Quotes

A Tragic View of Philosophy and Life

Published on October 30th, 2009.

All of culture, philosophy included, is a huge trick on nature, breaking the natural connection between pain and pleasure and the things Mother Nature cares about—reproduction of one species in service of the digestive needs of another, for the most part—and using them for our own purposes. Mother Nature will eventually catch on and reassert herself. But for right now, if one lives in a free society, or at least one that allows philosophers to read what they want and say what they think, and if one can find a job or a stipend, it’s a wonderful time to be a philosopher: so much to read, so much to think about, so much to write about, so many places to expose one’s thoughts to whoever will read or listen. What’s to be done? As Topoi say, it’s a delightful activity. Read, talk, write, enjoy.

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John Perry, “What’s to be done?” in Topoi 25 (2006): 84.

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