"THE UNEXAMINED LIFE IS NOT WORTH LIVING" - SocratesTo read reviews of the book, click here.
Reminders: Quality over Quantity; dedicate the necessary time and find the appropriate environment to conduct your reading/writing; Be Careful with Words.
Complete the assignment in the Comments Section to this posting.
"What are the criteria for determining that someone or something is insane?"
ReplyDeleteInsanity to me is not seeing the beauty in the different aspects , or not having faith in yourself, or allowing yourself to think freely or act freely based on information and gut feeling. I believe conformity is an example of insanity because we were given different talents and to to live an "examined life" is a waste of those talents. Wasting time , abilities or resources are the true sources of insanity.
*not allowing yourself
ReplyDelete"Can't we be a little insane, or somewhat insane, without being completely insane?" I think most people are a little insane. I think you have to be a little insane to enjoy life and try new things. It is very possible to be a little insane or somewhat insane, if it weren't we wouldn't get the most out of our lives.
ReplyDelete"Is there really any such thing as insanity?" The answer is unknown. If someone is insane and judges the sane, the sane are insane. If a sane person judges an insane person they are insane. It's just different realities and different views.
ReplyDelete"Is a business man sane who works all day at a job he hates."
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, he is not considered sane by himself, but other people could think he is slightly insane. The reason being is that people have different perspectives based on what they have been taught is sane or insane or based off the situation. This man could be working at the job he hates because it's what keeps his bills paid and family supported and he has nowhere else to go. To him, he is doing what he needs to do to stay alive, no matter if it means he is at a job he dislikes. Some people might say he is slightly insane for working at a job he hates, but too make a full judgment, they need to know why he is still working there if he hates the job and the background behind this.
"Who better to comment with insight on insanity than a person who has been labeled insane?" This is a great question brought up by Phillips. The fact that a person who has been labeled "insane" can answer this question is an example of how misguided those who have been given the power to deem one "insane" can be proven wrong. We need people who have dealt with the feelings of being called insane to explain this sense of insanity. As said they are probably the best to answer the question, and in this case the man claimed he was "one of the smartest people, I know." Just because someone thinks or acts differently than everyone else doesn't mean they are insane. It is these people we can look for to find new solutions to problems. If this "insane" person can do such things it brings it back around to the question on whether or not the universe is "sane"
ReplyDeleteThe concept of power will be a topic we cover in many of the philosophers we read this year. Power structures, what is real power, etc are interesting topics for people to think about. It is especially interesting when combined with the topic of insanity. It begs the question, if those who think they are in power falsely label someone insane, who really has the power?
Delete"Is anyone who sacrifices his health for his art insane?"
ReplyDeleteAnyone who sacrifices his health for his art is not insane, but dedicated. They know what it takes to be successful and great at their art and will do whatever it takes to get that. People like that are often the most successful and garner the most fame
But what about at the extremes? Is someone just dedicated to their job if they lose their family and health over it?
DeleteI would raise the point that successful and fame do not necessarily match up in all examples. One could be hugely successful, and remain, essentially, anonymous, right?
" Is it possible to be completely sane or completely insane ? " I believe it is possible to be either according to how you judge the behavior of your own actions. If you let others judge the behavior of your actions according to their actions then by majority opinion your actions will be deemed sane or insane. If you set your own standards to judge your actions then only you can judge if you are sane or insane. Einstein was deemed insane by society but yet he was arguably the smartest man to walk the Earth. In his perspective being sane was thinking out of the box. why? the answer is because he followed his own way of thinking/ acting. to conclude my response only you can judge if you are sane or insane based off the behavior of your actions
ReplyDeleteI think the point about majority opinion winning out is a very good one. What if the majority are the truly insane ones and the sane are just labelled insane because of sheer numbers?
Delete"Isn't better to be insane than to let them kill the artist in you?"
ReplyDeleteMy responds to this is half and half. yes it is good to keep the creativity you hold in your mind due to it is the very thing that pushes you forward in your endeavors through life its also good to be safe. One might consider using their blood as paint because they believe red paint isn't good enough and though yes technically this is their focused mind taking shape something through creative means its equally dangerous to the persons health directly also. I believe no one has the right to take away your gift of creating your own special brand of art but you should express it in a way it wont harm you or anyone else immensely.
"What are the big questions, and what makes them so?"
ReplyDeleteThis relates to general life questions such as why are we alive, or how did we all make our way on to this earth, i believe this question could be expanded into many different factors depending on how much you think into it. It could also be discussed in little questions to lead into a broader topic that would equal a "big question". If you look at why they are the big questions you could have multiple different outlooks but in the end your answer should lead to a solution that could be a big impact on lives or your life.
How can anyone be sane in this world?
ReplyDeleteThe idea of sanity is up to discussion and may be different between people. One person may think that what they're doing is sane while others may look at that person and proclaim them insane. Sanity does not have one true definition because everyone has a conflicting opinion on what it means to be sane. Is there a concrete answer to what being sane is? I believe that there is not because no matter what definition is produced, there will always be someone who finds it insane.
What about a psychological (scientific) diagnosis of insanity? If no true definition, how can one use it as a claim in court? I do not the answers but I think you raise great points that produced these other questions.
Delete"Was Socrates really all that sane?"
ReplyDeleteThis question was asked by a women who most people would find to be not exactly "sane", which makes this an interesting question. Socrates was one of few very open minded thinkers at this time, which made his works not only brilliant, but a little insane to people who had no idea what to think of his open ended questions and ideas. This seems to make Socrates look like a thinker who was not exactly a man with much sanity. This idea of Socrates being insane is because of his brilliance, a brilliance that most people will never understand due to his controversial topics and thoughts. This may have made him seem like his sanity was lost, however, are any of us really sane? Socrates was not a mad man, but he was a free spirit and had little to no issue writing about things that he knew no one would understand. So no, Socrates was not was our society today would consider to be sane, but if a brilliant philosopher such as Socrates was not sane, then who is?
"Was it crazy of him to prefer death?"
ReplyDeleteyes it would be considered crazy by most people to prefer death over silence but I believe that it was a crazy but also brave way to show his need to keep spreading his wisdom until his own death. He lived to inspire thoughts within all peoples and he would rather commit suicide than ever surrender.This is a question we need to ask ourselves would we choose life or would we choose to abide?
"Is it possible to be completely insane or completely sane?"
ReplyDeleteNo I think that this statement can not be true in either way because humans are constantly evolving people. We do things differently at various points in our life and we change our logic constantly. How we think as a child is almost always different than how we think as an adult. Part of this can be explained that since we are a species that is hinged on the fact that we desire to fit in. And because of this, we tend to change views and our very logic just to fit in.