1 City

The First Chapter,

In which you ask yourself:

Where am I?

Preparation

Required Reading: Levinovitz, “A Funhouse Mirror for the Soul” (Aeon)
(This essay is an introduction to a classic philosophical text, the Zhuang Zi. Below the introduction, a translation of the first chapter of the Zhuang Zi is provided. You are only required to read the introduction, not the chapter. The chapter itself is your Optional Reading for this week.)

Writing:

1. One of Levinovitz’s key terms is “apophasis.” How does he define it? What does this have to do with the idea of the “jester”? Answer with paraphrase, not quotation.
2. An argument is a thesis supported by one or more reasons. What is Levinovitz’s thesis? What reason(s) does he provide in support of his thesis? Paraphrase or quote briefly.
3. What is your immediate reaction to Levinovitz’  argument? Agreement, disagreement, or something else?
4. Respond to the following question by writing at least one paragraph: If “the jester actively undermines the student’s ability to stabilise herself,” isn’t “jesting” dangerous to students who need stability? 

Normal World

So, you’re going through your day, and everything is normal, nothing too crazy happens. You get up, you brush your teeth, you go to where you have to go, you talk to people, you do your thing, you eat some food, you watch stuff on your phone, you go to the bathroom, you take a nap, you feel things sometimes, you do some work or you don’t do some work, maybe you make some money, maybe not very much and you wish you had more but that’s why you’re in college, you go to class and look at the textbook a little, maybe you’re interested maybe you’re not, you feel things, you eat some food, you watch stuff on your phone, back at your place you do whatever you do, maybe you have a roommate and you watch Netflix or play video games, maybe you go out for a while, you come back early or late or whatever, you brush your teeth, you go to bed, maybe you sleep. So that’s it. 

Or how about: you are going through your day, and everything is normal, because you feel so sad or afraid and that’s just how you normally feel, not sure why but that’s how it is. You get up, you brush your teeth and you’re looking in the mirror but you don’t like that, you have some place to go but you don’t want to go, or you don’t have any place to go and you wish you did, and why do you look like you do, why do you feel like you do, who’s fault is it? You do your thing, you eat some food, you watch stuff on your phone, you go to the bathroom, you take a nap and then another nap, you stop feeling sad and afraid sometimes but then it comes back, maybe you make some money but what’s the point but that’s why you’re in college, isn’t it, to figure out what the point is. You come back early or late or whatever, you brush your teeth, you go to bed, you don’t sleep. Or you do. So that’s it. 

Or no, no: how about this. you’re up when you say you’ll get up, which is early, and everything is normal, nothing too crazy happens and that’s good because it would get in the way, you have places to go and stuff to do and isn’t that why you’re in college, to get things done and get to the next things and you have a plan and this day is going according to plan. You eat food, you do work, you do good work, you watch stuff on your phone but you feel guilty about it because you have good work to do, you get back to work, you go to your job which pays for your school which is going to pay off when you go on to your job that is part of your plan, and everything is normal because this is what is normal, this is what you know you should do, and you are doing it, mostly. You have your plan and the day is going along with it. You come back early or late or whatever the plan requires, you brush your teeth, you go to bed, you sleep. So that’s it. 

Your normal world. Whatever that is. That’s where you are. 

* * *

Hi. Did you know you’re going to die some day? 

Of course you did. Of course you do.

Do you? Know it? Really? 

Does anyone? 

* * *

So, you’re going about your day, and everything is normal, nothing too crazy happens, it’s blah or depressing or all-planned-out, depending on who “you” are, and then, well: you get a text and it’s Them and They’re telling you “sorry but you’re going to die. No I mean soon. Like, tonight.” 

And then your normal world — well, it isn’t exactly over, is it. You’re still alive, aren’t you. Everything around you is all the same. The people around you are living in their normal worlds, all the stuff in your backpack is still sitting their, your phone is still in your hand, you could watch stuff like you always do, you could do your homework like you always do, you could feel stuff like you always do, you could even squeeze in a few episodes before it happens. Nothing’s changed. But everything’s different. What happened. What happened.

Your normal world: you’re still in it. But you’re not a part of it any more, are you. The world’s the same. You’re different. You’re not normal anymore. Normal feels weird now. Familiar feels strange. Things that mattered, now they don’t. Things that didn’t matter, now they do. 

Whatever happened when you got that text, it happened in an instant. A sudden revelation. It’s not like you didn’t know  before that you were going to die. But now you know it. Totally different: knowing a fact is not like knowing a truth. And maybe you think to yourself, now that you know this truth, I wish I’d known this truth all along. Things that mattered to me, wouldn’t have mattered. Things that didn’t matter to me, would have. I would have lived differently!

Are you guessing where it’s going? Maybe there actually is a way of living that aims at knowing truth. Not facts: truth. A different way of living, for the long haul, where every day you get up and you’re going through your day and all that same stuff is happening but it’s different, even though it’s the same, because you’re different, you look at it differently. But now it’s not because there was a sudden revelation, some kind of “enlightenment,” some random message breaking into your life: maybe you look at it differently because you practice looking differently, work hard at it, learn how to do it from other people. Maybe you learn how to make the things that matter to you now, not matter so much, and how to make the things that don’t matter to you now, matte more. Maybe you learn how to see what’s weird about what’s normal. Maybe you learn how to really live. 

This is called “doing philosophy.” This is what I’m talking about. 

* * *

Is this what you were expecting from philosophy class? 

Good. 

* * *

Now: do you think I’m about to tell you that philosophy can bring meaning to your life, teach you to value “what really matters,” change your ways, shape up, go to class on time, pay your taxes, do the right thing, love people? Absolutely not. Philosophy doesn’t bring meaning to your life. Philosophy says: “hey you think there’s meaning to your life? Tell me why. Make me an argument. Give it your best shot.” Maybe it turns out there isn’t meaning to your life. Philosophy is fine with that. So you’ve got to decide whether you’re fine with philosophy.   

Philosophy wants truth. Maybe the truth is that life does have meaning and you’ve been living a meaningless life and you need to change your life. But maybe the truth is that life has no meaning at all, and you’ve been living like it does, as if what you do “matters,” as if being a good person “matters,” when actually it doesn’t and what you should really be doing is just whatever the hell you want because you’re going to die so why not. So that would also mean you need change you life. Could be one way, could be another way. What do you think? There’s no Correct Answer out there in the sky that philosophy is going to bring it down to you. 

Or maybe there is? I don’t know. Let’s talk about it. 

The point is: this is not Sunday school, and it is not grade school, and it is definitely not high high school, and it is not like your other college classes. This is philosophy class. There are no rules. There are no right answers. There are no learning outcomes (but don’t worry, there’s still a lot of work to do). Right now you have no idea where you are, where you’re going, or where you’ll end up. You think you do, and then you realize you don’t. So this class is sort of like life. And death. 

That’s what you should expect from this class. You start wherever you are, in your normal world. Then you ask some questions and it doesn’t feel so normal anymore. And then maybe you realize it never was, and you start to wonder: where am I? . And then you start to ask: what’s keeping me here? What’s keeping me in “normal” world? How do I get out? And where am I going?

Those are some big questions. And they’re all connected to one really big question, which is just this:

What should I do?

Well, first of all, you should read this poem: 

That’s what you should do. You must change your life. 

Philosophy is a way to change your life. 

Ok. But what is philosophy, actually? 

Let’s start this chapter over, from another angle. (This is one of the things philosophers do. They start over, from another angle. Over and over again.) 

Three Faces

Philosophy has three aspects — three “faces”:

1. Method
2. Conversation
3. Attitude

1. Method

Philosophy is a way of thinking. But when you are doing philosophy, you are not thinking about just anything. You are thinking about thoughts. Doing philosophy means thinking about thoughts. 

Why would you want to think about your thoughts? 

Because your thoughts might be wrong.

Why would it matter if your thoughts are wrong?

Because you want to be happy, and wrong thoughts might make you less happy. (But there are no guarantees. Wrong thoughts might make you happier, actually. That’s a thought to think hard about.)

2. Book

Philosophy is also the thoughts that other people have had about their thoughts. A person who thinks very hard about their thoughts is called a philosopher. The great philosophers are the ones who have mastered the philosophical way of thinking and had some original thoughts. These thoughts get written down in books. Studying philosophy means reading these books. 

Why would you want to read these books? 

Because they make you think very hard about your thoughts. 

Why would you want to think hard about your thoughts?

Because you want to be happy. See above. 

3. Way

Philosophy is a way of thinking, and it involves reading the thoughts great philosophers had about their thoughts. But philosophy is more than thinking hard thoughts and reading hard books. It is also a way of living. Or, it can be. And many great philosophers have thought it should be. One of them said: “the unexamined life is not worth living.” (Socrates) 

In this course, we focus mostly on philosophy as a way of life — a way of making life worth living. (You must change your life.)

Three Questions

Philosophers examine life by asking questions. Big questions. Weird questions, sometimes. Asking big weird questions is how they think about their thoughts. For example: 

Philosophers ask three kinds of big questions: 

1. What is this? 
2. How do I know what this is? 
3. What should I do about this?

Lao Tzu is asking question 2, “How do I know?” He is asking: “how do I know what I am?”

The four kinds of big questions lead to three branches of philosophy. These are called:

1. Metaphysics (what is it?)
2. Epistemology (how do I know what it is?)
3. Ethics (what should I do with it?)

Since we focus mainly on philosophy as a way of life, we focus mainly on ethics. Our biggest question is “what should I do with my life?” (You must change it.)

When Socrates says “the unexamined life is not worth living,” he is answering this question about what to do with your life. He says “examine it.” Make philosophy your way of life.

This is Socrates’ thought. But is it right? Stop and think about Socrates’ thought.

His answer implies that that “life” is the kind of thing that can be examined. So he must have answered a metaphysical question (“what is life?”). And he must have answered an epistemological question (“how do I know what life is?”). What if his answers to those questions are wrong? What if they don’t fit logically together? What if the examined life is the one that is not worth living? What if doing philosophy actually makes you less happy? 

Socrates is a great philosopher. Maybe the greatest. If he could be wrong, so could you. You could be wrong about a lot of things. Big things. That is one reason to ask big questions. 

So: what do you think? What is your answer to the big ethical question? What do you think you should do with your life? What kind of life is worth living? 

Now: what if you stopped to think about your thoughts about this stuff?

Three Rules

Philosophers examine life by asking big questions. They answer the big questions by thinking hard about their thoughts. These thoughts can be very interesting. They can be also be very, very persuasive. Great philosophers are great at persuading you that their answers are right. This is very dangerous, because very great philosophers can also be very wrong. If they persuade you to think their thoughts, but their thoughts are wrong, then your thoughts will be wrong. So, when you are reading the thoughts they write down in their books, remember three things: 

(1) is about philosophical method. If the questions you are asking do not have correct answers, but they do have better and worse answers, then you will need a special method for asking and answering the questions. Generally this is the “Socratic method.” It is called the Socratic method because it comes from Socrates. Another name for it is “dialectic.” Dialectic is a conversation in which people try to ask big questions in a way that leads to better answers. In this course, you will get some basic training in dialectic. This is a lot of what you will actually be doing in class.

(2) is about the books of philosophy. If the best answers to the big questions contradict each other, then the best way to think about those answers for yourself is to read widely but selectively. You want to read the best books, because you do not want to waste your time. But the best book is not the “correct” book, because there are no correct answers. So you will need a special collection of books. Generally this collection is called the philosophical “canon.” The canon is an ongoing conversation about how to answer the big questions. In this course, you will dip your toe into this conversation, which has been going on for thousands of years, all over the world.

(3) is about philosophy as a way of life. If you are going to work very hard to get it right, but you are also going to stay very relaxed about getting it wrong, then you will need to have a special attitude. Philosophy as a way of life means more than using dialectic, and it means more than reading the canon. If you are doing these things with the wrong attitude, you are not being philosophical. You also have to do them with the right attitude, the right “posture of the mind.”

A mental posture is like a physical posture. Your body can react to the world in more than one way. You can relax, or tense up, or whatever. These are “postures.” Some postures are good for you, some are bad for you. If you want your body to feel good, you train it to react well. In the same way, your mind can react to its own thoughts in more than one way. Some ways are better and some ways are worse. If you want your mind to feel good, you train it to react well. Philosophy means reacting to your thoughts in the right way. By thinking about them.

In this course, you will try to get a feel for this mental posture. You are getting a feel for it now. 

Where you are

You are used to a textbook that tells you what you are going to learn by the end of the course. This is how many subjects work. They have “learning outcomes.” It is not how philosophy works. At least it is not how it works in this course. This course is about philosophy as a way of life, and life is not about its “outcomes.” After all – the outcome of living is dying. Is life about death?

The first thing to learn about doing philosophy is that you do not know what you are going to learn by doing philosophy. The first lesson is that you do not know what the lesson will be. It could be anything, or nothing. You just have to do some philosophy, and see what happens. If that bothers you, that is a good reason to do philosophy, because one thing that philosophers try to learn by doing philosophy is to not be bothered by not knowing what they are going to learn when they do philosophy. 

The second lesson that this first lesson might be wrong. Some philosophers will disagree with that view of philosophy. They will say that you can know what you are going to learn, and that it is important to know what you are going to learn, because then you can set goals and measure your progress. Also they will point out that the previous paragraph contradicts itself. It tells you that you do not know what you are going to learn, and then it tells you what you are going to learn. 

The third thing to learn about philosophy is that not only do philosophers disagree about how to do philosophy; they also disagree about what philosophy is. There is no official definition of philosophy. There is only what philosophers say they are doing when they are doing philosophy. As you learn to do philosophy yourself, you will learn to say what you think it is. You might be wrong; or not. But you do not need to be bothered by that. You might make progress; or not. You do not need to be bothered by that, either. Just do some philosophy. 

So this is going to be a different sort of textbook. And that is because it is a different sort of subject. Philosophers are very interested in logic and clarity. But philosophers can also be very confusing. You do not need to be bothered by that, either. If you are confused, your job is to look your confusion in the eye, and talk about it as clearly as possible. Your job is not really to become less confused. Your job is to get better at accepting your confusion. Your job is to wander around. Like this: 

That’s where you are now. You left home, and now you’re lost, but that’s the point. That’s how you change your life. 

This is what philosophy is like. There is no map. There’s just the road. 

Ready? 

But wait. Read another poem first. 

Reflection

1. Can you give an example of changing your mind about something important (like a big social issue, a religious or political question, an ideal or a moral value)?
2. What’s something important that you can’t imagine changing your mind about?
3. Is it true that “life is not about its outcomes”? Or is that a bunch of nonsense? What do you think?
4. If you could change your life in one specific way, what would it be? It could be a small change or a radical one: just be specific.