Looking Back: Memoirs

It is interesting to view philosophy through a woman's perspective. Indeed there lived an intellectual woman, praised for her psychological contributions to society, who still managed to devote a significant amount to writing about her personal experiences of friendship and reflection. She had a passionate love affair with poet Rainer Maria Rilke, and significant friendships with Nietzsche and Freud. Nietzsche once said that she is "by far the smartest person I ever knew." Indeed, such a woman once existed - her named was Lou Salome. Indeed the story is about Lou's life, yet intern the reader is introduced to Ree, Nietzsche, Rilke, and Freud. Reading "Looking Back" is quite a different experience than reading Nietzsche, or a nook of Rilke poems. It reminds us that these masters were human beings; they had feelings! Lou was present throughout a period of depression in both Nietzsche and Rilke. She wrote when they were mentally paralyzed. What strategies must a woman use to flirt with the some of the greatest minds of her time? Overall, how does she manage to have a successful career as well as be the subject of her lovers' poetry? Lou Salome's "Looking Back" answers some of these questions, and breaks the barrier between the words 'philosopher' and 'friend'.