The Human Trinity: What Makes Us Other?

Abstract

One of the most-quoted lines from philosophy is Nietzsche’s “What does not destroy me, makes me stronger” (Twilight of the Idols, “Maxims and Arrows” 8). But what if this line is superimposed upon another well-known Nietzsche’s maxim, “And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you” (Beyond Good and Evil, Aphorism 146)? What happens to the most basic constituents of our humanity — worship, speech, consciousness — when the abyss of the Other returns our probing gaze? Reflected in alien eyes, we may become stronger or weaker, more or less powerful. But one thing is certain: we will become other than human.