Something Philosophical
So, yes, I'm trying to think of something Philosophical to write about but, as everyone who's tried knows, it's hard to TRY to think about something philosophical. They just sort of pop up. Sadly, this break has very few philosophical musings to draw on: literature with a theme of fallen women, the intentions of Chaucer's writing(which can wait until I reread it), what makes fiction great(which Kate covered nicely, I think), and the beauty of cats pretending to fight.Hmm. The first thing I mentioned will do, I think. It was sparked by reading The Heart of Midlothian by Sir Walter Scott, and furthered by reading David Copperfield. Both served as a reminder that the sins of fornication and abortion aren't new. The problem with our era isn't these sins, but our attitude toward them. That's something I already knew, really, but it's really driven home by these books, especially the first. If any of you haven't read it, you should, so I don't want to spoil it horribly by discussing it here. Generally, though, the theme of the book is
"guilt, though is may attain temporal splendour, can never confer real happiness; that the evil consequences of our crimes long survive their commission, and, like the ghosts of the murdered, for ever haunt the steps of the malefactor; and that the paths of virtue, though seldom those of worldly greatness, are always those of pleasantness and peace"
That's his "moral" from the end of the book. I know this theme is rather over done, especially in Victorian literature, but since he was writing one of the first novels, it probably wasn't overdone yet. Furthermore, it seems that this point(though I don't quite agree about temporal pleasantness for the virtuous) is what is missing in our modern outlook. Although everyone supposedly knows that money can't buy you happiness, and that sleeping around is a sure path to misery, temporal or otherwise,, there is a prevalent, stubborn refusal to act on that knowledge. Perhaps it was driven in too hard by the hypocritical Victorians, leading to rebellion from the 20's on up to now. I really don't know. Nor do I have anything new to say about it, or any solutions. But there it is, the solution to crime, poverty, greed, licentiousness, and everything else. If everyone in the world faced up to the consequences of every one of their actions, almost everything would be fine. Instead, we have contraception and law suits, lest anyone have to admit they messed up. Ugh.
That was unpleasant, so I think I'll dwell for a few moments on the fascinating behavior of cats to make myself feel better. I really think that the playfulness of animals is one of the strangest aspects of instinct. I know that the fighting play of kittens is supposed to be training for them later, so they can learn to fight without getting killed. But, still, playing seems so instrinsically connected to risibility that it boggles my mind how complex a thing cat's instinct must be if it can ape rationality to the extent that it does. Cats have to make friends with each other before they start playing. They only play when they're happy. They show varying degrees of affection for each other and have personality clashes as distinct as humans'. From Augustine and such, I know that in order for animals to have rationality they must have the Image of God(at least, I think that's how it works), but it stil seems, well, odd. I'll reflect more on this later, I think. FOr now, I feel that I have satisfied my posting requirements for the day. God bless!
posted by Noli at 10:14 AM
