Ecce homo
Ecce Homo (Latin for Behold the Man) were the words used by Pilate at the trial of Christ. The phrase came by extension to denote a representation of Jesus as he appeared before Pilate, crowned with thorns and bound with ropes, as in the painting of Correggio. It is a subject which has been treated by many of the other masters, such as Titian and Anthony van Dyck.
Ecce Homo is also the title of the last book written by Friedrich Nietzsche before his last years of insanity that spanned until his death (1889 - 1900). The book contains several chapters with self-adulatory titles, among them "Why I Am So Wise", "Why I Am So Clever", "Why I Write Such Good Books", and "Why I Am a Destiny", in a biting self-mockery on the arrogance of autobiographies. In many ways, Ecce Homo is a quintessential reflection of Nietzsche's work as a philosopher, writer, and thinker.
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wood, James, ed. (1907). The Nuttall Encyclopædia. London and New York: Frederick Warne. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
On Nietzsche's Ecce Homo
One of Nietzsche's main purposes to write Ecce Homo is to give a commentary about his work as a philosopher and as a human being. Specifically, he states: "Under these circumstances I have a duty against which my habits, even more the pride of my instincts, revolt at bottom—namely, to say: Hear me! For I am such and such a person. Above all, do not mistake me for someone else!" Throughout the course of the book, he expounds—in the characteristic style found in his later period (1886 - 1888)—upon his life as a child, his tastes as an individual, and his vision for humanity. He gives reviews and insights about his various works, these are: The Birth of Tragedy, The Untimely Ones, Human, All-Too-Human, The Dawn, The Gay Science, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Beyond Good and Evil, On the Genealogy of Morals, Twilight of the Idols, and The Case of Wagner. The last chapter of Ecce Homo, entitled "Why I Am a Destiny", is also primarily concerned with reiterating Nietzsche's thoughts on Christianity, corroborating Christianity's "decadence" and his ideas as to "uncovering" Christian morality. The last phrase of the book, and Nietzsche's last few words are—Voltaire's motto—"Crush the infamy!" written soon before his collapse in Turin, Italy that allude to the Christian Church and further illustrate his profound hostility to it.
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