The Gay Science

First published in 1882 and revised in 1887, "The Gay Science (The Joyful Wisdom)" was written at the peak of Nietzsche's intellectual abilities. It includes a large number of poems and an appendix of songs, all written with the intent of encouraging freedom of the mind. While he praises the benefits of science, intellectual discipline, and skepticism, the influence of the Provenal tradition from which he drew is also an enthusiastic affirmation of life. Nietzsche additionally explores the notion of power and the idea of eternal recurrence, though not in a systematic way. Described by the philosopher himself as "perhaps my most personal book," he produced a work that is worthy of attention from anyone with an interest in moral psychology or the most essential themes and views of Nietzsche.