Through the phenomenal appearance of Kant’s books, one learns that it is only possible to form an opinion about Kant’s phenomenal appearance, since Kant himself cannot be known. Likewise, Kant’s philosophy can have nothing more than its phenomenal appearance apprehended, just like a dog, a refrigerator, or an equation. Now, the following happens: from the moment one accepts this precept, everything is justified, except for study and, ultimately, life. It is incredible that there could have been armies of Kantians who lived as ordinary men—that is, who accepted this phantasmagoria and allowed themselves a natural death. In truth, there seems to be only one explanation for this, one that is somewhat discrediting to Kant’s philosophy.
Tag: philosophy
Suffering Is the Quintessential Human Experience
However much we want to avoid it, suffering is the quintessential human experience, universalizing the words of Buddha to Jesus Christ, the music of Beethoven, and the poems of Camões. One cannot be human without it; to feel is to suffer. Ultimately, reflection ends up demonstrating its value. And something good springs from it, as the great and impeccable Louis Lavelle once said. Thanks to suffering, we are understandable and we can understand.
Allowing Oneself to Become Entangled…
Allowing oneself to become entangled in the web of tasks and responsibilities of mundane life practically seals, for as long as this state lasts, the possibility of the mind realizing how much is being wasted. This can only be realized later, with luck, when the waste has already been consummated. The positive side of the situation is that learning usually requires the mistake to be experienced personally; that is, first the slip, then the lesson. Without temporarily wasting itself, the mind does not assimilate the concrete consequences of doing so. But it so happens that, after a certain point, what was instructive has either been assimilated or proven innocuous, and the mind has either decided to transform itself or accepted to lock itself into an endless cycle of repetition.
It Is Truly Commendable the Effort of Unamuno…
It is truly commendable the effort of Unamuno to try to verbalize the feeling he experiences, perhaps discovered only after a careful look inside himself, that there is an indescribable force always present in the decisive moments of his life, in which he had to make decisions. Noticing it is not a simple task, and sometimes it is only possible when time passes, and the irreversible effects of the decision are drawn in the past. It is even more difficult to admit, since the evidence is concentrated in the nebulous field of subjectivity, which rejects the possibility of clear and rational understanding. The hardest thing, however, is to try to express it: words seem insufficient, never corresponding to the real feeling. To do so is necessarily to expose oneself to ridicule; it is to say something and then immediately want to take it back. Of all that can be said about Del sentimiento trágico de la vida, the most important thing is this: this book is a demonstration of courage.