Lou Salomé, Paul Rée, and Friedrich Nietzsche posed for this racy (by the standards of the day) photo in May 1882. “After a trip to Basel to visit to his friends the Overbecks, Nietzsche returned and met with Lou on May 13 at Lucerne . At the Lowengarten , they spoke (at) a stone relief of a sleeping lion. According to Lou’s memoirs he proposed to her a second time. Again she tactfully declined but continued to beseech him to be part of the intellectual commune, what she called the “trinity.” She believed working together they could inspire one another to the greatest heights; to succumb to something as ephemeral as emotion would cause it to dissolve away. And Nietzsche was game for anything involving danger and play – the world’s most dangerous plaything: live dangerously! Build your cities under Vesuvius ! Send you ships into uncharted seas! ” ( Vickers , page 42) While Fritz visited the Overbecks, Lou got several stern talks from her mother and Paul regarding her “loose” behav...
This blog is intended to be read in reverse order. That is, the most distant entry first. Friedrich Nietzsche offers possibly the best insights on how to posture and express one's life. His life's work was devoted to finding one's "style" within the chaos of existence. The trick, obivously, is not to lose your mind in the process. The title of this blog is explained in the February 29, 2012 post.