tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post3831435558427872956..comments2024-02-20T12:26:24.682-05:00Comments on language goes on holiday: KidsDuncan Richterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708344766825805406noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post-53471790034396176032011-05-22T14:38:39.077-04:002011-05-22T14:38:39.077-04:00Thanks, Matt. I will check it out.
I guess if we&...Thanks, Matt. I will check it out.<br /><br />I guess if we're talking about meaning in life, rather than the meaning of life, then it is somewhat subjective. Which is why it might be important to consider individual cases (real and fictional), and why I'm inclined to be skeptical of general claims about what does or does not make people feel satisfied. Singer apparently can refer to real data to support his view (unlike Anscombe, who writes off various activities as intertwined with "rewardless trouble of spirit" without any data that I know of) but I doubt that Kasser shows, or claims to show, that <i>no one</i> can be satisfied with a materialistic life. It doesn't seem plausible that there is one best kind of life for everybody. But then I have nothing but intuition to base that on.Duncan Richterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15708344766825805406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post-52907184417462294482011-05-22T11:15:01.695-04:002011-05-22T11:15:01.695-04:00That Kasser book is good. What Kazez says about me...That Kasser book is good. What Kazez says about meaning seems similar to the account Susan Wolf gives in "The Meanings of Lives" (which is a nice little paper and something of which I use the first half in my classes).<br /><br />I watched a compelling character study film last night called "Blue Valentine" (with Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams). It follows the very difficult end of their relationship (she no longer loves, or can even stand to be around, him), and interweaves this with flashbacks of the beginning of the relationship (which is in itself an uplifting story, which makes the end of the relationship very depressing). The relevant point of the story is that they have a conversation where Cindy (Williams) questions why Dean (Gosling) hasn't done something with his life--he's good at many things, and all he does is paint houses. He responds that all he ever wanted to do is love her and to be Frankie's dad. (Frankie is not his child; Cindy had become pregnant with someone else at just the same time as she met Dean.) He raises what seem like good questions as to why that isn't enough, but it's true that in other ways he seems like quite an underachiever. Part of the problem, perhaps, with their relationship is that this seems to contrast with Cindy's trajectory--she gave up the dream of going to medical school in order to start this family, and it may be that some of her frustration and anger stems from this. But it's a really sad story because he really seems to be losing <i>the</i> center of meaning in his life. (He says something like, "I work so that I can take care of you and Frankie, isn't that enough?") It's clear from the film that Dean can be overbearing at times, but what makes him nevertheless a sympathetic character is the sense he conveys that he has a wholehearted commitment to his family (but there is also something to view embodied by Cindy that he seems at the same time to have lost his way in serving that commitment...) I guess: check it out.Matthew Pianaltohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16380038537888895216noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post-49807603792027967902011-05-22T10:13:07.833-04:002011-05-22T10:13:07.833-04:00Thanks, Nik. I guess that pretty much answers that...Thanks, Nik. I guess that pretty much answers that question.Duncan Richterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15708344766825805406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post-25928103436984424242011-05-22T08:41:26.187-04:002011-05-22T08:41:26.187-04:00"I really wonder how Singer knows that people..."I really wonder how Singer knows that people who invest themselves in making money, going shopping, or sports, feel empty inside." - Psychologist Tim Kasser has collected a lot of data on this in The High Price of Materialism: http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?ttype=2&tid=8959Nikolaj Lykke Nielsenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02448077344949018765noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post-73551158047935291812011-05-20T18:13:59.038-04:002011-05-20T18:13:59.038-04:00MKR--do you mean the experiment of raising him wit...MKR--do you mean the experiment of raising him with the goal of producing a useful member of society rather than the goal of doing what was best for him as an individual? If so, it did work in a way, just with the cost of giving him a nervous breakdown. And that was fruitful, too, since he went on to develop a new form of utilitarianism as a result. Everybody wins! (Not parenting at its finest in my opinion, but what do I know?)Duncan Richterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15708344766825805406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post-90393801728292959882011-05-20T17:05:10.095-04:002011-05-20T17:05:10.095-04:00I meant not in an order at all, because they don&#...I meant not in an order at all, because they don't compete. If they did, of course, there would have to be some ranking, in practice if not in conscious thought. At least in an emergency. In that case United might not make the top three. And I don't plan on flying that banner any time soon.<br /><br />MKR--experiment? I'm not connecting the dots here, I'm afraid.Duncan Richterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15708344766825805406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post-68256040000553618522011-05-20T16:57:46.050-04:002011-05-20T16:57:46.050-04:00Didn't James Mill try this with his son? I see...Didn't James Mill try this with his son? I seem to recall that the experiment didn't pan out, at least as the son tells it in his <i>Autobiography</i>.Miles Rindhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03733605717776262840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6454161596094447448.post-25575090317299418492011-05-20T13:16:53.248-04:002011-05-20T13:16:53.248-04:00In no particular order?! Huh.
Let's just say...In no particular order?! Huh. <br /><br />Let's just say one hopes one's husband doesn't fly that banner over one's home any time soon ...Stephaniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01319022673723884723noreply@blogger.com