musitorial n a mashup of music, musings and editorials, music and song that evokes thought and commentary.
Today’s musitorial is inspired by a CBC Ideas segment (Jan. 20, 2025) titled, “Polarizing times for Friedrick Nietzsche’s[1] practice of ‘passing by’.”
The Ideas segment centres around Shalini Satkunanandan’s rethinking of that German philosopher Nietzsche’s line, “Where one can no longer love, there one should pass by.”
Satkunanandan is an associate professor of political science at University of California, Davis. She is working on a book about the practice of 'passing by,' and suggests that “we are almost talking too much. There's this constant need to correct, refute, criticize.”
She explains that “[i]t's not clear that our constant need to engage is helping us move forward in any way. If anything, it is making partisan divides even more pronounced.”
“It was no surprise that the Merriam-Webster dictionary crowned ‘polarization’ as its word of the year in 2024,” she said.
Satkunanandan argues that Nietzsche offers us a method that can help us navigate the highly polarizing discourse that's afflicting our democracies today.
I’ve written a bit about polarization in the context of polemics, and of politicians who foment disharmony in order to divide us – to their own advantage and/or swaying public opinion in the pursuit of political power. Heaven knows why anyone would want to enter the supposedly noble field of public service in this day and age of uncertainty.
“I would say that we are almost talking too much. There’s this constant need to correct, refute, criticize,” said Satkunanandan.
“It's not clear that our constant need to engage is helping us move forward in any way. If anything it is making partisan divides even more pronounced.”
Maybe I’m overworking it, but it seems to me that to follow Satkunanandan’s plea amounts to giving up on the hope that things can be better. I for one think that we too often ‘walk by’ troubled times, circumstances and people, thus leaving the task of examination or correction up to ‘somebody else.’ It seems to me that to ‘walk by,’ we basically encourage the rampant ignorance, bigotry, misogyny and violence so widely evident.
Google AI says that, for Nietzsche, walking symbolizes life as an individual path and the act of “walking on” represents the courageous, continuous self-creation and transcendence of the Übermensch (overman). Transcend, not ignore or avoid.
I’ll leave it there, save to leave you with the musical selections that brought all this to my mind.
First up is Neil Young’s “Walk On,” the lyrics of which seem to fit this musitorial, including:
I hear some people been talking
me down
Bring up my name, pass it 'round
They don't mention the happy times
They do their thing, I do mine
My second selection is perhaps more familiar. It’s Burt Bacharach’s “Walk On By” recorded by the great Dionne Warwick” (Make Way For Dionne Warwick, 1964, Scepter) the lyrics of which include:
If you see me walking down the
street
And I start to cry, each time we meet
Walk on by
Walk on by
Make believe that you don't see the tears
Just let me grieve
In private, 'cause each time I see you, I break down and cry
Walk on by
=30=
Link to the CBC Ideas article in question: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/nietzsche-passing-by-healthy-discourse-1.7434781
Link to Wikipedia article on Nietzsche (see also below footnote on Nietzsche) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedrich_Nietzsche
Link to Genius.com recording and lyrics of “Walk On” by Neil Young: https://genius.com/Neil-young-walk-on-lyrics
Link to Wikipedia article on the song, “Walk On By” by Burt Bacharach and Hal David (1964) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walk_On_By
Link to Genius.com recording and lyrics of “Walk On By” (Dionne Warwick): https://genius.com/Dionne-warwick-walk-on-by-lyrics
Link to Wikipedia article on Dionne Warwick: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dionne_Warwick
[1] On Nietzsche, Google AI summarizes thusly: [He] connected walking with a process of active and creative thinking, believing that the best ideas are born from physical movement. He viewed walking as a way to sustain his philosophy and life affirmation, contrasting it with a sedentary life, which he called a “sin against the Holy Spirit.” This philosophy is central to his work, where walking symbolizes life as an individual path and the act of “walking on” represents the courageous, continuous self-creation and transcendence of the Übermensch (overman).
Google AI summarizes “overman” as describing an ideal human being who has overcome traditional morality and limitations to create their own values and meaning. P.s., quite different from our ironic term of or “overman,” who Google AI summarizes as a senior underground supervisor or foreman in a coal mine, responsible for managing a section of the mine and ensuring safety and daily operations.
