Quote of the Day and Random Ponderings
"[E]xperience produces art, but inexperience chance." Polus (as quoted by Aristotle)
My first book, of the 100 I hope to read by the end of the year, is The Philosophy of Aristotle, Commentary by Renford Bambrough, Translations by JL Creed and AE Wardman. After reading the introduction last night, as well as the first chapters of Metaphysics Book 1, and parts of Ethics, I have decided that it's a damn shame that our school systems suck.
I think, that were Aristotle's works required reading in high school (between the ages of 14 and 18), or maybe even for all freshmen in college, that there would be a significant reduction in the number of fluffy bunnies in the world.
I wish I had the patience required at the moment to actually re-type the first 2 pages of Metaphysics here, but for those of you who might be interested I'm sure you'll go read it, for anyone else, it would just be so much jumble to get through. I'm guilty of enough jumble already.
The idea that we have to gain knowledge in order to be profficient at our tasks, let alone perfect them into an "art" as Aristotle uses the term, is not a new one. How many times have you seen someone who *knows* tell someone who doesn't, how to go about learning in the proper way? How many times have you seen someone mention the (*gasp*) horrid idea that someone do a little research before actually practicing the art of witchcraft? And yet, these very ideas have been kicking around for over 2000 years.
I think I will allow myself a bit of an extended quote back
"As far as getting things done is concerned, experience does not seem to differ at all from art; in fact, we observe that those who have experience meet with more success that those who have grasped the principles of the subject without any experience. ... [I]f someonehas grasped the principles of the subject without any experience, and thus knows the universal without knowing the individuals contained in it, he will often fail in his treatment....Nonetheless, we do regard knowledge and understanding as belonging more to art than to experience; and we regard those who possess an art as wiser than those who just have experience, on the grounds that in every case wisdom follows on knowledge. We have this attitude because those who possess art know causes, whereas others do not."
It goes on, obviously. Aristotle's works are, if nothing else, copious. My point is, that it just suddenly struck me last night, that part of what is fought against every day in message boards and forums galore (as well, I'm sure, in ML) is not so much stupidity, though it seems that way. It is a lack of understanding of knowledge. Without understanding what knowledge is, we'll never be able to be educated. We will move ever further from understanding anything, the longer we go without understanding *how* to learn.
And if that made no sense, I apologize. The thoughts were much clearer at midnight, but I couldn't risk waking up the hubby to come downstairs and write it all out. :)
second quote of the day...
"The national budget must be balanced. The public debt must be
reduced; the arrogance of the authorities must be moderated and controlled.
Payments to foreign governments must be reduced. If the nation doesn't want to go
bankrupt, people must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance."
-- Marcus Tullius Cicero, 55 BC ~~ and here we thought it was just an issue here in the states.....