# 135 explained — Beyond Good and Evil

> Chapter companion for Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche.

## What happens

The chapter presents a brief, aphoristic challenge to conventional moral judgment, arguing that Pharisaism—often seen as hypocritical self-righteousness—is not a corruption of goodness but rather a fundamental component of it.

## Themes in this chapter

### Psychology as the Fundamental Science

The aphorism performs a psychological unmasking, re-evaluating a supposedly negative moral trait (hypocrisy/Pharisaism) as a necessary condition for its opposite, challenging surface-level moral judgments.

### Critique of Modernity

Indirectly critiques modern, simplistic moral dichotomies (good vs. hypocritical) by revealing a more complex, intertwined psychological reality beneath moral concepts.

## Key lines

> Pharisaism is not a deterioration of the good man; a considerable part of it is rather an essential condition of being good.

Hypocrisy or self-righteousness isn't a falling away from virtue; to a large degree, it is a necessary prerequisite for being considered virtuous.

_Inverts the common moral condemnation of Pharisaism, positing it as structurally necessary within the system of 'goodness' itself._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/beyond_good_and_evil_se/chapters/135
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/beyond_good_and_evil_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/beyond_good_and_evil_se/chapters