Tomreading: a blog about philosophy
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‘The Myth of Sisyphus’ by Albert Camus (TRM’s notes)
Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus An Abstract Reasoning – An intellectual malady Absurdity and Suicide – There is but one truly serious philosophical problem and that is suicide – Nietzsche – Galileo – the method of the Palisse and the method of Don Quixote – The relationship between individual thought and suicide – ‘undermined’…
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‘Illuminations’ by Walter Benjamin [TRM’s notes]
Illuminations by Walter Benjamin Introduction by Hannah Arendt Introduction: – Marxist – Jewish – What seems paradoxical about everything that is justly called beautiful is the fact that it appears. – The flaneur – Angel of history has his face turned towards the past – Klee’s ‘Angela Novus’ – The allegorical representation of death by…
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Adorno’s ‘Theory of Aesthetics’
Adorno’s Aesthetic Theory Intro – translator’s intro – Hegel – Kierkegaard – Benjamin’s ‘Artwork in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction’ – Proust’s ‘Swann’s Way’ – Figaro – Stefan George – Para tactical capacity – ‘Situation’ chpt 2 – Aesthetic – The impulse to pick up the sacred threads of what was just fascist in Germany’s…
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‘Analysis of Mind’ by Bertrand Russell [TRM’s notes]
‘Analysis of Mind’ by Bertrand Russell Preface – Professor Eddington’s ‘ Space, Time and Gravitation’ – William James Lecture 1 ‘Recent Criticisms of Consciousness’ – ‘mental’ – believing and desiring – Russell, ‘Our Knowledge of the External World’ – perception – memory – ideas – Locke, Berkeley and Hume – Belief – Cognitive – Knowledge…
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A Concise History of Modern Painting by Sir Herbert Read (TRM’s notes)
“A Concise History of Modern Painting” by Herbert Read chpt. 1 The Origins of Modern Art – Proceeds backwards – burst of energy then decline – “debauchery” – law not of progress but of “reaction” – R.G. Collingwood, ‘The Principles of Art’ – philosophy describes art as a “conceiving of the world visually” – an…
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The World as Will and Representation Part II (TRM’s notes)
The World as Will and Representation Part II a supplement to the first book “Why wilt thou withdraw from us all and from our way of thinking?”- ‘I do not write for your pleasure you shall learn something”. Goethe in endless space phenomenon of the brain subjective conditions the world is my representation ideality cogito…
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“Knowledge: ‘Its Scope and Limits’” Bertrand Russell (TRM’s notes)
Knowledge: ‘Its Scope and Limits’ Bertrand Russell – In describing the world, “subjectivity” is a vice. – Kant spoke of himself as having affected a “Copernican Revolution”, but he would have been more accurate if he had spoken of a “Ptolemaic counter-revolution”, since he put man back at the center from which Copernicus had dethroned…
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Plato: Socrates’ Last Days (TRM’s notes)
Socrates’ Last Days Socratic What is “to know”? How does one test knowledge? “Virtue is knowledge” “How is it best for things to be arranged”? Both piety and justice Moral knowledge Correct conduct Religious traditions power to discriminate between right and wrong both in theological belief and in action Argument Prosecution Millets …For he knows…
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Notes from Freud’s “The Interpretation of Dreams”
Notes from Freud’s The Interpretation of Dreams The Scientific Literature Dealing With the Problems of Dreams There is a psychological technique which makes it possible to interpret dreams Revelations from gods and daemons Foretell the future Attitude towards divination in general Two works of Aristotle which deal with dreams Daemonic, since nature is daemonic and…
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Introduction to Mathematical Philosophy by Bertrand Russell (TRM Notes)
Introduction to Mathematical Philosophy by Bertrand Russell 1) extension/intension “the traits by which Swift delineates the”Yahoos” class of classes bundle of bundles converse domain reflexive/symmetrical/transitive/similarity -class of fathers >what it is to be a father of somebody -the class of fathers will be all those who are somebody’s father Finitude & mathematical induction successor how…
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