Comments | bobby1933: Socrates and Compassion

bobby1933

Socrates and Compassion

Jun 20, 2012 14:01

"The Trojan war did not end with the embrace of Achilles and Priam. The fighting continued the next day and would not cease until the beautiful city of Troy was destroyed. We have moments of insight that take us beyond our self absorption, but it is all to easy to fall back into our old ways. Yaakov's epiphany at Peniel was the high point of his ( Read more... )

toward compassion, platonic project

Comments 7

amaebi June 20 2012, 20:58:34 UTC

Armstrong's major fault, for me, is very cartoony assertions about complex literatures, phenomena, and people.

Do you really think we'd be better off without a culture? What on earth would that be like?

And you know, Socrates is probably at his saintliest-- or "saintliest,' anyway-- in the Phaedo, and to my surprise he's getting on my nerves like whoa. :D

Culture bobby1933 June 20 2012, 23:23:15 UTC

When people live and act together, as they must, and continue this living and acting over generation, they will create and pass on culture. Language is a part of culture, as is religion, as is almost everything that is not given by nature.

Culture has gotten away from us -- its culture against "man" as Jules Henry asserted back in the sixties. If i think that certain aspects of culture are dangerous to me and/or other human beings, i am obligated to fight, ignore, or try to change them.

I still need to give Phaedo a close reading.

amaebi June 20 2012, 23:48:59 UTC

I'll settle for people noticing their cultures and making choices. :D I doubt there's any viable way to start from scratch-- let alone any desirable one.

I'm not at all sure the Phaedo bears a very close reading. [low groan] It's really a portrait piece, or intended as one.

bobby1933 June 20 2012, 23:28:13 UTC

But i do find some of her "cartoonish assertions about complex literatures" (e.g. Greek tragedies as communal meditations) thought provoking.

Thread 5

madman101 June 21 2012, 04:14:49 UTC

i sit when i speak, even as others stand

you'd be amazed how that lends itself to a more compassionate dialogue

and it will also help point out who may be a tad too arrogant or impatient - impetuous

i love your recent study of my great hero, socrates! yes he is only a man. how lucky we are that we may improve upon the past. if he were more saintly, then what work would be left to us?

;)

bobby1933 June 21 2012, 04:31:54 UTC

:) Thanks, i needed that.