Il Socrate di Nietzsche: negazione dell’istinto e malattia della ragione

This paper deals with Nietzsche’s conception of sickness and health, and with how such a conception is reflected in his interpretation of Socrates. According to Nietzsche, Socrates’ personality is characterized by a split between an unconscious, distinctive self and a conscious, rational self. Such personality has pathological features that closely resemble what in psychodynamic theories is commonly defined as a schizoparanoid splitting, i.e. as a position of the ego capable of integrating in the same personality the affirmative dimension of libido and the negative dimension of aggression. I claim that Socrates’ paradigmatic sickness outlined by Nietzsche depends on the fact that his nature is split and dysfunctional. His unconscious instinct is reversed into a critical spirit, while his rational consciousness enhances his logical and intellectualistic activity.