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necessary, as Plato suspected in his genius way, on the one hand to
reinforce identity and on the other to create a basis for oppression.
Oppression by whom? The failures. This is the revolution of the
herd, of the mediocre (Aufstand der Herde, der »Mittleren«) (KSA
13. p.94.) against all that is great—in comparison to them.
Let us think a little further. The person of the herd is driven
by instinct and not reason, even by herd instinct, which suggests
that being in a herd protects you from having to raise your head
to take a risk by thinking, forming an independent opinion, crit¬
ically looking critically at the world and keeping your face. “The
herd feels good in the swamp and muck” — says Nietzsche. (KSA
4. p. 122. TSZ p. 77.) To sit quietly in the swamp. That is where
warmth and safety can be found. Outside of that we encounter not
only the alien but also the enemy. Failures (Schlechtweggekommene)
think this way, at any rate. *
How is it that a failed person is taken in? Schopenhauer empha¬
sizes their pride in the same, which is the most important basis for
belonging, while (or additionally) Nietzsche points to the hatred
of others. In fact, as already mentioned, the two exist together.
Schopenhauer writes of the “pride in the same”:
On the other hand, the cheapest form of pride is national pride; for
the man affected therewith betrays a want of individual qualities
of which he might be proud, since he would not otherwise resort to
that which he shares with so many millions. The man who possesses
outstanding personal qualities will rather see most clearly the faults
of his own nation, for he has them constantly before his eyes. But
every miserable fool, who has nothing in the world whereof he could
be proud, resorts finally to being proud of the very nation to which
he belongs. (Schopenhauer 1974. p. 360.)
garn, Ruthenen, Serben und Kroaten usw., zwischen allem aber als ewiger
Spaltpilz der Menschheit — Juden und wieder Juden.”
51 Nietzsche’s term Schlechtweggekommene = person who went down the wrong
path, or person whose life has gone wrong.