Fadi

Relativism, scepticism, and nihilism are not “postmodern” phenomena, but perennial features of the human condition. If we may speak in very general terms, the Northern, or specifically Germanic, tradition tends to look at nihilism as a historical force that undermines order and meaning and must, therefore, ultimately be overcome. This is true even of Schopenhauer. The Northern response is thus one of "crisis," and resolution is sought through negation, transcendence, or overcoming. The Mediterranean response to nihilism is one of embodiment. Here nihilism is ironic and fatalistic precisely because there is no overcoming. In Leopardi, nihilism takes on a cosmic dimension, but his pessimism remains "lyrical." The recognition of the world’s indifference does not exhaust the possibilities of the sublime in nature or the creative powers of the imagination. We can still "dance" to the lyrical rhythms of life. Something similar can be found among the Greeks. Their pessimism was not centred on the gods, who were neither the creators of the world nor of humanity. Gods and mortals alike were subject to the higher power of fate. Existence was not a moral drama governed by a creator, but a condition to be endured and celebrated. Where Northern man might turn inward in the face of meaninglessness, Southern man remained outwardly engaged. The Greek temperament, despite its awareness of life’s fragility and the limits imposed by fate, retained a kind of optimism. Life was still affirmed, and all its joys, pains, griefs, guilt, tears, and laughter could be embraced for what they were. The Greek could thus remain creative, sensuous, and sociable, seeking to make the most of each moment. Whereas Northern nihilism tended towards crisis and its eventual overcoming, Mediterranean nihilism sought instead to inhabit existence fully, without requiring its ultimate justification or resolution.