Abstract

A dominant theme for Friedrich Nietzsche, one that he often employs to punctuate and dramatise key theoretical concerns, is the distinction between “truth” and “lie.” While Nietzsche’s “truth/lie thematic” finds expression through a number of concepts on the nature of human deceit, its role within his philosophy may be organised in accordance with three major fields of investigation: morality , the critique of knowledge , and aesthetics . Although this tripartite framework is heuristic, its value for the examination of the truth/lie thematic is twofold: it clarifies the essential problems in Nietzsche’s philosophical treatment and application of this theme – which upon a cursory analysis appear confused and unproductive – while at the same time providing a perspective that foregrounds the cumulative effect of his thought – a dissolution of the conventional semantic integrity distinguishing “truth” from “lie.” This paper examines the semantic innovation in Nietzsche’s truth/lie thematic, an approach that calls into question the positions of interpretation adopted in his philosophy. While Nietzsche’s semantic transformation of truth and lie serves to undermine dogmatic systems of thought, his ultimate advocacy of “art” nullifies all claims to “truth” conceived in any traditional philosophical sense