No More Learning

And what knowledge! Nothing becomes clearer
to me year by year than the fact that the entire


## p. 197 (#239) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY. 197
Greek and ancient mode oflife, however simple and
evident it must seem to our eyes, is in truth very
difficult to understand, and even scarcely accessible,
and that the customary ease with which we babble
about the ancients is either giddy levity or the old
hereditary conceit of our thoughtlessness. We are
deceived by words and ideas which appear to re-
semble our own, but behind them there is always
concealed a feeling which must be strange, incom-
prehensible, or painful to our modern conceptions.
And these are realms in which boys are allowed
to roam about! Enough : we roamed about them
in our childhood, and there we became seized with
an almost ineradicable antipathy for all antiquity,
the antipathy arising from an intimacy which
was apparently too great! For so great is the
conceit of our classical teachers, who would almost
make it appear that they had gained full control
over the ancients, that they pass on this conceit to
their pupils, together with the suspicion that such
a possession is of little use for making people happy,
but is good enough for honest, foolish old book-
worms. "Let them brood over their treasure: it is
well worthy of them ! "—It is with this unexpressed
thought that we completed our classical education.
It can't be changed now—for us, at all events!
But let us not think of ourselves alone!
196.
The most personal Questions of Truth.
—What am I really doing, and what do I mean by
doing it? That is the question of truth which is
not taught under our present system of education,


## p. 198 (#240) ############################################

I98 THE DAWN OF DAY.
and consequently not asked, because there is no
time for it. On the other hand,we have always time
and inclination for talking nonsense with children,
rather than telling them the truth; for flattering
women who will later on be mothers, rather than
telling them the truth; and for speaking with young
men about their future and their pleasures, rather
than about the truth!
But what, after all, are seventy years! —Time
passes, and they soon come to an end ; it matters as
little to us as it does to the wave to know how and
whither it is rolling! No, it might even be wisdom
not to know it.
"Agreed; but it shows a want of pride not even
to inquire into the matter; our culture does not
tend to make people proud. "
"So much the better! "
"Is it really? "
197.
Enmity of the Germans towards En-
lightenment. —Let us consider the contributions
which in the first half of this century the Germans
made to general culture by their intellectual work.
In the first place, let us take the German philo-
sophers : they went back to the first and oldest stage
of speculation, for they were content with con-
ceptions instead of explanations, like the thinkers
of dreamy epochs—a pre-scientific type of philo-
sophy was thus revived by them. Secondly, we
have the German historians and romanticists: their
efforts on the whole aimed at restoring to the place
of honour certain old and primitive sentiments,


## p. 199 (#241) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY. 199
especially Christianity, the "soul of the people," folk-
lore, folk-speech, medievalism, Oriental asceticism,
and Hinduism. In the third place, there are the
natural philosophers who fought against the spirit
of Newton and Voltaire, and, like Goethe and
Schopenhauer, endeavoured to re-establish the idea
of a deified or diabolised nature, and of its absolute
ethical and symbolical meaning. The main general
tendency of the Germans was directed against
enlightenment and against those social revolutions
which were stupidly mistaken for the consequences
of enlightenment: the piety towards everything that
existed tried to become piety towards everything
that had ever existed, only in order that heart and
mind might be permitted to fill themselves and
gush forth again, thus leaving no space for future
and novel aims. The cult of feeling took the place
of the cult of reason, and the German musicians, as
the best exponents of all that is invisible, enthusi-
astic, legendary, and passionate, showed themselves
more successful in building up the new temple than
all the other artists in words and thoughts.
If, in considering these details, we have taken into
account the fact that many good things were said
and investigated, and that many things have since
then been more fairly judged than on any previous
occasion, there yet remains to be said of the whole
that it was a general danger, and one by no means
small, to set knowledge altogether below feeling
under the appearance of an entire and definitive ac-
quaintance with the past—and, to use that expres-
sion of Kant, who thus defined his own particular
task—" To make way again for belief by fixing the


## p. 200 (#242) ############################################

200 THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
—caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is "a great revolution," and again a great
"reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
Assigning Prestige to one's Country. —
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 201 (#243) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. --Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words, “Strike, but listen to me. ” (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18: “TéThadi on,
kpadin. kai kúvtepov aklo tor' érins . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kúwv, "a dog,” lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. —TR.


## p. (#244) ################################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is a great revolution," and again a great
“ reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility ; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 199 (#245) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. -—Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words, “Strike, but listen to me. " (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18 : “ Térdadi sń,
kpadin. kaì kúvtepov aklo nor' érins . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kúwv, "a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. -TR.


## p. 200 (#246) ############################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is “a great revolution," and again a great
"reaction" against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 201 (#247) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. --Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words,“ Strike, but listen to me. ” (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18: “Tétlaði on,
kpadin. kaì kúvtepov allo mot' érins . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kuwv, "a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. —TR.


## p. (#248) ################################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is “a great revolution,” and again a great
"reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility ; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 199 (#249) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. -—Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words,“ Strike, but listen to me. ” (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18: “Tétladı on,
kpaðin. kaì kúvtepov ärlo tot' érins . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kuwv, “a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. —TR.


## p. 200 (#250) ############################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is “a great revolution," and again a great
"reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 201 (#251) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. --Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words,“ Strike, but listen to me. ” (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18: “Tétlad, on,
kpadin. kaì kúvtepov allo tot érins . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kuwv, “a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. —TR.


## p. (#252) ################################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is “a great revolution,” and again a great
“ reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility ; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 199 (#253) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. -—Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks.
We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words, “ Strike, but listen to me. ” (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18: “Térdadı on,
kpadin. kaì kúvtepov allo tot' &tams . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kuwv, “a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. —TR.


## p. 200 (#254) ############################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is “a great revolution,” and again a great
“ reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility ; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 201 (#255) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY. 201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
We ARE Nobler. —Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic ; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, " Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! " As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words, "Strike, but listen to me. " (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18: "TtrXatfi 5>j,
K/moirj■ Kai KVVTfpov SKKo ■nor ? rA)js . . . " etc. Kvvi-fpor, from
«cu«o! >, "a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. —Tr.


## p. (#256) ################################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is “a great revolution,” and again a great
“ reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 197 (#257) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. --Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words,“ Strike, but listen to me. ” (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18: “Térdabi on,
kpadin. Kai kúvtepov ärlo tot'étans . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kúwv, “a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. —TR.


## p. 198 (#258) ############################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, thecomprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is “a great revolution,” and again a great
“ reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility ; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 199 (#259) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. --Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words, “ Strike, but listen to me. ” (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18: “Térdadi sń,
kpadin. kai kúvtepov ärlo tor' érins . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kuwv, "a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. —TR.


## p. 200 (#260) ############################################

200
THE DAWN OF DAY.
limits of knowledge. " Let us once more breathe
freely, the hour of this danger is past! And yet,
strange to say, the very spirits which these Germans
conjured up with such eloquence have at length be-
come the most dangerous for the intentions of those
who did conjure them up: history, the comprehension
of origin and development, sympathy with the past,
the new passion for feeling and knowledge, after
they had been for a long time at the service of this
obscure exalted and retrograde spirit, have once
more assumed another nature, and are now soaring
with outstretched wings above the heads of those
who once upon a time conjured them forth, as new
and stronger genii of that very enlightenment to
combat which they had been resuscitated. It is this
enlightenment which we have now to carry forward,
-caring nothing for the fact that there has been
and still is “a great revolution,” and again a great
“ reaction " against it: these are but playful crests
of foam when compared with the truly great current
on which we float, and want to float.
198.
ASSIGNING PRESTIGE TO ONE'S COUNTRY. -
It is the men of culture who determine the rank
of their country, and they are characterised by an
innumerable number of great inward experiences,
which they have digested and can now value
justly. In France and Italy this fell to the lot of
the nobility; in Germany, where up to now the
nobility has been, as a rule, composed of men who
had not much intellect to boast about (perhaps this


## p. 201 (#261) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY.
201
will soon cease to be the case), it was the task of the
priests, the school teachers and their descendants.
199.
WE ARE NOBLER. --Fidelity, generosity, con-
cern for one's good reputation: these three qualities,
combined in one sentiment, we call noble, dis-
tinguished, aristocratic; and in this respect we excel
the Greeks. We do not wish to give this up at
any cost under the pretext that the ancient objects
of these virtues have rightly fallen in esteem, but
we wish cautiously to substitute new objects for
these most precious and hereditary impulses. To
understand why the sentiments of the noblest
Greeks must be considered as inferior and scarcely
respectable in the present age, where we are still
under the influence of the chivalric and feudal
nobility, we must recall the words of consolation to
which Ulysses gave utterance in the midst of the
most humiliating situations, “ Bear with it, my dear
heart, bear with it! Thou hast borne with many
more swinish things * than these! ” As an instance
of this mythical example, consider also the tale of
that Athenian officer, who, when threatened with
a stick by another officer in the presence of the
entire general staff, shook off his disgrace with the
words,“ Strike, but listen to me. ” (This was
Themistocles, that ingenious Ulysses of the classical
* The reference is to the Odyssey, xx. 18 : “Térda, on,
kpaðin. Kai Kúvtepov állo hot'étans . . . " etc. Kúvtepos, from
kuwv, “a dog," lit. more dog-like, i. e. shameless, horrible,
audacious. -TR.


## p. 202 (#262) ############################################

202 THE DAWN OF DAY.
epoch, who was just the man at the moment of
disgrace to address to his " dear heart" that verse
of comfort and affliction. )
The Greeks were far from making light of life
and death because of an insult, as we, influenced
by a hereditary spirit of chivalric adventurousness
and self-devotion, are in the habit of doing; or
from looking for opportunities of honourably risking
life and death, as in duels; or from valuing the
preservation of an unstained name (honour) more
than the acquirement of an evil reputation, when the
latter was compatible with glory and the feeling of
power; or from remaining faithful to the prejudices
and the articles of faith of a caste, when these could
prevent them from becoming tyrants. For this is
the ignoble secret of the good Greek aristocrat: out
of sheer jealousy he treats every one of the members
of his caste as beingon an equal footing with himself,
but he is ready at every moment to springlike a tiger
on his prey—despotism. What matterlies,murders,
treason, or the betrayal of his native city to him!
Justice was an extremely difficult matter for people
of this kind to understand—nay, justice was almost
something incredible. "The just man " was to the
Greeks what "the saint" was to the Christians.
When Socrates, however, laid down the axiom,
"The most virtuous man is the happiest," they could
not trust their ears; they thought they had heard
a madman speaking. For, as a picture of the
happiest man, every nobleman had in his mind the
cheeky audacity and devilry of the tyrant who
sacrifices everything and every one to his own
exuberance and pleasure. Among people whose


## p. 203 (#263) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY. 203
imagination secretly raved about such happiness,
the worship of the State could not, of course, have
been too deeply implanted—but I think that men
whose desire for power does not rage so blindly as
that of the Greek noblemen no longer stand in
need of such idolatry of the State, by means of
which, in past ages, such a passion was kept with-
in due bounds.
200.
Endurance of Poverty. —There is one great
advantage in noble extraction: it makes us endure
poverty better.
201 ^
The Future of the Nobility. —The bearing
of the aristocratic classes shows that, in all the
members of their body the consciousness of power
is continually playing its fascinating game. Thus
people of aristocratic habits, men or women, never
sink worn out into a chair; when every one else
makes himself comfortable, as in a train, for ex-
ample, they avoid reclining at their ease; they do
not appear to get tired after standing at Court for
hours at a stretch; they do not furnish their houses
in a comfortable manner, but in such a way as to
produce the impression of something grand and im-
posing, as if they had to serve as a residence for
greater and taller beings; they reply to a provoking
speech with dignity and clearness of mind, and not
as if scandalised, crushed, shamed, or out of breath
in the plebeian fashion. As the aristocrat is able
to preserve the appearance of being possessed of a


## p. 204 (#264) ############################################

204 THE DAWN OF DAY.
superior physical force which never leaves him, he
likewise wishes by his aspect of constant serenity
and civility of disposition, even in the most trying
circumstances, to convey the impression that his
mind and soul are equal to all dangers and
surprises. A noble culture may resemble, so far
as passions are concerned, either a horseman who
takes pleasure in making his proud and fiery animal
trot in the Spanish fashion,—we have only to
recollect the age of Louis XIV. ,—or like the rider
who feels his horse dart away with him like the
elemental forces, to such a degree that both horse
and rider come near losing their heads, but, owing
to the enjoyment of the delight, do keep very clear
heads: in both these cases this aristocratic culture
breathes power, and if very often in its customs
only the appearance of the feeling of power is
required, nevertheless the real sense of superiority
continues constantly to increase as the result of the
impression which this display makes upon those
who are not aristocrats.
This indisputable happiness of aristocratic cul-
ture, based as it is on the feeling of superiority, is
now beginning to rise to ever higher levels; for
now, thanks to the free spirits, it is henceforth
permissible and not dishonourable for people who
have been born and reared in aristocratic circles
to enter the domain of knowledge, where they
may secure more intellectual consecrations and
learn chivalric services even higher than those of
former times, and where they may look up to that
ideal of victorious wisdom which as yet no age
has been able to set before itself with so good a


## p. 205 (#265) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY. 205
conscience as the period which is about to dawn.
Lastly, what is to be the occupation of the nobility
in the future if it becomes more evident from day
to day that it is less and less indecorus to take
any part in politics?
202.
TheCare of the Health. —We have scarcely
begun to devote any attention to the physiology of
criminals, and yet we have already reached the in-
evitable conclusion that between criminals and mad-
men there is no really essential difference: if we
suppose that the current moral fashion of thinking
is a healthy way of thinking. No belief, however,
is nowadays more firmly believed in than this one,
so we should not therefore shrink from drawing the
inevitable conclusion and treating the criminal like
a lunatic—above all, not with haughty pitiful-
ness, but with medical skill and good will. He
may perhaps be in need of a change of air, a
change of society, or temporary absence: perhaps
of solitude and new occupations—very well! He
may perhaps feel that it would be to his advantage
to live under surveillance for a short time in order
thus to obtain protection from himself and from a
troublesome tyrannical impulse—very well! We
should make clear to him the possibility and the
means of curing him (the extermination, transfor-
mation, and sublimation of these impulses), and also,
in the worst cases, the improbability of a cure; and
we should offer to the incurable criminal, who has
become a useless burden to himself, the opportunity
of committing suicide. While holding this in re-


## p. 206 (#266) ############################################

206 THE DAWN OF DAY.
serve as an extreme measure of relief, we should
neglect nothing which would tend above all to restore
to the criminal his good courage and freedom of
spirit; we should free his soul from all remorse, as
if it were something unclean, and show him how he
may atone for a wrong which he may have done
some one by benefiting some one else, perhaps the
community at large, in such a way that he might
even do more than balance his previous offence.
All this must be done with the greatest tact!
The criminal must, above all, remain anonymous
or adopt an assumed name, changing his place of
residence frequently, so that his reputation and
future life may suffer as little as possible. At the
present time it is true that the man who has been
injured, apart altogether from the manner in which
this injury might be redressed, wishes for revenge
in addition, and applies to the courts that he may
obtain it—and this is why our dreadful penal laws
are still in force: Justice, as it were, holding up a
pair of shopkeeper's scales and endeavouring to
balance the guilt by punishment; but can we not
take a step beyond this? Would it not be a great
relief to the general sentiment of life if, while getting
rid of our belief in guilt, we could also get rid of
our old craving for vengeance, and gradually come
to believe that it is a refined wisdom for happy men
to bless their enemies and to do good to those who
have offended them, exactly in accordance with the
spirit of Christian teaching! Let us free the world
from this idea of sin, and take care to cast out with
it the idea of punishment. May these monstrous
ideas henceforth live banished far from the abodes


## p. 207 (#267) ############################################

THE DAWN OF DAY. 207
of men—if, indeed, they must live at all, and do
not perish from disgust with themselves.
Let us not forget also, however, that the injury
caused to society and to the individual by the
criminal is of the same species as that caused by
the sick: for the sick spread cares and ill-humour;
they are non-productive, consume the earnings of
others, and at the same time require attendance,
doctors, and support, and they really live on the
time and strength of the healthy. In spite of this,
however, we should designate as inhuman any one
who, for this reason, would wish to wreak vengeance
on the sick. In past ages, indeed, this was actually
done: in primitive conditions of society, and even
now among certain savage peoples, the sick man is
treated as a criminal and as a danger to the com-
munity, and it is believed that he is the resting-place
of certain demoniacal beings who have entered into
his body as the result of some offence he has com-
mitted—those ages and peoples hold that the sick
are the guilty!
And what of ourselves? Are we not yet ripe
for the contrary conception? Shall we not be
allowed to say, "The guilty are the sick "? No;
the hour for that has not yet come. We still lack,
above all, those physicians who have learnt some-
thing from what we have hitherto called practical
morals and have transformed it into the art and
science of healing. We still lack that intense
interest in those things which some day perhaps
may seem not unlike the "storm and stress" of
those old religious ecstasies. The Churches have
not yet come into the possession of those who look


## p. 208 (#268) ############################################

208 THE DAWN OF DAY.
after our health; the study of the body and of
dietary are not yet amongst the obligatory subjects
taught in our primary and secondary schools; there
are as yet no quiet associations of those people
who are pledged to one another to do without the
help of law courts, and who renounce the punish-
ment and vengeance now meted out to those who
have offended against society. No thinker has as
yet been daring enough to determine the health of
society, and of the individuals who compose it, by
the number of parasites which it can support; and
no statesman has yet been found to use the plough-
share in the spirit of that generous and tender
saying, "If thou wilt till the land, till it with the
plough ; then the bird and the wolf, walking behind
thy plough, will rejoice in thee—all creatures will
rejoice in thee. "
203.
Against Bad Diet. —Fie upon the meals which
people nowadays eat in hotels and everywhere else
where the well-offclasses of society live! Even when
eminent men of science meet together their tables
groan under the weight of the dishes, in accordance
with the principle of the bankers: the principle of
too many dishes and too much to eat. The result
of this is that dinners are prepared with a view to
their mere appearance rather than the consequences
that may follow from eating them, and that
stimulating drinks are required to help in driving
away the heaviness in the stomach and in the brain.
Fie on the dissoluteness and extreme nervousness


## p.