The genesis of the Unzeitgemässe Betrachtungen [Untimely Meditations] is complicated, and the conception, reception, and publication history difficult to sum up briefly. Nietzsche originally planned 13 essays, but delivered only four claiming that completion of thirteen might have been more prejudicial to his health. The first was written to avenge a public humiliation of Wagner at the hands of the eminent theologian David Friedrich Strauss, best-known for his Das Leben Jesu [The Life of Jesus,1835-6], for persuading Ludwig II to sack a rival musician. The second meditation is often considered the most philosophically rewarding. The third and fourth medi

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Published 29 October 2009

Citation: Gallagher, David. "Unzeitgemässe Betrachtungen [Untimely Meditations]". The Literary Encyclopedia. 29 October 2009.
[http://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=8568, accessed 21 November 2009.]