[MD] Philosophers playing catch up

[Platt Holden]

All:

In new book by a couple of academic philosophers has suddenly made a splash
in the press. Both the New York Times and the Wall St. Journal contain
articles today about “All Things Shining,” a book by professional
philosophers Hubert Dreyfus at Berkeley and Sean Dorrance Kelly at Harvard.
The following quotes from the WSJ article immediately provoke the question
from MOQites, “Where have you guys been?

“He (the Homeric hero) aspires to what in Greek is termed 'arete,' not
'virtue,' as it is usually translated , but that peculiar 'excellence' that
comes from acting in accord with the divine presence, however it may
manifest itself.”

“Their greatness lies not solely in their skill, the authors argue, but in
their ability to let some outside force course through them, just as heroes
of old where exquisitely attuned to the power of a god working through their
bodies.”

“What makes their (the author's) case finally compelling is their insistence
on the importance of openness, to the given moment, on what they call 'a
full embodied, this-worldly kind of sacred.' ”

And this from David Brooks in the NY Times:

“We should live perceptively at the surface, receptive to the moments of
transcendent wooshes that we can feel, in say, a concert crowd, or while
engaging in a meaningful activity, like making a perfect cup of coffee with
a well-crafted pot and cup.”

Of course, being members in good standing of academia, the authors are
dedicated collectivists, buying into the leftist creed that “our most
vibrant institutions are collective, not individual or religious.” But, if
you can stomach such balderdash, their Johnny-come-lately acknowledgment of
Dynamic Quality holds hope for wider acceptance of the MOQ.

Regards,

Platt