Preface

As the title of this short work alludes, it shares a spirit with Nietzsche's first 'attempt at self-criticism'—'The Birth of Tragedy'.

Nietzsche argues that the tragedy of Ancient Greece was the highest form of art due to its mixture of both Apollonian and Dionysian elements into one seamless whole, allowing the spectator to experience the full spectrum of the human condition. The combination of these elements in one art form gave birth to tragedy.

The Greek tragedy was a veritable playground of human archetypes and themes proposing humour as antithesis to suffering, in order to relive the great tension of everyday life vis-à-vis hubris and catharsis.