XXXIII. Guilt and PunishmentThe account of the origins of “freedom” and “responsibility” marks the end of the first essay. The aim of the Second Essay is to account for the origins of a different phenomenon, “guilt” or “bad conscience.” Before revealing their true origins, Nietzsche attempts to refute a different explanation. Guilt arises from punishment. To make his case Nietzsche gives an account of the origin of punishment. He describes it as a form of compensation to the victim of the crime, from the “debtor to the creditor.” Punishment does not instill guilt, but on the contrary it hardens the person punished.
