Nihilism... where 'nothing matters'

Doesn't mean anything to me!

I knew it was coming... Frank... :wink:

I would comment, but this is the philosophy forum - philosophy meaning "love of knowledge".

Oh !

Re: Nihilism... where 'nothing matters'


Not true. Yes, our individual consciousness will end, but the human race will go on. In a few centuries there may be no physical trace of our existence, but we leave a legacy with our children and with everyone whose lives we touch. There is a ripple effect when they transmit our thoughts to others, who interact with others, and so on.

Most importantly, our experiences matter to us as long as we are alive. So what if there is nothing else?

Bravo Terry. You hit the bullseye, as far as I'm concerned.

Yes embracing Nihilism means that in the end- there is nothing. But that does not mean life is for naught. Become the Superman. Leave your mark on the world. Everything you say and do has an effect (no matter how small or whether or not you are capable of recognizing it) on the rest of the world and beyond, for the rest of existence. Its all part of that butterfly effect and the cone of experience.

And when you think about it, when all of the other metaphysical philosophies and religion come down to it. Thats all there really is. You become so changed or removed from this experience that you might as well have ceased to exist.

If there's nothing in the end, why so many people still talk about Nietzsche's Nihilism? Poor guy, he left his legacy and he couldn't prove that no one would remember him after his death.

If I'd thrown myself in front of a subway car on No. 6 line in Manhattan this evening... (I couldn't even find this thread and manage to enjoy reading your posts!)

...or maybe I could have done that... because someone just broke my heart today. But I'd still like to live my life and meet her again - tomorrow maybe. I do exist in order to do what I want and to love someone. That sounds existential enough, not in Nietzsche's way but Kierkegaard's (you don't like him? Oh who cares if there's nothing in the end that matters to anybody).

truth
I don't think of nihilism as total indifference, as not caring about anything because nothing can be known or valued absolutely. I see it as a conviction that in the absence of absolute knowledge or values we must carry on without such supports. We must, perhaps, create our own knowledge and values, as relative as it may be to our interests, culture and historical position. We may not have a solid--absolute--foundation to stand on; we may have to serve as our own foundation. That takes maturity and courage.

But isn't that the same thing, really? You're ingoring reality in favor of subjective reality.

truth
Sorry, Rufio. I don't understand.

hi i'm new to this site but from what i understand, nihilism is not just it doesn't matter cuz we're all gonna die, but let's destroy to get there faster. in an active pursuit of nihilism one should not care enough to learn, think, and do anything except things led from natural instincts such as eating,having sex, drinking(water), pissing, shitting etc.

however i'm very interested in existentialism mentioned earlier by metaethics, and nietzsche's ideas. i agree with the idea that morals are imposed by the society through a natural effort to balance existence.

i keep thinkin about the cave story by plato recently, and i'm gettin a hunch that science, philosophy are pointing the same direction. especially modern physics and existentialism. i neither have enough knowledge of both of these topics nor am articulate enough to hold an effective discussion on this "truth" they point to but if anybody feels the same way feel free to clarify this cloud of unorganized thoughts for me.

for anyone not aware of these topics i can briefly explain to my knowledge just the surfaces of them and so you could join the discussion and possibly help me out(i can't clarify my thoughts or why i have this hunch).

the cave pertains to a story by plato where there are some guys inside a cave. they're chained to a bench and are staring at the wall. there are shadows on the wall, and it ends up being that there is a fire behind these men,and the shadows come from carbboard cutouts of trees, buildings etc. anyhow this one guy eventually breaks the chain and runs outside. at first he can't see anything and gradually he is able to perceive, and so he goes back to the cave to inform the others. and they kill the man and go back to stare at the wall.
philosophy is the outside world or "perfect figures"
science/ math is the shadows

and a specific section of modern physics describe a state of partial presence. because when someone tries to look into something it changes, so in order to properly assess the state one must describe it in a different way.
i'm gonna try to simplify this because i'm running out of time and so here's a simple metaphor of a cat in the box told to me by a great friend of mine (thanx tg)
there's a cat in the box. but once u open the box, the cat dies or disappears. is the cat alive? in modern science, one would answer it's 50% dead, 50% alive.
The electron spinning around a proton in a simple hydrogen atom is another example. the electron revolves around the proton in a random pattern but it is possible to say that the electron is in that particular position on that energy field for certain percentage of its existence and so one would describe the electron as not a small negative charge that spins around a proton but that the energy ring is 1% existing around the proton.

ok i gotta go but if anyone has anything they can share/teach i'd appreciate it

people usually refer to nihilism as being pessimistic and life defeating, but i don't see how that is justified at all. i believe it's more to do with people's preconceived notions of nihilism. i think of it more as a conclusion of reality, that all things are relative, no absolutes, etc. what JLNobody said, basically. i think it's a powerful 'philosophy' in that it embraces the inevitability of death, the "meaningless" of existence (meaninglessness, again, not in a detrimental manner) so that one can be truly free to live and be free from idealistic constraints.

As i posted in June of last year:

truth
Yes, Epic, for after all what are "idealistic constraints" but desireable fictions.

Our nada who art in nada, nada be thy name thy kingdom nada thy will be nada in nada as it is in nada. Give us this nada our daily nada and nada us our nada as we nada our nadas and nada us not into nada but deliver us from nada; pues nada. Hail nothing full of nothing, nothing is with thee.
Ernest Hemingway

exactly, jlnobody! fictions, indeed. hopes, beliefs, god... useful for the majority of mankind, but unfortunately so, IMO.