Up@dawn 2.0 (blogger)

Delight Springs

Tuesday, October 29, 2024

Questions Oct 31

 WGU -p.122

1. "The miracle that saves the world," said Hannah Arendt, is ____.

2. For Kant the most important fact about us is what?

3. What is "the metaphysical wound at the heart of the universe"? 

4. How did David Hume dispel "this philosophical melancholy and delirium"? 

5. What did Kant say we must take seriously, in order to grow up?

6. What must reason find intolerable about the world?

Discussion Questions

  • Is Hannah Arendt's emphasis on natality as important as mortality, in defining the human condition? Would it still be, if we ever achieved natural immortality? 80-81
  • Is the US still a proud nation of immigrants, or more like those European nations "struggling with what they regard as the problem of immigration? 81
  • Are there ways other than travel to "experience the world as babies do" etc.? 83
  • Did your upbringing make it easier or harder for you to trust? 86
  • "Once you start asking why, there's no natural place to stop." 88 So why do so many people stop, or else never start?
  • How long would we have to live, to see this as Leibniz's "best possible world" 89
  • Was Hume right about reason being slave to the passions? 93
  • Was Thrasymachus right about justice? 94
  • Do you agree with the cliche about socialism? 100
  • Is Hume's strategy for dispelling melancholy good? 104
  • Has the gap between ought and is narrowed in the world, historically?107
  • Was Nietzsche right about stoicism? 113
  • Is it childish to expect the world to make sense? 114
  • How can philosophy help us grow up? 119
  • Do we have a right to happiness? 122


Happy Halloween: seize the day

And bring treats to share with the class, for an extra base on the scorecard.

"Do not underestimate the power of costume

==

Today is Halloween, or All Hallows’ Eve, a day in which the dead are traditionally believed to walk among the living. Communities all across the country throw Halloween parties and parades, but Salem, Massachusetts, goes all out. It started with “Haunted Happenings” in the 1980s, a celebration that took place over a single weekend. But more and more happenings were added to the events calendar every year, until they filled the entire month of October, and now a quarter of a million tourists flock to Salem to celebrate the monthlong Festival of the Dead. There’s a psychic fair and witchcraft expo every day. Psychic mediums deliver messages from departed loved ones — or an expert can teach you how to communicate with the dead on your own. Witch doctors and hoodoo practitioners explain the art of graveyard conjuring. There are séances and cemetery tours. You can solemnly honor your lost loved ones at the Dumb Supper, a feast with the dead. And the whole thing culminates with The Official Salem Witches’ Halloween Ball at the historic Hawthorne Hotel.

Salem has had a complicated relationship with witches ever since the infamous witch trials of 1692. Over the course of a year, nearly 200 residents of Essex County were falsely accused of witchcraft; 19 people were hanged and one man was tortured to death. For generations after the trials, the residents of Salem Town and Salem Village just wanted to put the tragedy behind them — so much so that Salem Village changed its name to Danvers. But some modern-day pagans and Wicca practitioners have turned Salem into a pilgrimage site, so the city ironically, and somewhat uneasily, has made witchcraft part of its marketing strategy. Author J.W. Ocker wrote about this phenomenon in A Season with the Witch: The Magic and Mayhem of Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts (2016). He says: “The Witches, capital W, religious Witches, they balk a little bit at the Halloween witch, because it’s ugly and it’s a stereotype, and it has all these historical associations with it. Then there are people like the historians who balk at the religious witches, who kind of co-opt the cause of the accused witches by saying that they were almost martyrs for the cause. Then there’s the city trying to make everyone happy.” WA

19 comments:

  1. #H02
    WGU 1: According to Hannah Arendt, "the miracle that saved the world is the capacity for action". With the birth of each human being, a new hope arises that a unique individual will bring some type of good to humanity. This is what makes the birth of new human beings so special, as anyone can bring about change to anything with the birth of each person.
    WGU 5: Kant believed the true sign of maturity was when one adapted autonomy. Kant argued that humans develop once they learn to stop depending on other things for knowledge and begin to develop their own ideas by themselves. The act of truly growing up is one that is achieved when one no longer relies on parents and influences, but trusts their own mind for understanding.
    WGU 6: Kant found moral inconsistency intolerable in the world, as he believed justice and morality should be upheld universally among every human being. Through this view, Kant found it reasonable for everyone to adapt the concept of a moral law giver into their worldview, as he believed it was necessary for upholding a moral universe. Although he did not suggest that God was real and left it up to speculation, he found it necessary for their to be an absolute right and wrong, which worked similarly to laws such as gravity.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WGU 1 Reply: I agree with you that birth is special and each birth of a human arises new hope for an improved future. Each unique person gets a chance to live a life of change and development, and that in of itself is special.
      WGU 5 Reply: Both you and Kant make good points when it comes to the true sign of maturity. When one adapts autonomy, and the ability to think critically about our choices and decisions in life, we do reach a point of independent growth and the ability to self-govern ourselves.

      Delete
  2. Roman Phillips H#03

    1. "The miracle that saves the world," said Hannah Arendt "is birth." She argued in "The Human Condition" that birth is a miracle. "The miracle that saves the world, the realm of human affairs, from its normal, 'natural' ruin is ultimately the fact that natality, in which the faculty of action is ultimately rooted. It is, in other words, the birth of new men and the new beginning, the action they are capable of by virtue of being born." From page 247 in her book, but quoted on page 80 in WGU.
    2. For Kant, the most important fact about us is that none of us is God - though we constantly desire the two most important divine characteristics, omniscience and omnipotence. This is not ever a possibility for us because we cannot have the best of all possible worlds and remain human.
    Discussion question - Do we have a right to happiness?
    According to Nieman, "If the idea of a right to happiness is not an idle piece of wishful thinking, but a demand of reason, the consequences can be revolutionary." I feel there is a sincere need to be happy and I do believe it is a God given right. Our happiest moments should outweigh the "wrong" or "bad" stuff that happens in our lives and seeking happiness gives us a life purpose. Happiness is not a destination, but a state of being that should be relentlessly pursued.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. H01
      WGU 2 Reply: I think us as humans naturally desire to be superior amongst one another, so we want to have divine characteristics of omniscience and omnipotence. I think we have to humble ourselves to realize we aren't as superior as we make ourselves out to be. I find it relieving that we are not God and take comfort in knowing that their is a God that represents omniscience and omnipotence for everyone.

      Delete
  3. Erick Martinez H02

    WGU
    1. Hannah Arendt believed that the miracle that saves the world is the fact that we are born. The miracle is the birth of new minds, therefore new beginnings and new possibilities that come that.

    Discussion questions
    • Is it childish to expect the world to make sense?
    The author does state that expecting the world to make sense is for children. But she also says that this way of thinking is for dogmatic thinkers. Kant on the other hand believed regulative principles which do not help us try to understand the world, but they orient our actions within it.
    • "Once you start asking why, there's no natural place to stop." So why do so many people stop, or else never start?
    So many people stop asking questions due to how many questions their answers come with. Asking a philosophical question can lead to many answers, but those answers just lead to more questions. These questions also may bring unsatisfying answers that lead to trying harder to find a more suitable answer. It’s essentially a loop that many people would rather not be in which is why many people don’t even start to ask why?

    ReplyDelete
  4. H01

    WGU #4:
    David Hume essentially dealt with this problem by having a good time with friends. This is a legitimate practice for sure. I personally find that, when I am in a sort of negative mood that is directed at everything or nothing in particular, nothing solves it like time with friends. I would assume this is a universal experience.

    WGU #5:
    Kant thought that the way the world IS and the way the world OUGHT TO BE both needed to be taken seriously. I think that this is definitely true. How could we know what to do if we didn't know both what OUGHT to be done and what IS actually possible? Susan Neiman makes a similar point to this in the book, and I would agree with her.

    Discussion Question #5:
    I would guess that most people just don't find it to be a valuable use of their time to continue to ask "why?" about everything. Some people enjoy the process of asking even if they never get answers, but we only have so much time and energy in our lives, so most people would probably rather use their time and energy elsewhere.

    Discussion Question #13:
    I think it is fine to expect the world to make sense meaning that is your basic assumption. We just have to understand that that doesn't necessarily mean it is going to make sense TO US. But in general, if the world really doesn't make any sense, there doesn't appear to be any way that we could understand it at all, so we might as well operate under the expectation of it making sense.

    Neiman, Susan. WHY GROW UP? SUBVERSIVE THOUGHTS FOR AN
    INFANTILE AGE. Revised ed, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 4 Apr.
    2016.

    ReplyDelete
  5. #H02-
    WGU-2
    So, Immanuel Kant had this big idea that what really sets us apart as humans is our ability to reason. Basically, he thought that our capacity to think rationally and make moral decisions is what makes us truly human. Kant believed that reason allows us to grow, learn, and develop a sense of moral responsibility. It’s like our internal compass that helps us navigate through life, making choices that are not just about what’s best for us but also what’s right and fair for others. He also argued that our ability to reason gives us autonomy, meaning we can govern ourselves and make our own decisions based on moral principles. This autonomy is crucial because it means we’re not just following rules blindly, but we’re actively thinking about why those rules exist and whether they align with our own sense of right and wrong.

    WGU-3
    Susan talks about this idea called “the metaphysical wound at the heart of the universe.” Basically, it’s a fancy way of saying that there’s this deep, fundamental problem in the world of the existence of evil and suffering. Imagine you’re looking at the world and wondering why bad things happen, especially if there’s supposed to be a good and all-powerful God. This question has puzzled people for ages. It’s like, if everything is supposed to be good and just, why do we see so much pain and injustice around us?
    Neiman uses this concept to explore how we deal with these tough questions and how they shape our understanding of life. It’s about grappling with the fact that the world isn’t perfect and trying to make sense of it all. This “wound” is at the core of our existence, challenging us to think deeply about morality, justice, and the nature of the universe.

    WGU-5
    Kant thought that to truly mature, we need to face reality as it is, with all its imperfections and challenges, but also hold on to our ideals and strive to make the world a better place. It’s about balancing the practical aspects of life with our moral aspirations. So, growing up, according to Kant, means acknowledging the world as it is while also working towards what it should be.

    Maheswari Ramesh (Maahi)

    ReplyDelete
  6. WGU-1: "The miracle that saves the world," said Hannah Arendt, is birth. Arendt believes that the capacity for new beginnings, embodied in birth, renews the world.

    WGU-2: For Kant, the most important fact about us is our capacity to reason. He views this as essential to human dignity and our ability to make moral choices apert from each other.

    WGU-3: The "metaphysical wound at the heart of the universe" refers to the problem of evil, the universal tension between the way the world is and how we feel it should be.

    WGU-4: Hume dispelled "this philosophical melancholy and delirium" by engaging in everyday life activities, like playing billiards and dining with friends. Hume believed that engaging in simple pleasures helped ground him and ease existential worries.

    WGU-5: Kant said we must take our autonomy and moral freedom seriously in order to grow up. He insists that we strive to become mature by recognizing and exercising our capacity for rational thought and moral choice.

    WGU-6: Reason must find injustice intolerable about the world. Kant believes that a reasonable person will be deeply disturbed by unfairness and contradictions between moral law and the realities of the world.

    ReplyDelete
  7. H01

    WGU 1- Hannah Arendt believed that "the miracle that saves the world is the fact of natality". She put a lot of credit on the improbability of life and decided, honestly rightfully so, that it deserves status as a miracle. A continuous miracle that happens every day, the creation of "a completely new being that might just redeem the world".

    WGU 2- For Kant, the most important fact about us is our ability to comprehend "the rest of the world". Our cognitive capacities are built fundamentally around trust, trust in the adults that take care of us as babies and trust that the world operates how it "ought to". From there, we learn to reason. Once we experience trauma or pain for the first time, that trust is bent forever, we finally become able to differentiate between this reality and all other possibilities. The "ought" and the "is". We are capable of imagining what is not, but what could or should or ought to be.

    Discussion Questions:
    - I don't believe that it's childish to expect the world to make sense. I think it is quite unhelpful, given that things more often don't make sense than do, but "childish" has too much of a negative connotation for adults. That in and of itself, I think is wrong. The way children see the world is beautiful, and hopeful, and trusting. It SUCKS that we have to contort all of those beliefs into resignation and dejection to be seen as "grown-up" because "that's just the way the world is". To expect the world to make sense, and to also understand that it doesn't, is the first step towards change, I think. In a perfect world, it DOES make sense. That's what we should all be striving for, right? Making things better? It is not childish to wish that consequences followed actions as they naturally should, nor is it necessarily ignorant. It could be, but I like to believe that it's just hope for a better world. And hope IS NOT negative.
    - I think that my upbringing made it easier for me to trust. I had two actively engaged parents my whole life, who truly want the best for me. Their adherence to a kind of "childish" fairness and justice in my childhood gave me the ability to believe in and understand consequences. Eventually, I entered the larger world and came to realize that often the consequences are not proportional or even tied to the action. But my upbringing made me more likely to trust that things will resolve accordingly, for better or for worse. More importantly, I trust in my parents to be holders of knowledge, despite that fact that I do know there are limitations on that knowledge. I also trust in myself, to affect the world around me in direct and consequent ways. I believe I have the ability to change things, and that is incredibly important.

    ReplyDelete
  8. H03
    WGU
    1: Arendt said that the miracle that saves the world is the natality or simply put birth.
    Discussion questions
    2: I believe that the U.S is still a nation of immigrants given that it is easy to find influences from other cultures and that continues to happen. While we do have people arguing that immigration is a problem, we still have to recognize that the immigrants that come in greatly change our society given our tendency to adopt customs and ideas much like how the Romans would never let a good innovation go to waste.
    4: My own upbringing makes it harder to trust since I was instilled with the belief to never fully trust anyone. This was honestly a natural belief for my parents to hold given that they are from Honduras, a country where trust means nothing. I have not seen the greatest of horrors unlike many people in Honduras, but given that I was raised by Hondurans from Honduras I naturally have some of the values that they have especially since it is critical when I visit since it is way less safe than the U.S. One thing I note is that my parents, as a result of being from Honduras, are pretty mistrustful of other hispanics (even Hondurans) which is certainly something that I don't blame them for even if I'm not the same way.

    ReplyDelete
  9. H01
    WGU 1: The miracle that saved the world is the capacity for action. With every new birth, we hope for the individual to bring something valuable to society. This is what makes the birth of new human beings so special because every individual has the opportunity to make a change.
    WGU 5: Kant believed the true sign of maturity was when one adapted autonomy. Kant argued that humans develop once they learn to stop depending on other things for knowledge. Growing up is when you begin you rely on your own thoughts and mind rather than your parent(s)/guardian(s).
    WGU 6: Kant found moral inconsistency intolerable in the world, as he believed justice and morality should be upheld universally among every human being. Kant thought everyone should adapt to the concept of a moral law giver into their worldview, as he believed it was necessary for upholding a moral universe. Although he did not suggest that God was real and left it up to speculation, he found it necessary for there to be an absolute right and wrong.

    ReplyDelete
  10. H03:
    WGU Q1: According to Hannah Arendt the miracle that saves the world is new beginnings. The art of starting over is glorious. As humans, we all can change. We can start over and become the best version of ourselves.
    WGU Q3: We must be able to see the world for what it truly is and what it should be. We must be realistic and see the reality of the world we live in. However, we must also foresee its potential and what needs to happen and the way the world should be.
    WGU Q5: Understanding who we are and the contributions we are put on this earth to make is important. Kant discussed that we must take our responsibility seriously as well as our freedom. We must use our freedom and make our mark on the world.

    ReplyDelete
  11. 1. "The miracle that saves the world," said Hannah Arendt, is birth. The opportunity we have to live and thrive as humans is something that many people take for granted. The fact that we get to be is simply spectacular. The continuation of our species maintains more than just the human race; it also saves our beliefs.

    2. For Kant the most important fact about us is our capacity for reason. Without reason, our existence becomes infinitely more unbearable. Being able to discern and determine our own perspectives and beliefs is what creates the human experience as it is. If we suddenly lost our capacity for reason, we would be no different than a phytoplankton, moving aimlessly and trapped in our predetermined purpose. Having reason is having life.



    3. David Hume found that relaxing the mind and engaging in “lively sensory experiences” was the best method to dispel his “philosophical melancholy and delirium”. Personally, I found that I agree with this philosophy. Taking a break from routine and simply remembering to ground yourself can be monumental to maintaining our sanity and positivity. When I let my dog out in the backyard, I always turn to the nearest branch or bush and grab onto it. I take a minute to reflect on my perception and further conceptualize my purpose. Taking even a minute to get lost in nature is something I could not recommend enough.

    ReplyDelete
  12. WGU
    Q1: According to Hannah Arendt, the “miracle that saves the world” is the “Natality” of man. Which means the ability of Humans to birth new humans who will, by the fact that they’re new and have been born, will be able to undertake new actions with new beginnings.
    Q2: Kant thought the most important fact was that no human wag God, even if we longed for his attributes or not, an absolutely perfect world would be one where we weren't really human
    Q3: The “wound at the heart of the universe” is the fact that some thing are unfair, “not as they should be” to what your perception of equal is, and thus, you have a want to change it.

    ReplyDelete
  13. H02

    1. What was Kent’s definition of enlightenment: He said enlightenment is reasons emancipation from immaturity expressed in his personal motto sattuerei aude which means have the courage to think for yourself
    2. Why is judgement important is this a surprising thing for a Kantian
    She said nothing that really moves us can be found by following a rule and yes this is surprising to hear from a Kantian
    3. What did Paul Goodman say about growing up
    Paul goodman said people need to grow up in a culture and community that offers meaningful work and living in a society that values consumerism over meaningful work will be a great detriment to the community

    ReplyDelete
  14. H03

    WGU 1 + Discussion 1-

    "The miracle that saves the world," said Hannah Arendt, is birth. It is a new beginning, creating so many opportunities just from being born into the world. The emphasis is fair; those are two critical points in the person’s life and those they surround themselves with. For example, a parent will probably always cherish their child's birth and find that day most memorable as the years go by. Mortality, the fact that we die, will always be necessary as long as we are mortal. Dying creates a gap in a way. For some, it brings family for others. For others, it destroys them. Death is a critical point in everyone's life, just like birth is. So, if we did ever achieve natural immortality, I feel birth would become more important to people, as it is a start to a very long journey instead of a journey with a clear end.

    WGU 2 + Discussion-

    For Kant, the most important thing about us is our cognitive abilities. He argued that being able to comprehend something so distinct from the world fitted with being able to make an argument for God’s existence. The ability to think and experience the world with our cognitive skills creates confidence and trust in children; this factor Kant explained with an example of a little girl pulling a string that will make the toy bird flap its wings or fly. + I feel that with how I was brought up, I find it harder to trust, but not mainly because I was brought up to distrust people as a life lesson, but instead saw it outside the family. People can be cruel, and seeing how trust can be broken for my family members, I decided to be more careful and distrustful instead of going into the world as if it were trustworthy.

    WGU 3 + Discussion-

    According to Nietzsche, the “metaphysical wound at the heart of the universe” is rage or the sense that things are not as they should be. We are justified in our rage at times; the way we direct our rage, on the other hand, is not so easily justified. + The gap between ought and is has historically narrowed the world, in my opinion. Just because someone thinks the world should be a certain way does not mean it is or even can be in the type of world we live in. One might argue about the death penalty and that we are playing god. They will get mad about it, how it is murder, but it is how the world is not how it should be. Many places do not use the death penalty or execute people. It has always been present, but it can also make the world seem to have only one way to go. It should be how people want to go, but then avoid thinking about how it is going.

    ReplyDelete
  15. #H1 - Zoe Kuhn
    WGU - #1
    “The miracle that saves the world,” said Hannah Arendt is new beginnings and birth.
    WGU - #2
    For Kant the most important fact about us is our ability to reason.
    WGU - #3
    What is "the metaphysical wound at the heart of the universe"?
    The “metaphysical would at the heart of the universe” is the issue people have with evil.

    ReplyDelete
  16. H#2
    WGU#1 - Hannah Arendt said "The miracle that saves the world," is birth because it brings about new beginnings and a new opportunity to change the world.

    WGU#2 - Kant believed the most important thing about us is our cognitive abilities and how we use them.

    WGU#5 - Kant said that we must take our realize our autonomy and how we rely on others. Once we realize this we are able to think for ourselves and grow up.

    ReplyDelete