What it Takes to Saunter: Payten Gary

 A reflection of Thoreau

    In Thoreau's writing "Walking" he initiates a call for "Sauntering". I see it as not just advice but instead as a genuine philosophical indictment. He defines the true walker as sans terre,"without land" or anchor. He isn't just suggesting we take a detour; he's demanding that our spirit step into the "Wild". What can be determined to be the wild though? Is it subjective to the perceiver? The wilderness to one individual may be like the beaten path to another. The wild seems to be something that we create ourselves within our own personal journeys. Thoreau defines the Wild as a place where the mind is unburdened by the relentless tyranny of purpose and schedule. This critique fits into my personal journey quite nicely. What I do with every hour of every day is just an extension of my ultimate goal. A destination set, the time efficiently maximized. They are work-tools, not spiritual journeys. True Sauntering would mean momentarily abandoning the commitments that anchor me, my studies, my responsibilities, to become a philosophical Crusader seeking the Holy Land in a state of pure, untainted observation.

    How can we possibly integrate Thoreau’s necessary "wildness" without fundamentally destabilizing the very structures (work, study, finance) that provide the time and security needed to pursue philosophy in the first place? I believe that these structures are necessary but we as a society require too much of these structures for daily life. The freedom to fully involve oneself in this philosophical journey requires a degree of economic freedom and privilege.It makes me deeply question whether a life committed to philosophical freedom is, by its very definition, incompatible with the necessary gravity of the modern world.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Collective Unconscious and the Importance of Ego (Serial Experiments: Lain) - Carter Jobe

I just finished watching the short series Serial Experiments: Lain and was inspired to write this blog about the many spiritual inuendos that touched me throughout this experience, along with elements I found relevant to this class. There is an underlying element of the Jungian collective unconscious throughout the show, and it is represented by the Wired, a mix between the internet, a higher reality like a heaven, and a connection between all people and the world around them. The antagonist, "God", aims to deplete everyone's ego and superego along with their bodies, diminishing everyone into a digitized version of the collective unconscious. Humanity would become one, and there would be no sin or differences. Certain characters throughout the show commit themselves to this idea and rid themselves of their burdens to become a part of the wired.  Lain herself is compelled to do the same at one point. In the climax of the show, Lain claims that we don't need our bodies,...
Read more

Kip Redick Example Post

  Page 4 Michael Taussig would suggest Juan's understanding of the meaning of a place emerges out of the process of an imitation of all the “differences” that we discern there. We mimic (in language and action) the full range of sounds, movements, and other sensory perceptions that come to us from the more than human world.” It’s hard to put a place that strikes us as sublime into mere words; we can try to describe it as a feeling and try to put language to that feeling, but sometimes the feeling of the beauty of nature or the power of a sacred space is too big to try to translate or make sense of. Would every place and experience be subjective, and would the discourse be the same? Would the mountain top make me feel the same as another? Or does my personal experience with the natural world and divine keep it intimate/ unique, or would my experience be relatable enough? The author uses the messiness, ambiguity, and mystery of people's deeply personal experienc...
Read more

Dante's Inferno, a pilgrimage through hell

 Dante Alighieri was a prolific author of the 13th century. He wrote many pieces, but one that he is most well known for is his book Inferno. This book follows Dante as he travels through the seven rings of hell, he is guided by his now dead mentor Virgil. This book was the first piece of media from this time period to really explore the idea of what hell would entail. Each ring is split into level of sin, it starts with purgatory, an eternal waiting room for people who are between heaven and hell. The first ring is the tamest, with the least appalling of the eternal punishments. The last ring is for only the most atrocious of sinners and hold the worst punishments.     Dante travels through hell as a living man, so he has no fear of being tortured  as he journeys deeper into the pit of mans greatest threats. Dante begins cautious but excited, he has been given an opportunity of a life time, to document such a prolific place that is so deeply rooted in the core of so...
Read more