Alright so last Tuesday I got super annoyed when two comments on my old video mixed up Nietzsche and Schopenhauer again. Like, seriously? How are people still confusing the gloomy dude who hated life with the guy yelling about becoming superheroes? I needed a super simple breakdown for my followers. Stat.
The Google Rabbit Hole Phase
First thing? Jumped straight into my browser. Searched “Nietzsche vs Schopenhauer easy difference” and man, the results sucked. Half were academic papers using words I barely understand, the other half felt like vague summaries. Got coffee number two. Started actually reading basic bios on both of them side-by-side.
Schopenhauer: Life is Pretty Crappy
Ok, focused on Arthur first. Realized his core vibe is actually kinda simple at the heart:
- The Will: This ain’t willpower. Nah. It’s like this blind, dumb force in everything that just wants. Plants wanna grow, animals wanna eat, people wanna… well, everything. Non-stop.
- Result? Constant suffering! Because you always want something you don’t have. Get it? Bored? Suffering. Want stuff? Suffering. Lose stuff? Big suffering. Life is mostly pain and boredom – that’s the thesis. His fix? Basically, stop wanting so much, be more like art and less like a hungry raccoon.
Nietzsche: Screw That, Be Awesome
Then flipped to Freddy. Felt like total whiplash after Schopenhauer’s doom-cloud. His big ideas:
- “God is Dead”: Sounds edgy, but really means old rules/morality? Done. Crumbling. Useless now.
- Will to Power: Different beast! Not just wanting stuff, but wanting to grow, be stronger, master yourself & life. It’s the drive behind all wanting.
- Übermensch: His famous “Superman”. Not flying with a cape. It’s a person who stares at this pointless, suffering-filled world and yells “YES!” anyway. Creates their own values, embraces the struggle as fuel, doesn’t wait for heaven or whine about pain. Hero of this life.
Slapping It Together Side-by-Side
Now for the quick cheat sheet my brain finally clicked with:
- Schopenhauer Says: Life sucks hard (pain & boredom), ‘The Will’ traps us. Best bet? Deny desires, chill out, maybe look at art.
- Nietzsche Says: Life is raw energy (‘Will to Power’), old rules are useless. Embrace the chaos! Create your own meaning, overcome yourself, be that hero (‘Übermensch’) right here, right now.
One Liner: Schopen-dude saw suffering as a prison sentence. Nietzsche saw suffering as gym weights for building mental muscle.
What Actually Helps
So why bother with this? Found Schopenhauer… interestingly depressing? Like understanding why some days feel terrible. But Nietzsche? He’s the kick in the pants. When I’m stuck feeling like crap about work or creative blocks, I literally think “What would my Übermensch do?”. Sounds stupid, but picturing someone looking at this problem and thriving on the challenge? Actually works to get me moving.
Hope this brain dump helps someone else avoid mixing them up. Now go crush something.
