Up@dawn 2.0

Monday, November 4, 2013

Philosoraptors vs. the World

Greetings, everyone!

I'm going to try to make this short and sweet, seeing as I have to drive to Nashville here in a few minutes.

Today we graded our exams, and John was exceedingly willing to remind everyone that he won't be needing to take the final exam. After that, we discussed Hegel and Schopenhauer, along with a little Skinner thrown in for good measure. When it was brought up that he had a box that he would place his daughter in known as the Heir Conditioner, I could not handle how punny that was. We also talked about how Schopenhauer was a bit of a charlatan, since he was all talk and no action.

I for one rather enjoyed reading Hegel, not because I particularly agreed with him, but because his ideas were very interesting and enjoyable to ponder for a bit. It also strongly reminded me of one of my favorite shows, a mid-nineties anime by the name of Evangelion (I doubt that anyone in my group is familiar with it, but if you are, we should be friends) which had something in it known as the Human Instrumentality Project, which stood to create a world in which the individual ceased to exist, and all of humanity would come together to form one consciousness, which was bolstered by the fact that all negatives and flaws of individuals would cease to exist, since they would be reinforced by the strengths of others. And since the end result was a unified consciousness, this also meant the end of all pain, anguish, selfishness, etc. since everything was now for the good of the "whole", so to speak.

An extreme digress, I admit, but reading Hegel's idea of the Spirit (or Geist) gave me an eerie sense of deja vu, and now I know why: Hegel's Spirit was the unification of humanity into a joined consciousness. Although admittedly I feel Hegel is referring to a common consensus type of thing, where we reach a sort of common understanding and acceptance to where everyone is striving for the greater good.

Anyway, that's my rant for the day. Not quite as short and concise as I'd imagined, but with that, I am off to go see one of my favorite bands, August Burns Red.

I shall see you all on Wednesday!

7 comments:

  1. Yeah. John's in my Latin class and he definitely likes to remind people of his high grades :P Good job I guess.

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    Replies
    1. Sorry! I just get excited :)

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    2. FQ: What were gardener's seven theories of intellegences? A: Linguistics, Musical, Logical-Mathematical, spatial, Bodily-kinestic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. AP 206

      DQ: The book discusses that good PR can make or break a career in philosophy. do you agree with this? Do you think that this holds true for any career?

      Link: This is a pretty interesting video about how important PR can be in different careers.
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9sTPJX9U-w

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  2. Before I go on to the new readings, I would like to say one thing about Schopenhauer. Even though he may be either a charlatan or a coward, what he said about music was spot on - "...music is a copy of the Will itself. This, he felt, explained music's power to move us so profoundly. If you listen to a Beethoven symphony in the right frame of mind you aren't just being stimulated emotionally: you are glimpsing reality as it truly is." What a profoundly beautiful and sincerely truthful statement.

    Now, on to the new stuff:

    I'm really liking this influx of political philosophers! I can't wait until next year when I finally get to my political theory classes and I can learn about these guys in greater detail. I'm especially excited about John Stuart Mill. I've always liked Utilitarianism and the "do the ends justify the means" principle, and I like where Mill goes with the philosophy. Bentham and Sedgwick get it wrong with their "hedonistic" utilitarianism. The individualistic view full of worldly pleasures does not truly encompass what we are called to do here in this life. We are called to pursue "Truth, Beauty, Freedom, and Love," which also happen to be the core principles of the Bohemian Revolution highlighted in the film "Moulin Rouge" (a great film - see it if you haven't). Speaking of film, with today being Guy Fawkes Day I am reminded ("Remember, remember, the Fifth of November") of "V for Vendetta" and how it ties in with Mill's philosophy. Mill promoted healthy dissent and opposition to the government and asserted the fact that people should think for themselves and not allow the government to instill morals within them. I think this sounds great, but I feel that if carried to far, it allows people to go too far and a culture of relativism to arise from amidst the overwhelming tide of individual freedoms. Whatever happened to Rousseau's "General Will?" I think part of Sedgwick's philosophy captures the notion of what truly is best for society - in a world where the "elite," or those who are more wise and knowledge about the way the world works, are in command, society is truly able to, as Mill puts it, flourish. All this talk of flourish reminds me of Aristotle's "eudaimonia." Happiness is not a "fleeting moment of bliss or how you feel," it's not even the maximization of pure pleasure over suffering, true happiness "can only be achieved in relation to life in a society," and working for "the final harmony of man with man, seeking the best in others, for the good of all." Of course, this is an ideal, and even though we will never attain perfection, our continual striving towards the goal will ultimately result in "the uplift of mankind." This is our sincere search for Truth, giving us rest.

    FQ (LH pg. 146): According to Daniel Dennett, who came up with "the single best idea anyone has ever had?" Answer: Charles Darwin.

    DQ: What is your view of Utilitarianism? If you agree with the core principles, what kind of Utilitarian do you think you are? Where do you side on the difference between individual and corporate freedom? How do you feel about the "elite" being allowed to rule a society in the best interest of the "General Will?"

    Here are two links:

    One about Guy Fawkes Day: http://www.infoplease.com/spot/guyfawkes.html

    And another about J.S. Mill: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/mill/

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  3. I found Hegel to be very interesting as well. His dialectical method is a lot like the saying today, "There is your side of the story, their side of the story and then the real side of the story" I believe that's how it goes....

    Factual Question (LH)- What philosopher, with his educational experiment, believed that children are a blank slate and if brought up the right way they could turn into a genius?
    John Stuart Mill

    Discussion Question (LH)- Do you believe in Darwin's evolution theory?

    A short cartoon on Darwin's Evolution Theory
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wReAL9wS2JY

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  4. FQ: What were gardener's seven theories of intellegences? A: Linguistics, Musical, Logical-Mathematical, spatial, Bodily-kinestic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. AP 206

    DQ: The book discusses that good PR can make or break a career in philosophy. do you agree with this? Do you think that this holds true for any career?

    Link: This is a pretty interesting video about how important PR can be in different careers.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9sTPJX9U-w

    ReplyDelete
  5. I agree with John. I enjoy political philosophers much more. I also really enjoyed reading about J. S. Mill.

    FQ: (LH p 140) What philosopher argued that there were different kinds of pleasure and that some were much better than others?
    Answer: J.S. Mill

    DQ: Do you 9as an individual) believe in Darwin's theory of evolution? (That's right. I went there. I believe this will probably be our discussion in class today... and I can not wait. hehe)

    Link: http://creation.com/evolution-vs-god

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