A collaborative search for wisdom, at Middle Tennessee State University and beyond...
"The pluralistic form takes for me a stronger hold on reality than any other philosophy I know of, being essentially a social philosophy, a philosophy of 'co'"-William James
Life becomes even more precious during times like now. Hug a loved one, call that person, and stay safe. That is probably the most important philosophy that myself and everyone should stick to right now.
There is nothing like adversity to unite the masses. In many sci-fi stories the human race is faced with the threat of destruction by extraterrestrial aliens invasion, which unites all humanity. The covid-19 virus is an alien of sorts and could possibly bring us closer. That is my hope, but I fear this narrative doesn’t play out accordingly.
“This is a paradise of rising to the occasion that points out by contrast how the rest of the time most of us fall down from the heights of possibility, down into diminished selves and dismal societies. Many now do not even hope for a better society, but they recognize it when they encounter it, and that discovery shines out even through the namelessness of their experience. Others recognize it, grasp it, and make something of it, and long-term social and political transformations, both good and bad, arise from the wreckage. The door to this ear's potential paradises is in hell.”
“The map of utopias is cluttered nowadays with experiments by other names, and the very idea is expanding. It needs to open up a little more to contain disaster communities. These remarkable societies suggest that, just as many machines reset themselves to their original settings after a power outage, human beings reset themselves to something altruistic, communitarian, resourceful and imaginative after a disaster, that we revert to something we already know how to do. The possibility of paradise is already within us as a default setting.”
“It's tempting to ask why if you fed your neighbors during the time of the earthquake and fire, you didn't do so before or after.”
This is so beautiful. Times are hard right now, sure, but it is interesting to me to see people come together and help one another.
ReplyDeleteLife becomes even more precious during times like now. Hug a loved one, call that person, and stay safe. That is probably the most important philosophy that myself and everyone should stick to right now.
ReplyDelete#5
Delete#6
ReplyDeleteThis really could be a new beginning of sorts for the idea of team work.
There is nothing like adversity to unite the masses. In many sci-fi stories the human race is faced with the threat of destruction by extraterrestrial aliens invasion, which unites all humanity. The covid-19 virus is an alien of sorts and could possibly bring us closer. That is my hope, but I fear this narrative doesn’t play out accordingly.
ReplyDeleteThis poem is beautiful. It really is an interesting time that we are living in, and one that no one will soon forget. Section 6
ReplyDeleteRising above adversity is the silver lining.
ReplyDeleteRebecca Solnit has written beautifully about that phenomenon:
"A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That Arise in Disaster"
https://books.google.com/books?id=Ikky4CKuS_oC&printsec=frontcover&dq=solnit+paradise+hell&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjR2v23trToAhVFCKwKHbVoCwAQuwUwAHoECAUQBw#v=onepage&q=solnit%20paradise%20hell&f=false
“This is a paradise of rising to the occasion that points out by contrast how the rest of the time most of us fall down from the heights of possibility, down into diminished selves and dismal societies. Many now do not even hope for a better society, but they recognize it when they encounter it, and that discovery shines out even through the namelessness of their experience. Others recognize it, grasp it, and make something of it, and long-term social and political transformations, both good and bad, arise from the wreckage. The door to this ear's potential paradises is in hell.”
Delete“The map of utopias is cluttered nowadays with experiments by other names, and the very idea is expanding. It needs to open up a little more to contain disaster communities. These remarkable societies suggest that, just as many machines reset themselves to their original settings after a power outage, human beings reset themselves to something altruistic, communitarian, resourceful and imaginative after a disaster, that we revert to something we already know how to do. The possibility of paradise is already within us as a default setting.”
“It's tempting to ask why if you fed your neighbors during the time of the earthquake and fire, you didn't do so before or after.”