Abstract

This chapter deals with the neglect of Goethe in scholarly consideration of Nietzsche’s religious thought, and clarifies important differences between Goethe’s thought and that of his most infamous exegetes, Steiner and Jung. The chapter also presents Goethe’s conception of the one and the many, which proves both highly original and frequently misrepresented. Goethe’s conception of the many as symbolic of the one has often been confused with Neoplatonic theories from which it differs strikingly. The chapter presents evidence from Goethe’s scientific, poetic, and other literary work to bring out this conception which proves so important for Nietzsche’s religious thought.