"1. The true world, accessible to the wise, the pious, the virtuous – he lives in it, he himself is this world. (The oldest form of the idea, relatively intelligent, simple, persuasive. Transcript of the thesis 'I, Plato, am the truth').
2. The true world, currently inaccessible, but promised to the wise, the pious, the virtuous ('to the sinner who does penance'). (Progress of the idea: it becomes more subtle, more insidious, more elusive – it becomes woman, it Christianizes...).
3. The true world, inaccessible, unprovable, unpromisable, but already, insofar as it is thought, a consolation, an obligation, an imperative. (Ultimately the ancient sun, but through fog and skepticism; the sublimated idea, pale, Nordic, königsbergian).
4. The true world – inaccessible. Still not reached. And insofar as it is not reached, also unknown. Consequently, it is not even consoling, saving, binding: what could bind us to something unknown?… (Gray morning. The first yawn of reason. The rooster's crow of positivism).
5. The 'true world' – an idea that is no longer of any use, not even binding – an idea that has become useless and superfluous, therefore a refuted idea: let us eliminate it! (Bright day; breakfast; return of common sense and serenity; Plato red with shame; the wild uproar of all free spirits).
6. We have gotten rid of the true world: what world remains for us? Perhaps the apparent one?… But no! with the true world, we have also eliminated the apparent one! (Noon; the moment of the shortest shadow; the end of the very long error; the apogee of humanity; INCIPIT ZARATHUSTRA)"
(F. Nietzsche, GD, 75-76, in G. Vattimo, Introduzione a Nietzsche, Laterza, 1985, pp. 81-82).
