Nietzsche forms his argument by first discussing that intellect is human and goes on to explain why there is a false appearance of the truth. He poses his argument as a conversation with himself, asking a series of questions and then answering them. One of his questions is What is truth. It is apparent that Nietzsche is trying to form a theory about truth, and it is much more complex that saying that truth is good and lies are bad. Language plays a big role in his argument and he asserts that words are symbols for things which in turn become concepts.

During his essay Nietzsche seems to be critical of truth. He writes, “Truths are illusions of which we have forgotten that they are illusions, metaphors which have become worn by frequent use and have lost all sensuous vigour,…” 768. Metaphors have replaced the truth in language. Therefore, it is no longer truth, humans have created a lie and has been used so frequently that it has mistakenly become the truth. We are so knowledgeable, yet all this knowledge we know is just metaphors. His conversation on language leads me to believe that language in itself has become deceptive and synthetic.

Later in the essay it is discussed that those who try to reconstruct language challenge and change these arbitrary meanings, such as poets and artists. We have to look through many different perspectives in order to reach the truth. Nietzsche is arguing that we must be willing to open up and live moment by moment, rather than living a life that somehow has a tangible meaning. As humans we lack the ability to understand truth according to Nietzsche, “Truth too, is only desired by human beings in a similarly limited sense. They desire the pleasant, life preserving consequences of the truth” 766. As humans, we are only willing to accept truth when it is not going to harm us, rather choosing to accept and be deceived by lies. It applies to the way we view the truth in the sense that it is something that is only good. Truth rather is intertwined with lies, therefore never being pure.

After reading Nietzsche argument and understanding his definition of truth I have to agree. As humans we cannot be subjective in regards to truth. I don’t particularly think that Nietzsche wants us to believe that their is no truth, but rather that truth is something that may not be pleasant or that is purely truth. We must try to reconstruct and refashion language to give it life.