woah, nietzsche is really not about rejecting the self. i mean, 'existential egoist' pretty much sums up nietzsche's whole philosophy. ultimately though, i think the way to happiness is by balancing the interests of the ego with all that stands against it... jung would talk about reconciling the individual ego with the collective unconscious or a buddhist might talk about the 'middle way' of not resisting the ego but at the same time not letting it get out of control... because if the ego's desires and drives get too big its disappointment will only be that much greater. at some point you have to come to terms with the fact that you can only be who you are through others, so you naturally rely on others. if you allow others to feel better about themselves through you, they will probably reciprocate. it's hard to make that 'trickle down' sense of morality big enough to encompass starving kids in third world countries... I can say that helping out strangers will ultimately make this world a better place to live in for everyone but that 'ultimately' might be a few centuries after you die. how do i make someone care about what happens beyond the scope of their life? how do i convince someone that the soul is eternal but that there is no beyond to this world? that might be tricky. but you should probably consider that it is possible, after all, what do you know?
|