The Perception of Socrates' Ethics in F. Nietzsche's Moral Philosophy: Overcoming Metaphysics and its "Eternal Recurrence"

Abstract

The subject of the study is to consider the perception of Socrates' ethics in Nietzsche's philosophy as a theoretical basis for the formation of the key provisions of Nietzsche's philosophy of morality, in particular, possible elements of metaphysical thinking in these provisions. Nietzsche's critical argumentation in relation to the philosophical views of Socrates was considered as the basis for the key provisions of Nietzsche's moral philosophy, particularly in the aspect of its connection with the question of metaphysics. The focus of the author's research is the analysis of the perception of Socratic ideas in the context of criticism of Nietzsche's project of metaphysics through the prism of morality: the idea of self-overcoming and the increasing will to power turn out to be the basis for understanding Nietzsche's new project in moral philosophy. The research methodology includes theoretical methods, historical-philosophical and ethical-philosophical analysis of the consideration of Socrates’ ethics by Nietzsche, and the influence of this consideration on the ethical position of the latter. As a research basis, the article uses the approaches of J. Deleuze, L. Klages, A.F. Losev, L. Shestova, V.M. Bakuseva. The novelty of the article lies in tracing the influence of Socratic ethics on Friedrich Nietzsche's formulation of the moral problem, especially in the aspect of the question of metaphysics in Nietzsche's ethical thought (both criticism of metaphysics and the continuation of some lines of the metaphysical tradition). The first line of Nietzsche's criticism of Socratic philosophy was to identify the influence of Socrates on the emergence of European nihilism. Nietzsche's second thought, in relation to Socrates, concerned the "theoretical man".The third idea, which can be designated as one of the most important features of Nietzsche's moral philosophy, was the idea of self-overcoming.