The Politics of Truth: Power in Nietzsche’s Epistemology:

This article concerns first a curiosity found in Friedrich Nietzsche's The Antichrist. In the midst of a heated attack on Christianity, Nietzsche detours into a discussion of epistemology. I argue that this turn indicates the importance of epistemology, and illustrates its political and moral character. The weak, who cannot tolerate uncertainty and shades of gray, seek to impose an epistemology of clarity and certainty. At the same time, the strong, who revel in ambiguity, seek to enjoy the richness and subtlety of a non-dichotomous view of the world. This is a political struggle because the weak cannot allow the strong's epistemology to exist, let alone prevail. It is not surprising, then, that Nietzsche talks about epistemology in the midst of attacking Christianity: its view of truth is essential to its mission of taming the nobles. Here, I consider Nietzsche as a political thinker in a different light. Political battles are fought far beyond the halls of government. Nietzsche is a political thinker; one, however, who looks at politics in an uncommon way. Nietzsche's The Antichrist1 is a heated attack on Christianity. From its origins in Judaism, through its struggle with Rome, and its attacks on the renaissance, Nietzsche claims that Christianity has always waged war on the strong and powerful. The priest, a figure of seething resentment and hatred for the strong, employs sin, guilt, and other concepts as weapons against the well-born and healthy. The disease-ridden and contemptible state of Western culture can be traced to the victory of Christianity. Christianity is fundamentally a religion of weakness, and The Antichrist is Nietzsche's attempt to destroy it in the name of health. In the midst of this vitriolic attack, however, Nietzsche makes a seemingly odd move. He turns away from attacking Christian morality and instead targets the religion's epistemology. He attacks Christianity for its hatred of science: "The beginning of the Bible contains the entire psychology of the priest. - The priest knows only one great danger: that is science-the sound conception of cause and effect. . . . The concept of guilt and punishment, the entire 'moral world-order,' was invented in opposition to science" (A: 49).2 The change in direction is striking. Why then does Nietzsche do this? Why does he suddenly shift targets? In this article, I argue that this shift in The Antichrist is not a diversion, but rather gets at something essential to Nietzsche's thought: epistemology is a moral issue, and therefore is a key battleground in the conflict between the strong and the weak. The question of the nature of truth is a political one; it is part of the power struggles between the few strong and well-constituted individuals and the masses of weak and ill people. Not too surprisingly, both groups have a different understanding of truth. Nietzsche argues from a symptomological point of view: the characteristics a person displays are symptoms of who that person is, of how strong his/her soul is. The ideas created by a philosopher, for example, are a reflection of that person's soul: "Gradually it has become clear to me what every great philosophy so far has been: namely, the personal confession of its author and a kind of involuntary and unconscious memoir. ... In the philosopher . . . there is nothing whatever that is impersonal" (BGE: 6).3 Similarly, a person's attitude towards truth reveals something of who he/she is. It makes sense that the sick and the healthy have different understandings of truth. And because the groups are in constant conflict with each other, they will war over epistemology. Victory on this front can prove decisive in the millennia-old struggle. In this article, I explore epistemology as a political issue in Nietzsche's writings. I begin by briefly discussing Nietzsche's account of reality and our understanding of it. From there, I move on to explore the role of truth in survival: the weak need certainty and clarity if they are to avoid perishing. …