--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Thus the will to power strives towards…" description: "\"Thus the will to power strives towards oppositions, towards displeasure. There is a will to suffering at the foundation of all organic life (contrary t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e7/friedrich-nietzsche-15_contrary_thus-the-will-to-power-strives-towards-o_48806.jpg" --- # Thus the will to power strives towards oppositions… ![“Thus the will to power strives towards oppositions, towards displeasure. There is a will to suffering at the foundation of all organic life (contrary to "happiness" as "goal").” quote by Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e7/friedrich-nietzsche-15_contrary_thus-the-will-to-power-strives-towards-o_48806.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e7/friedrich-nietzsche-15_contrary_thus-the-will-to-power-strives-towards-o_48806.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e7/friedrich-nietzsche-15_contrary_thus-the-will-to-power-strives-towards-o_48806.jpg) > “Thus the will to power strives towards oppositions, towards displeasure. There is a will to suffering at the foundation of all organic life (contrary to "happiness" as "goal").” [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The drive of life is not toward pleasure but toward overcoming resistance and embracing hardship, which fuels growth and authenticity. **In simple terms:** Life's drive is conflict, not comfort. Key Takeaway Growth emerges from struggle. Themes Existentialism Will to Power Suffering Human Nature Contrarian Happiness Mood Introspective Provocative Somber Type Philosophical Aphoristic Reflective When to use this quote - Philosophical debate - Personal adversity - Creative process - Therapeutic practice Key Concepts Will to Power Suffering as Catalyst Organic Life Resistance Practical Applications - Motivational coaching - Literary analysis Questions to Reflect On - How does embracing difficulty reshape personal goals? - What role does suffering play in authentic self‑development? A Different Perspective Some argue that seeking happiness can also be a powerful motivator for well‑being and societal progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contrary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contrary/) [Displeasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/displeasure/) [Displeasure Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/displeasure-suffering-702932/) [Foundation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foundation/) [Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life and living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-and-living/) [Opposition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposition/) [Oppositions Displeasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oppositions-displeasure-702936/) [Organic life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organic-life/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Power Strives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-strives-702934/) [Strife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strife/) [Strive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strive/) [Strives Oppositions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strives-oppositions-702930/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Will power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will-power/) ## Related quotes > [Everything in the world displeases me: but, above all, my displeasure in everything displeases me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/everything-in-the-world-displeases-me-but-above-all-my-displeasure-in/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Those who show pity and are always ready to help during times of trouble are seldom the same ones who rejoice in our joy:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/those-who-show-pity-and-are-always-ready-to-help-during-times-of/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [I'm not good with children," the god confessed. 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Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [To hate destructiveness, one must hate life as well: only death is an image of undistorted life ... organic life is an illness peculiar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodor-adorno/to-hate-destructiveness-one-must-hate-life-as-well-only-death-is-an/) [Theodor Adorno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodor-adorno/) > [If consciousness is the ground of being rather than an epiphenomenon of physical processes, we may find that a basic question asked by modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/if-consciousness-is-the-ground-of-being-rather-than-an-epiphenomenon/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [Organic life, we are told, has developed gradually from the protozoon to the philosopher, and this development, we are assured, is indubitably an advance.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/organic-life-we-are-told-has-developed-gradually-from-the-protozoon/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“But, mind you, it's like this; while you live your life, you are in some way an organic whole with all life. But once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence-2/but-mind-you-it-s-like-this-while-you-live-your-life-you-are-in-some/) [D.H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence-2/) > [Civilization and the life of nations are governed by the same laws as prevail throughout nature and organic life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-haeckel/civilization-and-the-life-of-nations-are-governed-by-the-same-laws-as/) [Ernst Haeckel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-haeckel/) > [“Age has given me what I was looking for my entire life - it has given me me . It has provided time and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/age-has-given-me-what-i-was-looking-for-my-entire-life-it-has-given/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“The stronger must dominate and not mate with the weaker, which would signify the sacrifice of its own higher nature. Only the born weakling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/the-stronger-must-dominate-and-not-mate-with-the-weaker-which-would/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [“Today, the 4-billion-year-old regime of natural selection is facing a completely different challenge. In laboratories throughout the world, scientists are engineering living beings. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/today-the-4-billion-year-old-regime-of-natural-selection-is-facing-a/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“I know some very intelligent philosophers, not at all dogmatic, who believe that “science” cannot introduce the concept of finality in the analysis and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/i-know-some-very-intelligent-philosophers-not-at-all-dogmatic-who/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [“As he scribbled his odds and ends, he made a note reaffirming his belief that art always serves beauty, and beauty is delight in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/as-he-scribbled-his-odds-and-ends-he-made-a-note-reaffirming-his/) [Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/) > [“What is the meaning of human life, or of organic life altogether? To answer this question at all implies a religion. Is there any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein-the-world-as-i-see-it/what-is-the-meaning-of-human-life-or-of-organic-life-altogether-to/) [Albert Einstein The World As I See It](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein-the-world-as-i-see-it/) ## More by Friedrich Nietzsche > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Every select man strives instinctively for a citadel and a privacy, where he is FREE from the crowd, the many, the majority-- where he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/every-select-man-strives-instinctively-for-a-citadel-and-a-privacy/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“It breaks my heart. Better than your words, your eye tells me all your peril. 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A soul which knows that it is loved, but does not itself love, betrays its sediment: its dregs come up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/79-a-soul-which-knows-that-it-is-loved-but-does-not-itself-love/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [We deceive ourselves when giving respect to the person for whom we have surrendered ourselves, when we respectively expect them to be as we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/we-deceive-ourselves-when-giving-respect-to-the-person-for-whom-we/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“The great periods of our life occur when we gain the courage to rechristen what is bad about us as what is best.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-great-periods-of-our-life-occur-when-we-gain-the-courage-to/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“What is life? Life - that is: continually shedding something that wants to die. Life - that is: being cruel and inexorable against everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/what-is-life-life-that-is-continually-shedding-something-that-wants/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-thus-only-this-personal-feeling-of-misery-that-we-get-rid-of-by/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Writers whose thoughts are expressed with clarity and precision are assumed by readers to be superficial. Where the meaning is obscured, then readers give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/writers-whose-thoughts-are-expressed-with-clarity-and-precision-are/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“he does not wear a twitching, mobile, human face, but rather a mask, as it were, with its features in dignified equilibrium; he does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/he-does-not-wear-a-twitching-mobile-human-face-but-rather-a-mask-as/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Chastity is a virtue with some, but with many it is almost a vice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/chastity-is-a-virtue-with-some-but-with-many-it-is-almost-a-vice/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [The earth is like the breasts of a woman: useful as well as pleasing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-earth-is-like-the-breasts-of-a-woman-useful-as-well-as-pleasing/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Of all that is written I love only what a man has written in his own blood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/of-all-that-is-written-i-love-only-what-a-man-has-written-in-his-own/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [No shepherd and one herd! Everybody wants the same, everybody is the same: whoever feels different goes voluntarily into a madhouse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/no-shepherd-and-one-herd-everybody-wants-the-same-everybody-is-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Pain makes hens and poets cackle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/pain-makes-hens-and-poets-cackle/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) [Explore all 3,486 Friedrich Nietzsche quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) ## More Contrary quotes > [To preserve an unclouded capacity for the enjoyment of life is an unusual moral and psychological achievement. Contrary to popular belief, it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/to-preserve-an-unclouded-capacity-for-the-enjoyment-of-life-is-an/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) > [Holy shadows of the dead, I'm not to blame for your cruel and bitter fate, but the accursed rivalry which brought sister nations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/holy-shadows-of-the-dead-i-m-not-to-blame-for-your-cruel-and-bitter/) [Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/) > [There is a spirit which I feel that delights to do no evil, nor to revenge any wrong, but delights to endure all things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nayler/there-is-a-spirit-which-i-feel-that-delights-to-do-no-evil-nor-to/) [James Nayler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nayler/) > [Alcohol doesn't console, it doesn't fill up anyone's psychological gaps, all it replaces is the lack of God. It doesn't comfort man. On the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marguerite-duras/alcohol-doesn-t-console-it-doesn-t-fill-up-anyone-s-psychological/) [Marguerite Duras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marguerite-duras/) > [No truly conscious human being sabotages himself - it's impossible, because it's contrary to Nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-finley/no-truly-conscious-human-being-sabotages-himself-it-s-impossible/) [Guy Finley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-finley/) > [If you abide in the love of Christ, rooted in the faith, you will encounter, even amid setbacks and suffering, the source of true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-benedict-xvi/if-you-abide-in-the-love-of-christ-rooted-in-the-faith-you-will/) [Pope Benedict XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-benedict-xvi/) > [With a full century of contrary proof in our possession and despite our demonstrated capacity for cooperative teamwork, some among us seem to accept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/with-a-full-century-of-contrary-proof-in-our-possession-and-despite/) [Dwight D. 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Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [I am not Christ or a philanthropist, old lady, I am all the contrary of a Christ I fight for the things I believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/che-guevara/i-am-not-christ-or-a-philanthropist-old-lady-i-am-all-the-contrary-of/) [Che Guevara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/che-guevara/) > [“Do they think that they have given us great pleasure by telling us that they hold our soul to be no more than wind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/do-they-think-that-they-have-given-us-great-pleasure-by-telling-us/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [God has given this way of life to Israel: to abstain from everything which is contrary to nature, that is to say, anger, fits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/poemen/god-has-given-this-way-of-life-to-israel-to-abstain-from-everything/) [Poemen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/poemen/) > [ We have reached a situation where a theory has been accepted as fact by some, and possible contrary evidence is shunted aside. \[This is\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-shapiro/we-have-reached-a-situation-where-a-theory-has-been-accepted-as-fact/) [Robert Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-shapiro/) > [Christianity, righty understood, is utterly unlike religion that man invents. 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