Thus Spake Zarathustra is a philosophical novel which mostly deals with ideas such as the "eternal recurrence of the same", the parable on the "death of God", and the "prophecy" of the Übermensch. The book talks about the old wise man who descends from his mountain among the people, out of a desire to learn something from them and to donate his wisdom to people. He encounters a variety of people and learns their secrets and reveals that he is actually looking for a man equal to himself. Many do not understand his philosophy and ridicule him, but there are those who admire him.Friedrich Nietzsche (1844 - 1900) was a German philosopher, poet, and Latin and Greek scholar whose work has exerted a profound influence on Western philosophy and modern intellectual history. Because of Nietzsche's evocative style and provocative ideas, his philosophy generates passionate reactions. His works remain controversial, due to varying interpretations and misinterpretations of his work.