Preface for Academics
To follow Nietzsche should imply some degree of agreement in form as well as content, and yet we academics too easily submit to the MLA style rather than the FWN style, and if that is not tragic enough, we do this despite being prodded by Nietzsche to go beyond – rather than beneath – him. And so, I introduce this unconventional little paper, which nowhere looks back, which always, unflinchingly looks forward.
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Introduction
“What separates us from the animals?” Socrates mocked his listeners by answering that the human animal is the only featherless biped. Modern science has a sobering influence, as it shows that even rats possess the virtue of love, at least of pity, as even they do not like to see their own kind suffer. Modern philosophic minds, void of Socratic irony, will speak of mankind’s unique ability to use symbolic language, a point well taken, though this ability belongs to even the lowest types of human beings and cannot be easily distinguished from the thinking and language displayed by other animals. Then what is the difference? Perhaps we have not been able to clearly differentiate human behavior from animal behavior because we can hardly begin manifesting those differences while the future-human has hardly been born.
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Thesis and Hypothesis:
Animals exhibit a spectrum of intelligence, and yet human intelligence is capable of exhibiting a unique level of control and power in all aspects of life.
Definition of Power:
Nowadays power is associated with exploitation and mismanagement. But there are other manifestations of power, even manifestations that are synonymous with harmony. Indeed, how can there be harmony among us if we do not control ourselves and have power over ourselves? And, since human life is easily ruined by stupidity, disease, earthquakes, drought and other natural disasters, does a harmonious life also require that we live in harmony with these problems, and if so, does living in harmony with them imply surrendering to them?
Clearly, living the harmonious life must mean that we somehow use our power to prevent unnecessary pain, work, and death. But how do we achieve this purpose? Through technology[1], prayer, magic and punitive laws? Or – if I may ask a rhetorical question – is the power we seek available in much simpler, more effective and more humane forms?
The History, Future and Aspects of
the Will to Power
0. Politics
Political power structures are vestigial behaviour patterns. Unto this very day, who can imagine a society without political inequality, that is, without alpha males and females, not to mention the omega masses? The term political equality includes marital and playground bullying, for there is no political difference between the bully and the tyrant, the sheep and the passive mass media consumer. That said, what kind of political structure would differentiate the human species and exhibit a unique power?
The world’s major religions did not directly address the problem of tyranny, certainly not in their principal precepts. Democracy, in theory, prevents tyranny by dictators, but it does not prevent a tyranny of mass stupidity. And so, today people imagine they live in democracies while in fact they have no power except to choose alpha-leaders, and even that miserable power is controlled by the media and spoiled by miseducation.
History and wisdom teach us that political inequality is unsustainable, and that ultimately the only sustainable power structure is the one between adults and children. In fact, among animals, human biological parents alone have the power to share the privilege of raising their children with other adults, a power whose benefit and necessity we should not underestimate.
1. Nutrition
Non-human animals do not control their nutrition resources. While every animal species undoubtedly plays a vital role in keeping its environment somewhat balanced, the buffalo cannot drought-proof its grasslands; the lion cannot encourage wildlife to reproduce and thus ensure its future food supply; even the honeybee, while it fertilizes the plants that produce its food, cannot prevent fires or maximize nectar production through good soil husbandry and other gardening skills. Such skills belong solely to the human species, which is more adaptable than the cockroach and alone can turn deserts into gardens.
The major religions have done nothing to foster such skills, and every major culture since the beginning of time has been largely ignorant of them. The modern food industry is not much better. Though regulations and incentives exist to prevent over-fishing and soil exhaustion and erosion, we generally degrade our resources and never improve them, as we have the power to do.
2. The Elements/Dwelling
Non-human animals rarely control their environment on any scale. Beavers perhaps exhibit the most power, and while the beaver somewhat controls temperatures within its lodges it does not dream of positively influencing outdoor temperatures. The beaver can indeed take measures to prevent flooding by painstakingly micromanaging its environment, but only humans can simply refuse to live where floods, tropical storms, landslides, earthquakes, fires, diseases and predations are likely to cause unnecessary suffering.
The major religions did nothing to address the question of environment and our power over it. Modern science micro-manages everything technologically. People invest years of income into paying for their homes, an investment which, compared to the minimal investments made by animals is evidence of regress, especially when one considers that the modern home is easily destroyed by storms, earthquakes or fires and is a toxic box that requires endless upkeep and whose monetary value is subject to irrational powers. And yet the power to remedy this tragic state of affairs is available, if only we are willing to apply such non-technological solutions as are offered by cob building material and desert-transforming permaculture.
3. Population
Non-human animals do not control their populations by altering their sexual behaviour; they reproduce without thought of environmental and mental resources. Humans alone are in a position to manage their numbers. Animals, in contrast, rely on nature to do so.
The world’s major religions did nothing to control population growth, and the Catholic religion even forbids control. Modern state governments like the Chinese have done better by attempting to reduce population growth, and others encourage contraception or reward reproduction with nominal financial incentives. However, as presently our population is a global problem, population must be controlled by a global authority, and since that is actually a horrific and shameful necessity, short of waiting for nature to cull our numbers, we who have the power of foresight ought to exercise the human power to limit reproduction.
4. Death
Other animals have no power over the timing and nature of their death, and often suffer unnecessarily and die in fear of death. Humans alone have the power to choose and define the nature of their death, not only as a physical event (euthanasia) but also as a mental experience. For, thanks to our intelligence, we are closer to death than even the elephants, who – apparently – are only able to contemplate it when they confront an environmental reminder.
The world’s major religions have done nothing to promote power over death, unless one counts their united effort to generate a dangerous ignorance by sanctifying the denial of death’s eternity. Today, modern nations do little to alleviate the weakness, and technologically advanced countries, when faced with death, exert their power by prolonging lives largely void of quality – even at great expense to the quality of other lives. To be truly human, I mean intelligent, we must exercise our power to limit our lifespan.
5. Eugenics
Other animals generally determine the genetic inheritance of their species by competing with one another for females, so that, generally speaking, all females breed. While presently competition continues to play a major role in determining human mating pairs, mating pairs are largely determined by the need for similar personal interests, that is, by selfish needs. The genetic inheritance of the child plays little or no role in determining mating pairs. I do not mean that we need governments to enforce draconian eugenic policies; for what distinguishes us from other animals is our ability to refuse to compete and voluntarily refuse to give defective genes to future generations.
Our religions have done nothing to promote this power over the future of our species; at most they have required abstinence from people seeking political power and power over their own destiny. Modern science has turned eugenics into an expensive, convoluted business based on absurd notions of perfection rather than on a humane, voluntarily exercised methods of prevention.
6. Sexuality
Other animals have very limited power over their ability to have sexual pleasure. Bonobos and perhaps other apes know how to masturbate, which is more than most human societies permit, but the ability to have intercourse and prevent insemination is exclusively human.
Sex was inseparable from a number of religions that sought to make all pleasures the domain of religion, until, to gain control over pleasure – the holy prostitute especially – it was cast out of the temple and into the promised afterlife. Pop culture has brought sexuality back with a vengeance, but ironically also makes sex an object of fantasy rather than an actuality. Scientists have painstakingly produced expensive (for most of the world’s population) means of birth control, and done this despite the free and easily mastered non-technological solutions available to everyone.
7. Humour
Few animals know how to laugh, and the few apes who do generally laugh at the expense of others, and do nothing to create comedy. Although the immediate effect of laughter is life enhancing to those who laugh, laughter can be destructive when it is used against others or as a medicine that only masks symptoms. Humans alone have the power to harness and purify this life-enhancing gift.
What have the major world religions done to encourage and develop comedy? Nothing. The modern, secular world is a bit more tolerant but not more discerning, as nowadays many jokes are made at the expense of others or simply exploit modern taboos, fears and neuroses without ever suggesting that such taboos, fears and neuroses are impediments to understanding, to mental health and to power – and why indeed would any stand-up risk destroying their livelihood?
8. Art, Music, Language
Perhaps the most human aspect of power, is art, for what other species produces art? Yet what is art? And what distinguishes our use of language from animal languages? Two things: our ability to create new combinations of words, and equally our ability to use our words to mean something else, even the opposite of their conventional meaning.
How does art manifest the will to power? Art is commonly called “powerful” when it stimulates an emotional response, and yet that power is not the most life enhancing power of art. For the destiny of art is to stimulate an intellectual pleasure by producing complex thought patterns.
What have the religions of the world done to develop the arts? Nothing except to make them tributaries and images of a power that does not exist. Imagine the stupidity of thinking that power could be passively absorbed through art; as if seeing a statue of a peaceful Buddha could communicate any real and sustainable sense of peace! In secular culture, the arts serve a variety of functions, none of them particularly peaceful ones, none of them particularly noble ones. Our pop culture factory products are merely an after-effect of absurdly complicated technologies that serve to produce awe, belief and deluded simpletons. Who today does not underestimate the complexity and clarity of thought – the power of thought – that the simplest instrument can produce?
9. Education
The majority of animals have no need for family or community, as each generation is born nearly ready to survive, with no need for an education. In contrast, higher life forms require an education, and generally speaking that education comes in the form of imitation. Through imitation and instinct, Nature controls the behaviour of successive generations. Humans alone have the power to let others control their children and to love all children as if they were their own, if only because ownership has ceased to mean anything, and we understand that our children require more attention than any two adults can provide.
What have holy men done to help parents educate and control their children? They sought to be everyone’s educators, and yet they taught everyone as one, and knew nothing of stages of mental development. The modern public school system does better, as it “frees” parents from the need to create their children beyond a young age, leaving parents with the illusion that they have no responsibility except to encourage their children to excel in an education system sorely incapable of giving children any of the other powers.
[1] Here I hesitate to use the word “science,” for science includes a far broader practice than what we call science today, which is science shackled to technology. The scientific method even applies to artistic experiments whose purpose is just to produce specific thought patterns and emotional effects.
