"The second thesis, which arises out of the first, is that this life
of theory entails the renunciation of everyday life, with all its
various passions, sensibilities and ambitions so that the ideal state
for a philosopher is that of a "living dead". The concerns of everyday
living and the feelings thereby engendered are entanglements that
hinder the seeker of enlightenment from attaining the insights that
(s)he aspires to. It is this ideal condition, zombie-like as it must
appear, that has held sway in Western thought from the time of
Socrates self-orchestrated death, through the chastity of medieval
scholasticism up to 19th Century phenomenology." -- Amazon review of
The Art of Philosophy
Gathatoulie
And of these shall I speak to those eager, That quality of wisdom that all the wise wish And call creative qualities And good creation of the mind The all-powerful truth Truly and that more & better ways are discovered Towards perfection --Zarathustra.
Monday, January 14, 2013
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words cut, pasted, and otherwise munged by joe corneli otherwise known as arided.
2 comments:
See here and I thought that the condition of living life was the ideal circumstance for a philosopher. Actually I think that is what distinguishes Buddhist philosophy from some of the others, the recognition that " everyday life is the way", and not in some ivory tower. I for one think the ideal condition is being fully present in order to effectivelly deal with the life that unfolds around me. I think of a zombie like state as being the very antithesis of enlightened thought. Don't tell me I am alone in this. Maybe this is the source of the quote " in order for Europe to live America must die". Being that with the exception of the very workhorses of America people like Thoreau, Mark Twain, Emerson, Adam Smith, the spirit of America is a sort of an impotent zombie. These mavericks representing the continuing lifeblood of the traditions of Europe continuing to flower in new ways and calling for the death of the undead and the cultivation of the flowering of life. Let life be life and death be death, from this place and beyond.
Thanks for the comment! Your analysis of American mavericks as representing the spirit of Europe reminds me of one of the best chapters from Derrida's book "The Politics of Friendship".
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