Beyond Good and Evil · Chapter
68 explained
A brief, aphoristic exploration of the internal conflict between memory and pride, where pride's refusal to accept a remembered action eventually forces memory to capitulate.
What happens
A brief, aphoristic exploration of the internal conflict between memory and pride, where pride's refusal to accept a remembered action eventually forces memory to capitulate.
Themes in this chapter
Psychology as the Fundamental Science
Dissects a fundamental psychological mechanism—the conflict and hierarchy between memory and pride—as a key to understanding the self.
Characters to notice
- The Narrator
The voice experiencing the conflict between memory and pride, using the first-person perspective.
Key passages
““I did that,” says my memory. “I could not have done that,” says my pride, and remains inexorable. Eventually—the memory yields.”
Memory presents a fact about the self, but pride, as a more powerful force of self-conception, denies it. In the end, the factual account of memory is overruled by the demands of pride.
Illustrates the power of psychological drives (pride) over mere factual recollection, showing how the self is constructed and preserved.