About
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philologist, philosopher, poet, cultural critic and composer who became one of the most influential of all modern thinkers. He began his career as a classical philologist, turning to philosophy early in his academic career. In 1869, aged 24, Nietzsche became the youngest professor to hold the Chair of Classical Philology at the University of Basel. Regarded as one of most influential intellectuals of modern history, Nietzsche’s works and views have earned him enduring influence and admiration. Having had health problems that plagued him most of his life, he resigned from university in 1879, after which he completed much of his core writing in the following decade. In 1889, aged 44, he suffered a collapse and afterward a complete loss of his mental faculties, with paralysis and vascular dementia. He lived his remaining years under care of his family until his death, in 1900.