Hi All,
First off, some mixed metaphorical praise for Roger's
successful capture of the DQ escapee- Gotcha!
But imo the Choice villain is still at large dodging the
"slings and arrows of outrageous fortune". The search
continues...
*****
(1) LIFE AS A JOURNEY
A lost cyclist is pedaling along a country road through pea
soup fog- visibility some 10 yards all around her. As she
advances along the road an indistinguishable vista unfolds
seamlessly, expanding her awareness by building on her
prior experience of the road. She looks back into more fog-
only a memory of the road traveled...
Accepting Marshall McLuhan's assertion that "the medium is
the message/massage", what is the hidden message in my
cyclist metaphor? What assumptions am I revealing about MY
interpretation of reality through my choice of this
particular metaphor to explain reality?
- life is purposeless
- the future is unknowable
- we pursue the unknown
- the known is used as a guide for the unknown
- life is a solitary pursuit
- life is cyclical (sorry!)
- ???
(2) LIFE AS A CHESS GAME
ROGER:
"...let me introduce you to an awesome book by Kevin Kelly.
Called "Out Of Control," it is an
intellectual journey into the issues of evolution,
complexity, freedom, and control. One
of my favorite passages in this book is in Kelly's
explanation of the rules of thumb used both by grand
masters of chess and by the best chess
computer programs. Most fascinating is that Kelly points
out that these rules of
thumb don't just apply to chess. They can literally be
read as rules to live by. See for
yourself.......
1) Favor moves that increase options.
2) Shy away from moves that end well but require cutting
off choices.
3) Work from strong positions that have many adjoining
strong positions.
4) Balance looking ahead to REALLY paying attention to
what's happening now
on the WHOLE board."
MB:
Again if "the medium is the massage", how is Mr. Kelly
trying to work us over? What assumptions is HE revealing
through his 'life as chess' metaphor' about his take on
reality?
- life has a purpose (victory at another's expense)
- foresight is an option, it's possible to predict the
outcome of one's choices
- life has a beginning and an end
- life is about outsmarting others
- life is an ongoing struggle against opposing forces
- ???
Is your life more like a game of chess or a foggy bicycle
ride? Or do you live by an altogether different metaphor?
(3) LIFE AS A CHOICE
ROGER:
Are the key moves of chess programs another way of stating
(in chess terms)
THAT CHOICE WHICH IS MOST DYNAMIC IS THE BEST (most moral)?
I think so.
This may not prove a darn thing, but it does seem relevant.
MB:
The problem with the chess/life analogy now becomes
evident. Participants in a game of chess have a mutually
agreed upon purpose- to win the game, and so their choices
will be directed toward that end. In chess, you might bring
out a pawn to open things up for your queen's bishop- you
know the outcome of your choice. Is this Dynamic in the MOQ
sense? It all seems rather static to me. In fact what is
there really Dynamic in a game of chess, if according to
Pirsig, "Dynamic Quality comes as a sort of surprise"?
Perhaps it's that rare moment of discovery arising from a
very static choice, or maybe your opponent 'pulls a rabbit
out of the hat' and wipes out your entire plan of attack.
So then moving away from the chess board, where is choice
in reality?
MARCO
"Existence is a continuous choice."
MB:
Agreed. But then...
MARCO:
"If to choose is to pursue what's more valuable, then
existence is necessarily a movement toward excellence."
MB:
So if I choose to run red lights because I value the thrill
of the chase, does this choice represent "a movement toward
excellence"? Who's defining excellence? Is 'excellence'
whatever takes your fancy? Existence IS a continuous
choice, but each choice is based on PRIOR moral
judgements...
RMP:
"...if moral judgments are essentially assertions of value
and if value is the fundamental groundstuff of the world,
then moral judgments are [INTELLECTUAL ASSERTIONS OF] the
fundamental groundstuff of the world." (my parentheses)
MB:
Using the cyclist metaphor as a frame of reference...
*VALUE/QUALITY unfolds out of the unknown.
<"I can't see a bloody thing in front of me!">
*MORALITY is the interaction between the
knowing/experiencing/'here and now' and the
known/experienced/past.
<"What's this approaching? Sounds like a truck, but there's
only one light.">
*MORAL JUDGEMENT is the knower's (intellectual) evaluation
of this interaction.
<"Phew that was a close shave! A truck with a broken
headlight.">
*CHOICE is action based on moral judgment.
<"Another single headlight approaching. Probably a
motorcycle, but to be on the safe side, I'd better pull
over into the ditch.">
But let's say our cyclist made a different choice...
"Another single headlight approaching. Can't possibly be
another truck with a broken headlight, no need to pull over
into the ditch. AAARGGGH!"
Some choices are better than others.
JONATHAN:
"systems evolve towards increasing (degrees of) freedom."
MB:
We can choose to move away from patterns which restrict our
freedom. But in reality we have no way of knowing what lies
up ahead. The best we can do is to form moral judgments
BASED ON REALITY, and then use those judgments as a basis
for future decision making. This is how I interpret
Pirsig's assertion that...
"In general, given a choice of two courses to follow and
all other things being equal, that choice which is more
Dynamic, that is, at a higher level of EVOLUTION, is more
moral."
A "choice which is more dynamic" is imo one based on those
moral judgments which when formed were based on experienced
reality. A less Dynamic choice might be once based
primarily on moral judgments which originally were formed
out of pre-existing patterns rather than reality.
ROGER:
"If a choice is a behavioral pattern of value, then choices
are by definition a movement toward quality."
MARK:
I agree that a choice is a behavioral pattern of value, but
life is no chess game, we don't know where our choices will
take us, we only know for sure what we are moving away
from.
ROGER:
Still, the question remains, which choice is the most
dynamic? Which choice is the most evolved? Is it the
choice which leads to the greatest freedom of choice?
MARK:
The most Dynamic choice is that which is based most closely
on reality.
ROGER:
Is this month's topic a tautology?
MARK:
Yes, in a way. I think Pirsig is in effect claiming that
'That choice which is based on reality is the most moral
choice, because according to my MOQ, morality is reality."
ROGER:
Is choice itself not a part of reality?
MARK:
Yes, if it's a GOOD (noun) choice. Choice is action based
on prior moral judgment. Moral judgement is
intellectualized reality. It depends on how closely our
intellectualization reflects reality.
Thanks for reading,
Mark B
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