Ressentiment is a term Nietzsche uses to describe a deep psychological state of resentment and hostility, particularly toward those perceived as more powerful, successful, or virtuous. It is not just fleeting anger or envy but a festering and transformative emotion that shapes a person’s values and worldview.
Key Features of Ressentiment:
1. Origin in Weakness:
Ressentiment arises in individuals or groups who feel powerless to change their circumstances. Instead of confronting their weakness, they internalize their feelings of inferiority and direct them outward toward others.
“The slave’s soul looks at the virtues of the noble man with an envious eye.”
2. Value Inversion:
Those afflicted by ressentiment create a morality that flips traditional values upside down. For example:
• Strength becomes “oppression.”
• Wealth becomes “greed.”
• Ambition becomes “arrogance.”
• Meekness, humility, and weakness are reframed as “virtues.”
This is the foundation of what Nietzsche calls slave morality.
3. Hatred Masquerading as Virtue:
Ressentiment does not directly attack the strong or powerful; instead, it undermines them by moralizing their strengths as “evil.” It elevates the weak by portraying them as morally superior.
“The noble man lives in trust and openness with himself, while the man of ressentiment is neither upright nor naïve nor honest and straightforward with himself.”
4. A Poisonous Force:
Ressentiment is not only destructive for those targeted by it but also for the person harboring it. It creates a cycle of self-deception, bitterness, and stagnation, preventing genuine growth or self-overcoming.
Nietzsche’s Broader Critique:
Nietzsche argues that ressentiment is the driving force behind much of Western morality, particularly in its Judeo-Christian tradition. He believes this morality was shaped by the powerless seeking to undermine the values of their oppressors, leading to a morality that celebrates meekness, submission, and suffering over strength, vitality, and creativity.
How to Overcome Ressentiment:
Nietzsche urges individuals to rise above ressentiment by embracing master morality—a value system based on affirming life, strength, and creative power. This involves:
• Accepting and celebrating one’s own potential.
• Refusing to view the world through the lens of resentment.
• Creating new values rooted in individual strength and self-overcoming.
“Man does not strive for happiness; only the Englishman does that.”
Instead, Nietzsche calls for striving toward greatness, even if it involves struggle and suffering.