ABSTRACT
In “Ecce Homo”, Nietzsche presents himself, at the same time, both as a doctor and a sufferer. If in his writings he conceives the philosopher as the physician of the culture, in this book he also appears as a patient. The present paper aims at questioning about the reasons which led Nietzsche to adopt this way of doing in “Ecce Homo”. Taking the analysis of the first chapters of this book as a start point, we intend to clarify, first of all, its authors’ dual condition as both a doctor and a sufferer, particularly exploring his idea of taking himself in hand. Then examining the last chapter of the book in the light of these analyses, we attempt to find out what allows Nietzsche to make the transition from his condition of being his own doctor to the condition of physician of the culture. Thereby, we aim at elucidating the fundamental relationship between Nietzsche’s conceptions of philosophy and of life.
Keywords
Nietzsche; medicine; culture; transvaluation; philosophy; life