"Method of investigation: as soon as we have thought something, try to see in what way the contrary is true." (From Gravity and Grace, which I consumed over the holiday.)
The problem with following this advice is that it becomes very hard to get anywhere, but that, I suspect, is the point. Where is it that we are going?
Lock the doors and turn it way up:
A Happy New Year to All.
What prompted you to read Weil? Her severity and corresponding aphoristic concision enchanted me upon first contact in the first philosophy class I took, and this reminds me that I've long meant to return to her.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, if you should have the time and interest to reading this succinct case for antinatalism, which touches on issues related to McMahon's Stone piece ("Predators"), I'd be curious to know what you make of it.
Raimond Gaita and Cora Diamond (and others) mention Weil here and there in their work, and so she's been on the to-read list for awhile.
ReplyDeleteI skimmed parts of that essay; will have to look closer later. (I probably have some things to say about the "happiness" stuff.)
Yeah, the happiness stuff was the first thing that struck Mike as a weak point, though I tend to think that entire section is a rather dispensable accessory to the essay. I'd like to use it for a Colloquium discussion, since it raises deep questions, but fear advertising it might be alienating.
ReplyDelete