Mark Hendrickson, '07

Glad Tidings of a Crisis without Equal on Earth: An Interpretation of Nietzsche's Theory of Morality 

Mark Hendrickson’s project attempts to provide a lucid interpretation of the theory of morality developed by nineteenth-century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. His investigation into Nietzsche’s philosophy focuses on what the thinker says about the origin, definition, and value of morality in three works in particular: Human, All Too Human; Daybreak; and On the Genealogy of Morals. Additionally, Mark finds it necessary to analyze the moral philosophies of two other nineteenth-century thinkers—Arthur Schopenhauer and Paul Rée—to put Nietzsche’s ideas in context. The project leads to a discussion of the political implications of Nietzsche’s “revaluation of all values,” the phrase he uses to describe mankind’s overcoming of all morality and Christian morality in particular.