A fiction where two people who have never met in real life meet and one becomes the other's patient.
When Nietzsche Wept is a book full of deep dialogues about human nature and the conflict that we all experience with the choices we make.
In "When Nietzsche Wept", Yalom writes a fictional story in which two people who existed in real life and never met - the Austrian doctor Josef Breuer and Nietzsche - meet.
Several other elements of the book are real, such as the plot involving the meeting of the two.
The book is set in 1882. Breuer is dissatisfied with his marriage and the life he leads, and wonders if he is truly happy. He is the most renowned doctor in Vienna and one day he receives a note from a stranger: Lou Salomé
Yes, she existed and was the love of Nietzsche's life.
In the note, Lou appears distressed: she says that the future of German philosophy is at stake!
Breuer and Salomé meet for coffee and Lou explains that a good friend (Nietzsche) has suicidal tendencies and she believes that Breuer has the "right medicine" to treat her friend.
And why would Breuer be the right guy? Because Lou, who had a brother who was a medical student, heard about the case Breuer had treated of a psychotic patient who had episodes unknown to medicine.
Breuer accepts the challenge of treating Nietzsche - without him knowing he was being treated.
Lou gives Breuer two books by Nietzsche so that the doctor can see how brilliant Nietzsche is and Breuer comes across discussions about human duality, the eternal return, the Christian God, etc... And he sees that Nietzsche really is a different guy.
Breuer developed a method with his patient Anna who had relapses that he called "sweeping the chimney": when she was in a difficult psychological situation, Breuer asked her to say everything that came to mind.
The first steps of psychoanalysis were taken there. And it gets better...
Breuer has a close friend who is 20 years younger and very eager to learn: Freud ❤️
Breuer begins to share with Freud the treatment he will do with Nietzsche and Freud shows great interest
But Nietzsche is reluctant and does not want to talk about his emotions.
Then Breuer has an idea: "What if I pretend that I am interested in learning philosophy and Nietzsche is my teacher? That way, who knows, he might feel free to tell me what he thinks."
Breuer begins to talk to Nietzsche about human issues that are related to each other.
- directly with his life. Breuer is very concerned with social acceptance, with the formalities of institutions...
The dialogues are something from another world
I have met many people who do not like themselves and try to overcome this by persuading others to think well of them. Once they do this, they begin to think well of themselves. But this is a false solution, it is submission to the authority of others.
Your job is to accept yourself, not to find ways to gain my acceptance.
- Does the eternal return promise a form of immortality?
- No! I teach that life should never be changed or crushed because of the promise of another kind of future life.
The immortal is this life, this moment (...) This moment exists forever and you alone are its audience.
Nietzsche: "Let this thought take hold of you. Answer this question: do you hate this idea or do you love it?"
Breuer: "I hate it! To live forever with the feeling that I have not lived, that I have not tasted freedom... This idea fills me with horror!"
Nietzsche: "then live in such a way as to worship the idea!"
Breuer: "all I worship now is the thought that I have fulfilled my duty to others"
Nietzsche: "duty? How can duty proceed from your love for yourself and your own pursuit of unconditional freedom?
If you have not personally fulfilled yourself, then "duty" is a mere euphemism for using others for your own aggrandizement."
The author, Irvin D Yalom, is one of the greatest names in psychiatry in the world, and has been a professor at Stanford University for almost 50 years - where he graduated in Medicine.