The title of this last part is “What is Noble?” which uses the word “Vornehm”. This reinforces our sense of that concept as particularly significant for Nietzsche's thought. This Part pursues the question of nobility from at least two directions: first, historically, in terms of the broad origins and development of aristocratic societies; secondly, in terms of nobility as it is encountered, or not encountered, today and particularly in philosophy. Part 9, as one might expect of the concluding chapter, is a drawing together of themes. So, we find some of Nietzsche's clearest (and least tempered) statements of, for example, the nature of plebeian morality and of what is noble. However, as the Part continues, it becomes gradually more cryptic and playful. Here, we will discuss fairly briefly the passages that recapitulate known ideas, paying most attention to the way in which they further develop the analyses. Then, we will spend more time understanding what Nietzsche is up to at the end of the Part, and how it relates to the overall philosophical strategy of the book.

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We have previously discussed the subtle (and not always consistent) distinction between “Adel” and “Vornehm”, which are both often translated as “noble”. Here, Nietzsche begins with the phrase “aristokratischen Gesellschaft”: every enhancement [Erhöhung] of the human type has occurred through an “aristocratic society”. Although appearing in a Part titled “What is Noble?”, it is not immediately clear how Nietzsche wants us to take this idea of the “aristocratic”.