Arquivo de philosophy | Page 115 of 121

Humor As a Purpose

If I were to sum it up to a maxim, I would say that humor supports and precedes the other virtues. And I think it would be infinitely more useful, rather than “social awareness,” to teach humor to young students. I mean: instead of stimulating very boring debates about global warming, gender issues, whales or hunger in Africa, the teacher would do more, once a week, teaching comedy — and preferably dressed as a clown. Thus young students could capture the essence of humor, that is nothing but the conscience of the ridiculous itself; and they would learn to laugh at reality and not take themselves so seriously. In a few years, we would have a less aggressive generation, and adults who develop their good mood would see it fighting against vanity and pride daily, making their lives lighter and happier, driving them away from hatred and providing them with a social conviviality significantly more enjoyable.

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Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims, by La Rochefoucauld

François de La Rochefoucauld, a french moralist and clever psychologist, is a little-known author among Brazilians. It is too bad, too bad! Because what La Rochefoucauld learned about human nature and confirmed in literary salons in 17th-century France can be perfectly seized in our time and confirmed at parties or social gatherings of any kind. More than that: reading Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims with sincerity can be a very valuable examination of self-awareness; I mean: read it no longer to judge others, but to learn about ourselves. It takes courage, I do not deny it, but if we take the first step, then we will see naked in aphorisms all our ambition, our misery, our motivations and our vile narrowness of spirit.

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Nietzsche and Cioran: Philosophy for Teenagers?

It has become commonplace to say that Nietzsche and Cioran are not authors for adults, that the whole philosophy of both does not cause strong impressions but in adolescents. I say for my part: I read Nietzsche and Cioran, above all, for aesthetic pleasure. I consider both, before philosophers, skilled artists; I see in them an expression power that I cannot find in other places; and the validity or not of their philosophies, for me, is secondary matter. If I were to analyze only by logic, I would say Nietzsche’s philosophy, if taken by block, is absurd; Cioran’s I would say leads us to apathy. But, for me, none of this constitutes demerit. Those who seek in philosophy a foolproof manual to guide their thinking and their actions do better by reading self-help. I am not obliged to box Nietzsche and Cioran in the “I do not agree” group, I do not feel uncomfortable facing their ambiguities or delusions; on the contrary, I consider them as masters of style. As I said, I read both for aesthetic pleasure, to find beauty and acuity in expressions and to see them give rise to discomfort in me. And I still notice the poverty in the words of those who tax Nietzsche and Cioran’s entire work as “philosophy for teenagers.” Nothing shallower than summarizing everything as “right” or “wrong”, this only demonstrates narrowness of vision and inability to deal with the ambiguous, the complex. Finishing a work full of nuances, impeccably written and saying only “I do not agree” seems to me the most adolescent of generalizations.

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Future of Humanity

I have some optimistic perspectives on the future of humanity. Here is one: I imagine a hypothesis in which, in the near future, digital advances would enable John, a cold meat storer, to buy a ticket to embark forever on an instigating virtual reality. (In order for the world to become really better with the advance, the ticket price would have to be affordable; say, costing the equivalent of three years of manual labor.) Then John would no longer be an underpaid worker, with terrible prospects, dissatisfied with life, harassed by the banks and would adopt an interesting nickname, giving up a poor life to enter in another stimulant, full of adventures and challenges, that kept glory and respect for the hardworking player. The new John, depending on his effort, could occupy a prominent position in his new reality. On the other side, here on the real world, science could invent a machine that would maintain the functioning of the brain independently of the body; this would allow John, once a participant in the new reality, to be cut from the neck down, and his vital organs could be destined for transplants. It is rather an optimistic possibility: John would be satisfied and make the happiness of some needy. In addition, his remains – at first useless – could be used in scientific research or other purposes that interested the evolution of mankind. I believe that, in this way, science and digital technology would certainly be operating for general happiness, for the well-being of society and for the progress of humanity in a socially sustainable and conscious way.

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