erm. . . . . what?
Jan. 5th, 2005 09:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
saffronhareRob's messing with my brain again.
Renowned German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer admired the not-very-famous aphorist G. C. Lichtenberg. Schopenhauer referred to him as a "Selbstdenker," a German term for an independent spirit who truly thinks for himself. Your assignment in the coming weeks, Cancerian, is to aggressively cultivate your own skills as a Selbstdenker. To get started, I suggest you temporarily suspend your disbelief in ideas you've always considered exotic or outlandish, even as you suspend your belief in your most unquestioned dogmas. During this trial period, be skeptical about every influence you've regarded as authoritative, especially the cynical and skeptical ones. Keep in mind Lichtenberg's wise counsel: "The most dangerous of all falsehoods is a slightly distorted truth."
*****
After a cup of coffee, I shall invite those of you who know me to suggest an authoritative influence I could try to overthrow in favor of an exotic or outlandish idea -- it's been awhile since I've conducted a serious Thought Experiment. In the meantime, I will simply try to think in German.
Renowned German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer admired the not-very-famous aphorist G. C. Lichtenberg. Schopenhauer referred to him as a "Selbstdenker," a German term for an independent spirit who truly thinks for himself. Your assignment in the coming weeks, Cancerian, is to aggressively cultivate your own skills as a Selbstdenker. To get started, I suggest you temporarily suspend your disbelief in ideas you've always considered exotic or outlandish, even as you suspend your belief in your most unquestioned dogmas. During this trial period, be skeptical about every influence you've regarded as authoritative, especially the cynical and skeptical ones. Keep in mind Lichtenberg's wise counsel: "The most dangerous of all falsehoods is a slightly distorted truth."
*****
After a cup of coffee, I shall invite those of you who know me to suggest an authoritative influence I could try to overthrow in favor of an exotic or outlandish idea -- it's been awhile since I've conducted a serious Thought Experiment. In the meantime, I will simply try to think in German.
