Life As a Work of Art

Life As a Work of Art

Topic of Choice
September 24, 2015

What sets humans apart from the rest of created order is that we are artists. We were created to create. The 20th century nihilist philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche believed that life was ultimately meaningless; yet he went on to say that “man would rather have the Void as his meaning than be void of meaning.” Nietzsche saw the vanity of life as an opportunity to courageously and autonomously project our own meaning and values onto life. Because of the death of God, anything is possible. He called for people to create their own values and treat their lives as a work of art. Nietzsche’s writings deeply influenced and inspired the Nazi Party’s commitment to German supremacy. The Judeo-Christian worldview holds that God bestowed upon humans the freedom to create. However, unlike Nietzsche’s system, this privilege came with one condition: we are to live and create within the parameters of that which God has said to be good and true. In Genesis chapter one God commands Adam and Eve not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. To eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is to put yourself in the place of God and declare what is good and true. In Nietzsche’s system, there are no parameters because life is meaningless. Man is autonomous and free to create whatever he pleases, be it good or evil. In Christianity, life is given meaning and structure through the commands of God, which are the parameters within which humans were made to create. Anything created outside of the truth of God’s command leads to death. We are not Creators, as Nietzsche suggests. We are sub-creators. We ourselves are not the Artist but the image of the artist.