Übermensch

For the G-Dragon album, see Übermensch (album).

The Übermensch (/ˈuːbərmɛnʃ/ OO-bər-mensh, German: [ˈyːbɐmɛnʃ] ⓘ; lit. 'Superman' or 'Beyond-Man') is a concept in the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. In his 1883 book, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (German: Also sprach Zarathustra), Nietzsche has his character Zarathustra posit the Übermensch as a goal for humanity to set for itself. The Übermensch represents a shift from otherworldly Christian values and manifests the grounded human ideal. Zarathustra proclaims the will of the Übermensch to give meaning to life on planet Earth, and admonishes his audience to ignore those who promise other-worldly fulfillment.

In 1909, Thomas Common translated the term to English as "Superman", following the terminology of George Bernard Shaw's 1903 stage play Man and Superman. Walter Kaufmann blamed this translation for the widespread misidentification of Nietzsche's concept with the comic-book character Superman. Kaufmann and others preferred to translate Übermensch as "overman". A translation like "superior humans" might better fit the concept of Nietzsche as he unfolds his narrative. Scholars continue to employ both terms, with some simply opting the German word.

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