Walking the Tightrope

For much of his life, Fritz was ill. The fact he got so much academic work and writing accomplished despite his rather constant cycle of illness and recovery is remarkable. From childhood he had poor eyesight and began wearing glasses at age four. He required stronger glasses as he aged and often experienced severe headaches, even migraines, from long hours reading and writing by poor light. Matters worsened after be became a professor at Basel. “For the first time, he was having stomach problems on top of his other symptoms. Eyestrain, headaches, and vomiting gradually worsened. Minor illnesses such as hemorrhoids and shingles were annoyances. He felt in 1873 that ‘the machine was breaking down.’ It was during this time that he began his dabbling with a multitude of treatments for his symptoms, interspersed with consultations with various physicians. Leeches and cupping were again used as in his Pforta days. Diets, hydrotherapies, physical therapies, electrotherapies, kinds of medicat...

Richard Wagner surpassed everyone Nietzsche had ever met before. Fritz almost worshipped the man and Wagner soaked in the bright young man’s intellect and passion, as perhaps Wagner’s primary disciple. This would not last. But, upon becoming a professor at Basel, Fritz was fairly close to Wagner’s home on Lake Lucerne. When told of his offer of professorship, "Nietzsche was so overcome by his good fortune that he spent an entire afternoon walking up and down the Leipzig promenade humming tunes from Tannhauser - appropriately, since one of the great attractions of Basel was that it was only a stone's throw from Tribschen, Wagner's place of exile." ( Young , page 79) Fritz initially approached Wagner boldy yet in awe and not without some trepidation. "On Saturday, May 15, 1869, interrupting a paddle-steamer trip around the lake, he alighted at the Tribschen pier and arrived unannounced at the Wagners' villa. He stood irresolute outside the house for a time l...

Apparently, throughout his academic years, Fritz paid special attention to the way he looked, particularly where clothes were concerned. Hollingdale explains: “This appearance during the ten years he was at Basel excited comment because of his excessive attention to dress, amounting almost to dandyism . According to Bernoulli he was, apart from an old state counselor in Baden, the only man in Basel to wear a grey topper.” (page 49) Indications are that he cared for his moustache a great deal and groomed it to be a distinctive feature of his appearance. As a student and more so as a professor, Fritz treated himself to tailored made suits. His appearance in class was always important to him. He particularly enjoyed dressing up for more formal affairs as well, such as academic functions and important social gatherings. Take his active participation in classical choral music, for example. In June 1865: “On the 2 nd he travelled to Cologne to take part in a Lower Rhine music festival. Dre...