Open AccessGiftedness and Illness: A Reflection on Nietzsche's Biography and Work
Author(s) -
Ирина Викторовна Фролова
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
socialʹnye âvleniâ
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2305-7327
DOI - 10.47929/2305-7327_2020.02_83-91
Subject(s) - emptiness , existentialism , subjectivity , genius , meaning (existential) , perspective (graphical) , faith , psychoanalysis , epistemology , sociology , biography , psychology , philosophy , developmental psychology , literature , art , artificial intelligence , computer science
Gifted people’s mental health is an unsolved practical and research problem. The article aims to answer the question how psychopathology can become a dominant communication strategy of gifted people. The issues is approached by the analysis of giftedness concepts developed within psychological and sociological approaches.
The life and work of F. Nietzsche is analyzed as a bright example of genius struggling with a psychotic illness. Nietzsche’s spiritual quest ended in chaos and emptiness. However the meaning of his illness goes far beyond his own subjectivity. Nietzsche's madness turned out to be a new path, a different existence, and a crucial event which completely changed our idea of good and evil, faith and disbelief.
The philosophic approach to giftedness considers the existential meaning of the appearance of extraordinary people in society and analyzes their life history not only in terms of their subjectivity, but also in the perspective of the influence of their life and work on the subsequent development of society as a whole.