On Fri, 14 Apr 2000 15:40:45 -0400, you wrote:
>
>IAN:
>"The problem, I think, comes when you go along to get along. Give up the
>debate and row in with thinking you know to be incorrect."
>
>RICK:
>Isn't there some comfortable middle ground??? Are we doomed to be either
>conformist sheep or ANALytical nitpickers?--- How about--- Give up the
>debate and row in WITHOUT the thinking you know to be incorrect (ya know
>what I'm sayin?).
>
Well I'm sure that there is. I've yet to find it. The ancient chinese
sages called it the Tao.
I've always considered it to be unique to each of us. I do not believe
that one size fits all. There are things I can get away with that
would destroy others, and vice versa.
One semantic trap to avoid is the whole "know to be incorrect". That's
my mental shorthand for a bigger idea. I'm not necessarily *right*, in
the mathematical sense. It indicates that the current mode of thinking
does not sufficiently answer the aspects of <whatever> that I am
concerned with. I may be wrong and require further information to
alter my model of what is taking place.
As society becomes more structured it's an important thing to keep in
mind. Our governments and commercial organisations thrive on
compartmentalisation of information. Often when we see something
"wrong" it is by design. A kludge to avoid some engineering problem
further up the road about which we are outside of the loop.
Other times I am concerned with things others have made the decision
to ignore. It's the art of modelling.
"The soul is dead that slumbers. Things are not what they seem."
>
>IAN:
> "I find it hard to think of anyone who had bad things to say about
>Phaedrus."
>
>RICK:
>I believe you will find this attitude DEADLY to Quality.
I was going to reply on this in the earlier post.
My point is that it is the narrator who has the communication problem.
I agree, THAT is deadly to quality. Being true to yourself and those
things that are disturbing you is rarely damaging to quality.
Chris has a relationship with Phaedrus. The friend the group visit
have a relationship with Phaedrus. Apart from the narrator we do not
see anyone not directly in the path of the MOQ concept that has a
problem with Phaedrus. It is Phaedrus seeking to open the "glass door"
(lovely metaphor).
I don't doubt that Phaedrus might have been a prig to deal with. I
know that when I am dealing with this type of character that learning
is *possible*, on both sides. Of the other type, characterised by the
Classics prof in the final showdown, there is nothing to be learned.
When you show this type of person a flaw in their model they attack on
some other ground without "thunking" the required changes in their
model through their thinking. Their "quality relationship" would seem
to be with the concept of "winning" rather than with expanding their
knowledge or building their model.
The narrator is a subset of this. He want's everyone to think well of
him and is capable of considerable mental gymnastics to achieve this.
As he is not being true to himself he is incapable of being true to
anything else. Which shows in his relationship. The energy necessary
to maintain this relationship with the world is considerable and
leaves little or nothing left for communication.
The idea that Chris has been riding on the motorcycle for years and
only looking at this persons back. It's so wonderfully expressed.
*smile*
Reminds me of the motor-cycling t-shirt "If you can read this my wife
has fallen off."
I should imagine that were I to write a Phaedrus character I would
seek to explore more the theme of taking too much on board. That, it
would seem to me, is the great fault of Phaedrus. We have been shown
that there are others who come very close to his ideas.
>
>I'm going outside now,
>Rick
regards,
Ian
"The blind said 'listen'
While the deaf said 'can't you see?'"
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