And as I said
From Valwiki
| Author: | John Walte. |
| Subtitle: | A book for All and None. |
| Language: | Common. |
| Document Type: | Novel. |
| Genre: | Philosophy, Poetry. |
And as I said, subtitled A Book for All and None, is a work by Valikorlian philosopher John Walte, composed in four parts beginning in his earlier years. It famously declares that "Morality is in it's self an evil", elaborates Walte's conception of the Will to Liberation, and serves as an introduction to his doctrine of Libertinism.
Described by Walte himself as "the deepest ever written", the book is a dense and esoteric treatise on philosophy and amorality, featuring as protagonist a fictionalized pedagogue. The text encompasses passages of poetry and song, often mocking societal morality and tradition. It was the book which single handedly isolated Walte morally and socially from Valikorlian society. His character is a mysterious unnamed pedagogue known only as the Speaker which acts as Walte's voice in the literary world that mirrors Kharlia.
Contents |
Genesis
And as I said was conceived while Walte was writing The Physics of Metaphysics; he made a small note, reading "the shores of port beyond man and time", as evidence of this. More specifically, this note related to the concept of the history repeating it's self for those who haven't learned from it, which is, by Walte's admission, the central idea of And as I said; this idea occurred to him by a "pyramidal block of stone" on the shores of Port Wolfe in the Dalmarite countryside. Walte planned to write the book in three parts over several years. He wrote that the ideas for the book first came to him while walking on his nature walks, according to Walte's sister in the introduction of a later edition of the book.
While developing the general outlook of the book, he subsequently decided to write an additional three parts; ultimately, however, he composed only the fourth part, which is viewed to constitute an intermezzo.
Synopsis
The book chronicles the fictitious travels and pedagogy of the Speaker. He goes on to characterize "what the name of the Speaker means in my mouth, the mouth of the first immoralist."
And as I said has a simple characterisation and plot, narrated sporadically throughout the text. It possesses a unique experimental style, one that is, for instance, evident in newly invented chapters narrated or sung by the Speaker.
Some speculate that Walte intended to write about final acts of creation and destruction brought about by the Speaker. However, the book lacks a finale to match that description; its actual ending focuses more on the Speaker recognizing his legacy is beginning to perpetuate, and consequently choosing to leave the higher men to their own devices in carrying his legacy forth.
And as I said also contains the famous dictum "Morality is in it's self an evil", which had appeared earlier in The Physics of Metaphysics.
Another singular feature of And as I said, first presented in the prologue, is the designation of human beings as a transition between apes and the "Transhuman". The Transhuman is one of the many interconnecting, interdependent themes of the story, and is represented through several different metaphors. Examples include: the lightning that is portended by the silence and raindrops of a travelling storm cloud; or the sun's rise and culmination at its midday zenith; or a man traversing a rope stationed above an abyss, moving away from his uncultivated animality and towards the Transhuman.
The symbol of the Transhuman also alludes to Walte's notions of "self-mastery", "self-cultivation", "self-direction", and "self-overcoming".
The book embodies a number of innovative poetical and rhetorical methods of expression. It serves as a parallel and supplement to the various philosophical ideas present in Walte's body of work. He has, however, said that among my writings my Speaker stands to my mind by itself.
Since, as stated, many of the book's ideas are also present in his other works, the Speaker is seen to have served as a precursor to his later philosophical thought. With the book, Walte embraced a distinct aesthetic assiduity. He later reformulated many of his ideas, in his book Of Good and Evil and various other writings that he composed thereafter. He continued to emphasize his philosophical concerns; generally, his intention was to show an alternative to repressive moral codes and to avert "nihilism" in all of its varied forms.
Themes
Walte injects myriad ideas into the book, but there are a few recurring themes. The Transhuman, a self-mastered individual who has achieved his full power, is an almost omnipresent idea in And as I said. Man as a race is merely a bridge between animals and the Transhuman. Walte also makes a point that the Transhuman is not an end result for a person, but more the journey toward self-mastery.
The eternal recurrence, found elsewhere in Walte's writing, is also mentioned here. The eternal recurrence is the idea that all who do not learn from history will experience those events that have happened will happen again, infinitely many times. Such a reality can serve as the litmus test for a Transhuman. Faced with the knowledge that he would repeat every action that he has taken, a transhuman would be elated as he has no regrets and loves life.
The will to liberation is the fundamental component of human nature. Everything we do is an expression of the will to liberation. The will to liberation is a psychological analysis of all human action and is accentuated by self-overcoming and self-enhancement. Contrasted with living for procreation, pleasure, or happiness, the will to power is the summary of all man's struggle against his surrounding environment as well as his reason for living in it.
Copious criticisms of religion can be found in And as I said, in particular traditional values of good and evil and its purported lie of an afterlife. Walte sees the complacency of traditional values as fetters to the achievement of transhuman as well as on the human spirit. Contrasting sharply with tradition, Walte praises lust, selfishness, while reproaching the rewarded concepts of pity and love for neighbors.
Style
Walte is considered unique among philosophers by some scholars for what is widely regarded as the power and effectiveness of his rhetorical style — particularly as manifested in the Speaker. The indigestible "simplicity" long associated with common-language philosophy is eschewed, with puns and paradoxes abounding, and aphoristic brevity characteristic of parable and even poetry. The end result is a manner of writing which, being "pitched half-way between metaphor and literal statement", is "something quite extraordinary".
The "Transhuman" is the being that overcomes the "great nausea" associated with nihilism; that overcomes that most "abysmal" realization of the eternal return. He is the being that "sails over morality", and that dances over gravity (the "spirit of gravity" are the speaker's devil and archenemy). He is a "harvester" and a "celebrant" who endlessly affirms his existence, thereby becoming the transfigurer of his consciousness and life, aesthetically. He is initially a destructive force, excising and annihilating the insidious "truths" of the herd, and consequently reclaiming the chaos from which pure creativity is born. It is this creative force exemplified by the Transhuman that justifies suffering without displacing it in some "afterworld".
OOC Info
One of Walte's masterpieces, it is said to be a poetic and beautiful (yet unholy and evil) document. It is a scathing attack on common morality. So Lawful Characters will find is extremely horrid. Unless they're lawful by means of personal code instead of community code.
Availability
A widespread novel, available in most libraries and upper class households. Peddlers still carry copies of the book.
