal trends as illustrated by the vast collection of commentary and aphorism depicted in his work. Nietzsche’s work underscores the fact that appreciating the truthful will and value remains the most critical element in the world as he postulated of such a future. Contrary to expectations, Nietzsche downplays the significance of promoting equal rights. Instead, he underscores the essence of justice in the society while pointing the fact that some people in the broader community context are demeaned. Nevertheless, he believed that dominating other people was vital. As a result, the work portrays Nietzsche’s discontent in the manner in which some people’s worth is undervalued at the expense of those who are less deserving (Nietzsche 378). Dr. King believed in the existence of good and evil in the society. Moreover, his views aimed at highlighting the essence of assisting other people as well as the fact that the unjust laws ought not to be laws in the first place. Even though the two authors of the works are both philosophers, an analysis of their practices with consideration of the reality remains an integral aspect. As a result, the paper will shed some light on the works of the two philosophers through a comparison.
Friedrich Nietzsche underlines the need to ensure there are elements of justice in the society. He is disturbed by the fact that gradations remain the order in which the organization is structured. Also, Nietzsche is the fact that the existence of aristocracy is essential in the society. All in all, he is against the aspects of functionality with regards to the nobility. Instead, Nietzsche viewed gradation as a significant tool that should accept with a good conscience the sacrifices of all the people. He wanted an aristocracy that beats down the weak as he viewed them as not willing to sacrifice enough for the good of the society. He underlined the people in the lower caste as the beast as a result of their psychic power. The mental ability enables them to undertake diverse roles with ease as compared to the vulnerable and weak people in the society. According to Nietzsche, we should be in a position to beat down the vulnerable by transmitting the psychical power to enable them to be more complete men. Nietzsche used the example of the Javanese climbing plant in a bid to support his claim (Nietzsche 382). The plant makes an effort to reach greater heights by curling itself on other bodies. As a result, Nietzsche points at the example of the plant with regards to the adequate behavior required from human beings. He views the fact that humans ought to be responsible for ensuring the existence of justice by taking own initiatives that involve them rather than waiting for other people to do the work of guaranteeing fairness exists. Nietzsche assumes that life is good. He, however, views the fact that beating down people remains a vital aspect as far as aristocratic life is concerned. For instance, Nietzsche notes that “To refrain mutually from injury, from violence, from exploitation, and put one's will on a par with that of others: this may result in a certain rough sense in good conduct among individuals” (Nietzsche 379). Moreover, Nietzsche postulates the fact that the weaker and the strong are using each other. In the event where the weak would want to use the strong and instead not let them use them, they would not contradict the principle of non-contradiction.
On the other hand, Martin Luther King, Jr. underlines the need for better treatment of the vulnerable black people. Through the letter, he highlights vivid reasons as to why the people ought to understand his motives to ensure the African-Americans are well treated. In his letter, King asserts that the black people should be in a position to enjoy their rights properly just as their white counterparts (Martin Luther King 484). Besides, he urges the African-American people to remember the fact that they had waited for a more extended period to enjoy the rights they so yearned. In the letter, King underscores the need to embrace the silver rule by ensuring individual treats another person in a manner he would wish to be treated. For instance, King notes that “An unjust law is a code that a numerical or power majority group compels a minority group to obey but does not make binding on itself.” King appealed to the principle of non-contradiction as he sought to ensure the whites were bound to the principalities that bound the African-America community. For instance, the Blacks despite being the majority were denied their right to vote in Alabama yet their white counterparts engaged in the act. During the period, the Blacks faced mistreatment from their white peers (Martin Luther King 487). The policemen instead of ensuring security in the Black localities, they kicked and shot the blacks who were innocent. For instance, King’s daughter encountered racial discriminated by being denied entry to the Funtown. Similarly, his son experienced events where the whites mistreated their black counterparts. As a result, the whites contradicted themselves into believing they were okay yet they harmed the African-Americans. On several instances, King appealed for justice to ensure the existence of fairness as far as the manner of treating the Blacks was concerned. He viewed legitimacy as a law that uplifted the human person instead of degrading it. For instance, in Alabama, if truth existed, the Blacks would enjoy their rights such as voting (Martin Luther King 490). Moreover, King appealed for democracy to come to the aid of the Blacks as it could ensure the African-Americans experienced their legislative reasons among others.
In conclusion, Nietzsche’s ‘Beyond Good and Evil’ was better as compared to King’s ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail.’ Nietzsche based his approach to attacking the works of other philosophers. Unlike King whose work was based on an emotional and moral point of view, Nietzsche approach of critiquing other philosophers as he views the lack of logic in their thoughts plays a significant role in my choice. Nevertheless, King’s work depicts a linear trend with emotions conveyed in several instances that is captivating to the reader. However, emotions rarely underline the aspects of logic. As an aspect of logic, identity is evident in Nietzsche’s work.
Works Cited
Martin Luther King, Jr. “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in Fifty Readings in Philosophy, 4th ed. New York City: Donald Abel, 2012. Document.
Nietzsche, Friedrich. Beyond Good and Evil in Fifty Readings in Philosophy, 4th ed.
New York City, Donald Abel, 2012. Document.
[1]Martin Luther King, Jr. “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in Fifty Readings in Philosophy, 4th ed. New York City: Donald Abel, 2012. Document.
[2]Nietzsche, Friedrich. Beyond Good and Evil in Fifty Readings in Philosophy, 4th ed. New York City, : Donald Abel, 2012. Document.
