Nietzsche Freud Ricla

romantic biography

Author's name: Lou Andreas Salome

Translator: Ahmed Al-Zanati

In fact, I saw "another human being" standing before me, a human being whose features I could not distinguish beneath the halo of holiness I had bestowed upon him. Nevertheless, I must say that I was not wrong to attribute holiness to him, for despite everything, he was the person to whom I owed a debt of gratitude, and he was the person whose presence and influence I needed in order to find my true self. This dual relationship (that is, his being a lover and synonymous with the image of God) was manifested in that I never raised any formality between us, nor did I call him by his first name as he did to me, despite our loving relationship. Throughout my life, addressing him with the respectful form ("Your Honor") was synonymous with intimacy and familiarity, while addressing him with the form ("You") was synonymous with addressing someone of lesser importance.

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This work appears to be an autobiography, but at its heart, it is a self-examination. Psychoanalyst Lou Andreas-Salomé reflects on her life's journey and rediscovers the truth about her relationship with God, love, death, and life, by recounting her relationship with three leading figures in Western thought: Nietzsche, Freud, and Rilke.