Monthly Archives: April 2008

Distracted

Power over words should mean the ability to persuade, and persuasion should mean that at some point I can get what I want in some small degree. Instead, what words used rightly do is make people think; “persuasion” occurs, but wow can it be limited. I probably have to confess I suck at this advice/persuasion …

April 30, 2008 – 10:55 pm | By ashok | Posted in personal | Comments (0)

Eros and Violence: On Auden’s "Jumbled in the common box…"

“Jumbled in the common box…” W.H. Auden Jumbled in the common box Of their dark stupidity, Orchid, swan, and Caesar lie; Time that tires of everyone Has corroded all the locks, Thrown away the key for fun. In its cleft the torrent mocks Prophets who in days gone by Made a profit on each cry, …

April 30, 2008 – 1:18 am | By ashok | Posted in auden, poetry | Tagged , , | Comments (1)

Writing

Ugh. Sitting in front of the computer for hours on end yesterday did yield some pages of progress, but boy did my eyes start hurting well before I quit. Today I have pens and notebook paper. Anytime dissertating gets too much, sit and write notes away from the computer. Lots to do, lots to do …

April 30, 2008 – 12:18 am | By ashok | Posted in personal | Comments (0)

Links, 4/28

Arts and Letters Daily has had a few good things recently – this article on how Islamic terrorists are competing with each other to be leader of the whole movement wasn’t too bad. They also linked to this review of Richard Dawkins’ first book, The Selfish Gene – it reads quickly and I learned something …

April 28, 2008 – 8:30 pm | By ashok | Posted in links | Comments (0)

Go Read Josh’s "A Fallen Generation"

I merely want to commend Josh’s article to all of you because of its honesty. I would be interested in reading responses that follow up and expand on it. Josh puts the problem facing all of us rather bluntly in his post “A Fallen Generation” – the best and brightest of our generation seem to …

April 25, 2008 – 4:26 pm | By ashok | Posted in politics | Comments (0)

Today

Subbed a class today and it went very well, I felt. I don’t know how much the students got out of it – I think they latched onto my snide comments more than anything – but I was pretty clear and still introduced some very difficult issues. I owe some of you calls, and I …

April 24, 2008 – 3:32 pm | By ashok | Posted in personal | Comments (0)

On Tocqueville’s Democracy in America: Liberty and Equality and a Few Notes on Vol. 1, Pt. 2, Chp. 5

All quotes and pages mentioned below are from Harvey Mansfield’s and Delba Winthrop’s translation of Democracy in America, published by the University of Chicago Press. 1. “In America… democracy is given over to its own inclinations. Its style is natural and all its movements are free. It is there that one must judge it. And …

April 24, 2008 – 3:32 am | By ashok | Posted in politics | Tagged | Comments (0)

Links, 4/22

Brian Leiter’s Philosophical Gourmet rankings aren’t badly done if you’re into analytic philosophy. But I recommend this article because of its latter half. I do wonder if he exemplifies everything that’s wrong with the academy – the culture where departments strive for ranking, where left-wing politics are completely unchallenged, and money and materialism reign supreme. …

April 22, 2008 – 2:52 pm | By ashok | Posted in links | Comments (0)

Entry #500: The Search for Truth – On Frost’s "For Once, Then, Something"

For Once, Then, Something Robert Frost Others taught me with having knelt at well-curbs Always wrong to the light, so never seeing Deeper down in the well than where the water Gives me back in a shining surface picture Me myself in the summer heaven godlike Looking out of a wreath of fern and cloud-puffs. …

April 20, 2008 – 9:15 pm | By ashok | Posted in frost, poetry | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Learning, Teaching and Justice

The coldest thing is when someone refuses to teach, refuses to give the very possibility of learning. We know we can’t give everyone every opportunity, but teaching is the opportunity that allows others to get more on their own. It’s the way we make up for what we can’t provide. There is a pupil Socrates …

April 18, 2008 – 9:10 pm | By ashok | Posted in education, personal | Comments (1)