On The Genealogy of Morals by Nietzsche - Essay Example

 Nietzsche asserts that the slaves find happiness in the unhappiness of the masters, resulting in a sense of “Slave Morality” that challenges the hierarchical terms of what is good or bad, and puts a face behind the oppressed. “The real genius of the slave rebellion, according to Nietzsche, is in it is going beyond a simple inversion of value types…the creation of a subject ‘behind’ the actual deed (131).” Slave Morality introduces impartial value through reflective rationality, a term that makes the person making judgments question their intentions and motives.

This, in turn, introduces the idea of the impartial subject. Slave morality introduced impartial value “slave morality is the morality of impartial value in that it is the morality of the value chosen by an allegedly impartial subject (112).” This impartial subject is in himself neither master or slave, but can freely choose to behave and to evaluate as either one or the other (123).” This progression through slave morality, reflective rationality, and impartial value are important to understanding Nietzchean ethics.