# The New Warlike Age and German Skepticism explained — Beyond Good and Evil > Chapter companion for Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche. ## What happens The chapter explores the emergence of a new, stronger form of skepticism in Europe, linked to a warlike age. It uses a parable of Frederick the Great and his father to illustrate the development of a 'masculine,' daring, and conquering skepticism that established German intellectual dominance. This skepticism is contrasted with earlier, weaker European conceptions of the German spirit. ## Themes in this chapter ### Critique of Modernity Contrasts a new, hard, warlike, and skeptical age against a former age perceived as soft, dogmatic, and sentimental, evaluating the spiritual character of epochs. ### Nobility and Order of Rank The parable centers on the 'lack of men' and the value of a 'masculine,' commanding, and hard type of individual (embodied by Frederick) over a weak-willed, frivolous type. ## Character check-ins ### Frederick the Great Personifies the new 'harder and more dangerous skepticism' of daring manliness, related to genius for war and conquest; his spirit (Fredericianism) is credited with dominating European thought. ### The Narrator Presents the parable of Prussian history and analyzes the evolution of skepticism and the German spirit, contrasting it with Napoleonic and Romantic-era perceptions. ### Napoleon Bonaparte His astonished exclamation 'Voilà un homme!' upon seeing Goethe is cited as a revelation that contradicted the centuries-old, feeble European conception of the 'German spirit'. ### Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Implicitly present as the figure who, in Napoleon's eyes, embodied the true 'man' and contradicted the weak, poetical stereotype of the German. ### The Germans Their spirit is redefined from 'gentle, good-hearted fools' to one characterized by masculine skepticism, critical distrust, and a fearless, dissecting intellect as exemplified by great philologists and critics. ### Europeans Described as entering a new warlike age; were formerly under the dominion of the German spirit and its critical skepticism, and held an outdated, weak conception of German character. ## Key lines > That unscrupulous enthusiast for big, handsome grenadiers... had on one point the very knack and lucky grasp of the genius: he knew what was then lacking in Germany... Men were lacking Frederick William I, the father of Frederick the Great, instinctively understood that Germany's most critical deficiency was not culture but a lack of real 'men'—strong, commanding individuals. _Establishes the central problem of weakness and the need for a harder type._ > the skepticism of daring manliness, which is closely related to the genius for war and conquest, and made its first entrance into Germany in the person of the great Frederick. A bold, masculine form of skepticism, akin to the spirit of war and conquest, first appeared in Germany through Frederick the Great. _Defines the new, valued form of skepticism._ > it is not so very long ago that a masculinized woman could dare... to recommend the Germans to the interest of Europe as gentle, good-hearted, weak-willed, and poetical fools. The chapter recalls the recent past where a figure (like Madame de Staël) could successfully portray Germans to Europe as harmless, sentimental simpletons. _Highlights the dramatic shift in the perception of the German character._ > Napoleon’s astonishment when he saw Goethe:... 'voilà un homme!' —that was as much as to say 'But this is a man! And I only expected to see a German!' Napoleon's shocked reaction to Goethe—'Here is a man!'—meant he encountered a true commanding individual where he only expected to meet the stereotype of a feeble German. _Uses a historical anecdote to crystallize the transformation in the essence of the 'German spirit'._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/beyond_good_and_evil_se/chapters/209 - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/beyond_good_and_evil_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/beyond_good_and_evil_se/chapters