[lit-ideas] Fwd: philosophy article in the Agenews
- From: Rhyme and Reason <rhymereason@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 4 Sep 2004 11:05:25 +1000
=
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/09/03/1093939129141.html?from=3Dsto=
rylhs
You ain't nothin' but an existential hound dog
September 4, 2004
Is philosophy the new rock'n'roll? Not quite, says Steve Carroll, but it =
is=20
certainly acquiring a popular following it has not had before.
It is a balmy afternoon. The tutorial room windows are open to catch a =
breeze,
should one come along. In a small group, all eyes are on a whiteboard =
where=20
the proposition "aRb" has just been written. To the students, it is a =
perfectly=20
reasonable, even basic piece of philosophical communication. As the =
afternoon=20
progresses other, more complex propositions will be added to the =
whiteboard,
all of which are central to an understanding of Wittgenstein's picture =
theory=20
of meaning.
The other students - all fourth year - may be as fluent in this language =
as=20
they are at home with such terminology as "obtaining" and "non-obtaining =
states=20
of affairs". But it is a foreign language to me and, for a moment, I =
wonder=20
what I'm doing here in the Old Arts building of Melbourne University =
when=20
I could be at home reading a book composed of words that I recognise =
sufficiently=20
enough to follow without thinking too much about the process.
But if the bookshops and local libraries are any indication, it is not a =
lonely=20
impulse that has brought me here. Philosophy, the dustiest of subjects, =
formerly=20
the preserve of a few, has gone public. Philosophers are not just =
writing=20
books for themselves any more or the select circle in which they move, =
but=20
for "the people" - out there. And people are reading them, or, at least, =
they=20
are buying them.
In literature, philosophers have usually been depicted as vague, =
unworldly=20
- even other-worldly - figures. George Moore, professor of moral =
philosophy=20
in Tom Stoppard's play Jumpers , is just such a character. He stands on =
stage=20
attempting to establish the existence of God oblivious to the fact that =
his=20
domestic world is descending in mayhem all around him. He is a hero, but =
an=20
unlikely one in the tweed and corduroy tradition of philosophy =
professors.
These days, though, philosophers are engaging with the world more =
readily=20
than before. During the past 10 years there has been a spate of books =
intent,
not so much on taking philosophy to streets, as taking it to the =
dinner parties.
And they're a mixed bag. Many are just crass attempts to cash in on =
the movement=20
- the worst kind of arranged marriage between publishing and =
opportunistic=20
editors. Such books usually attempt to meld popular culture and =
philosophy.
The Sopranos and Philosophy: I Kill Therefore I Am, is part of a series =
that=20
also includes The Simpsons and Philosophy, Seinfeld and Philosophy, =
Buffy=20
the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy and so on. It is basically cultural =
studies=20
with bits of philosophy thrown in. But if you're not into The Sopranos, =
Seinfeld,
Buffy or that whole other reality of cult US TV - and this series, =
which=20
is aimed at the American market (and got a thumping from some US =
reviewers)
, assumes you most definitely are - then it is of distinctly limited =
value.
It's funny enough in that wise-cracking TV way; the anthologists =
spending=20
a lot of time recounting the plot lines of old episodes of The Sopranos =
, then=20
telling you how it all relates to, say, Machiavelli, and how =
Machiavelli's=20
world "ain't all that far removed from Jersey" and therefore from Tony =
Soprano'
s world.
Not all recent publications, though, assume that the way to a =
philosophical=20
readership is through popular culture. The rise and rise of the English =
populariser=20
Alain de Botton is often seen as emblematic of philosophy's movement =
into=20
the mainstream. He is glib and superficial to some, part of a quite =
acceptable=20
tradition of populist writing to others. His The Consolations of =
Philosophy=20
was, and continues to be, a middlebrow bestseller. There are six of his =
books=20
at my local library. All were out when I inquired about them, all with a =
waiting=20
list between five and 10, and one of them, his latest, Status Anxiety , =
had=20
a waiting list of 45.
De Botton was one of the first of the new guard to write specifically =
for=20
the popular market, to write about the value of philosophy in everyday =
life=20
(and literature, e.g. How Proust Can Change Your Life ) and how it can =
be=20
a source of comfort when life starts to hit you with its big guns and =
coming=20
home from work can feel like coming home from a bad day on the Somme.
Status Anxiety copped a right old thumping in some quarters and, in many =
ways,
because he wears the stained label of the "populariser", de Botton =
pays for=20
it. To many, the populariser is by definition superficial - a pretender. =
But=20
it might also be argued that popularisers such as de Botton belong to a =
long=20
tradition of writers who felt bound to break free of academia and the =
intelligentsia=20
in order to take their ideas to the people.
It is not difficult to see why de Botton has become so popular. He is an =
entertainer=20
and he makes few demands on his reader - or no demands at all, depending =
on=20
the reader. He embodies the notion that this is easy, anybody can do it. =
You=20
don't have to be an egghead to read philosophy, you can even read it on =
the=20
conveyer belt at your local gym, thus combining your physical and =
intellectual=20
work-outs and saving valuable time.
It doesn't do any great harm, except to offend some purists. On the =
other=20
hand, the promise that it is all pretty easy is the kind of expectation =
that=20
produces a sort of DIY intelligentsia, because, in the end, the =
inescapable=20
fact is that it is not easy. It is, ultimately, difficult to understand =
complex=20
ideas. They have to be taken in slowly, over a period of time, which the =
readers=20
of fast-food philosophy presumably don't have.
It took years - of scholarship and writing - for Martin Heidegger to =
write=20
Being and Time and it is not unfair to suggest that to understand it =
takes=20
a little more than a slick summary. That, hopefully, will give an =
accurate=20
basis to work on - but to go further requires effort, time and the kind =
of=20
reading you can't do on the gym's conveyer belt.
One who has managed to walk the populist tightrope with great aplomb is =
the=20
English literary critic and cultural theorist Terry Eagleton. =46rom his =
early=20
big hit Literary Theory - which he refers to as his "bluffer's guide" - =
to=20
his most recent work, the brilliantly concise After Theory, he has =
continued=20
to be that rare academic beast, a critical and commercial success. And =
because=20
so much critical theory requires a knowledge of philosophy, he did, to =
an=20
extent, trailblaze the whole notion of popularising complex philosophers =
- especially=20
German thinkers such as Edmund Husserl and Heidegger - who directly =
inform=20
much literary theory.
More than likely there are a variety of reasons why people are turning =
to=20
popular philosophy.
Could it be that philosophy is now fulfilling a need that would once =
have=20
been fulfilled by institutionalised religion? The English literary =
critic=20
F.R.Leavis wrote in 1950 that "to believe anything (and I do not mean =
merely=20
to believe in some religion) will probably become more difficult as time =
goes=20
on". For Leavis, as for Matthew Arnold, literature functioned like a =
faith.
They believed that humans could find sustenance for the soul through =
poetry=20
and fiction and it may well be that philosophy is performing a similar =
function=20
now - or at least, that increasing numbers of people want it to.
What people might have once got from the local priest or just the quiet =
sanctuary=20
of the local church, they are now, to an extent, seeking from writers =
such=20
as de Botton. And I don't just mean faith (the New Age movement did =
that), I=20
mean guidance in how to live a happy, meaningful and "good" life. That =
is,
the basic concerns of moral philosophy.
In reviewing de Botton's The Consolations of Philosophy , the Irish =
novelist=20
John Banville proclaimed philosophy the "new rock'n'roll" and de Botton =
its=20
Colonel Tom Parker. Philosophy may be the new rock'n'roll, but de Botton =
is=20
more likely its Pat Boone. For, just as Boone gave rock a sanitised, =
wholesome=20
legitimacy (the conduit between the real thing and the mainstream), de =
Botton=20
reads, so often, like a 19th-century vicar (his status-indifferent horse =
and=20
jinker parked outside) explaining to the flock of his readership how the =
thoughts=20
of ancient philosophers are still relevant today.
If that old gang of yours has dropped you and you are feeling left out =
and=20
unpopular, Socrates can console you. If your life is one damned trial =
after=20
another, read Nietzsche. And so on, and so on. There is something =
pastoral=20
in the way de Botton seeks to use philosophy as a way of providing =
people=20
with moral and existential guidance. Whether you think there's any great =
substance=20
in what he provides is another matter.
It may also be that reading books such as this is just a new form of =
good=20
old cultural capital. The rushed business executive, market analyst or =
stockbroker=20
gulps down a few words of wisdom with his or her morning coffee, then =
spouts=20
something about Descartes during lunch with everybody that matters in =
earshot.
Many of the current philosophy publications have the glossy look of =
books=20
that are designed to be left lying around on coffee tables, =
advertisements=20
signalling the possibility that there just might be something other than =
the=20
pursuit of profit going on in the household; that the possessor of these =
books=20
has a cultured side to display, rather like the intended readers of =
Baldessare=20
Castiglione's guide for the Renaissance courtier.
The Courtier , first published in 1528 when a brash, new middle class =
was=20
just emerging and felt itself to be in need of a civilising touch, is in =
some=20
ways a precursor of the kinds of populist publications we're seeing now. =
Part=20
of Castiglione's idea was that the well-versed courtier would set an =
example=20
to the rest of society. There would be a filter-down effect - not money, =
but=20
manners and learning. Perhaps de Botton and others are attempting to do =
something=20
similar.
There is also something of the self-congratulatory in a lot of these =
books;
they make people feel good about themselves for having snacked on =
edible=20
summaries of the great minds - a bit like congratulating yourself on =
being=20
able to translate lines of a foreign language on a billboard. But being =
able=20
to translate "J'ai un penchant pour toi", doesn't mean you can speak =
French.
Of course, everyone wants to feel good about themselves - as long as =
it's=20
not based on the delusion that we know more than we really do.
But although many of these philosophy publications resemble self-help =
books,
they are a varied bunch. Like most things literary, what works and =
what doesn'
t work often comes down to the quality of the writing and to, as Henry =
James=20
put it, just how good the mind of the writer is. A. C. Grayling's What =
is=20
Good? and Simon Blackburn's Think and Being Good are examples of =
publications=20
that are written specifically for the general public by established and =
respected=20
philosophers.
Neither Grayling or Blackburn talk down to their readers, nor do their =
books=20
contain dumbed-down philosophy or skate relentlessly over the surface, =
hesitant=20
to go in too deep too often lest they lose their audience. Books such as =
these,
I suspect, represent a genuine attempt to reach out to a wider than =
academic=20
readership without compromising the subject.
And it's not just books. In Paris, on the Place de la Bastille, there is =
a=20
cafe called Le Pharaon where, every Wednesday night, philosophers =
address=20
the patrons, then engage in spirited discourse. In Melbourne, the =
Borders=20
bookshop in Prahran provides a similar venue. A place where people =
interested=20
in philosophy can meet (every third Tuesday of the month) and discuss =
what=20
they've been reading.
In the end, of course, there is no substitute for reading the texts. But =
seriously,
who sits down on a quiet Sunday afternoon and wiles away a few =
leisurely=20
hours reading Wittgenstein's Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus ? Similarly, =
few=20
people have the time to return to the tutorial room and read the primary =
texts=20
under the guidance of trained philosophers.
LINKS
Alain de Botton Homepage
Links and resources
The Complete Review
Reviews and facts on Alain de Botton
The Book of the Courtier
Necessary and profitatable for yonge Gentilmen and Gentilwomen
AC Grayling Homepage
Links, essays and publications
Animus
Modern philosophical journal
The Philosophy Magazine Online
Ideas and fun and games
The Independent
101 Experiments in the Philosophy of Everyday Life
Clarifiers and populists have an important role to play as a bridge =
between=20
specialists and general readers. It all depends upon what bridge you =
choose=20
as your link between here and there. The glib bridge might look good but =
lead=20
you nowhere, and others simply fall down because they get things wrong. =
Whereas=20
a good clarifier can introduce a novice to a philosopher in such a way =
as=20
to inspire them to go to the primary text.
This is one role of the public intellectual, and it is one that has a =
long=20
and worthy tradition. But distinguishing between pretenders and =
opportunistic=20
publishers can be difficult. In fact, there might be a book in there for =
some=20
enterprising populist philosopher - a pithy introduction to the latest =
in=20
popular introductions to philosophy.
Steve Carroll is a Melbourne writer
Bite-sized philosophy
The Philosophy Gym: 25 Short Adventures in Thinking
Stephen Law sets 25 philosophical exercises for the reader from designer =
babies=20
to the nature of art, all graded according to difficulty. Unashamedly =
wacky,
but a fun workout.
What Philosophers Think
Edited by Julian Baggini and Jeremy Stangroom, this is a very useful =
anthology=20
that brings together some of the big guns of contemporary philosophy =
including=20
Roger Scruton, Peter Singer, Simon Blackburn, Ray Monk and Richard =
Dawkins.
Six Questions of Socrates
Christopher Phillips, author of Socrates Cafe , combines travel and =
discussion=20
in looking at some of the perennial questions of moral philosophy: what =
is=20
virtue? What is piety? And so on.
Ludwig Wittgenstein: The Duty of Genius
Ray Monk's biography of one of the great figures of 20th-century =
philosophy=20
has been justly acclaimed just about everywhere. It's a terrific book: =
great=20
central "character" by an excellent storyteller fully versed in the =
thoughts=20
of his subject.
After Theory
Terry Eagleton has written a series of very witty, very intelligent =
books=20
on - mostly - critical theory. But philosophy and theory tie in quite a =
bit,
and this evaluation of the pros and cons of literary theory is a =
wonderfully=20
informed piece of analysis that takes in most of the big names of =
European=20
thought over the past half-century.
The Great Philosophers
Sometimes listening to philosophers just talking about the great names =
of=20
the discipline can clarify often-difficult works. Bryan Magee has put =
together=20
an imposing guest list - the likes of Martha Nussbaum, Frederick =
Copleston=20
et al - for discussions on Plato right through to the moderns.
*************************
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