"I would argue that nothing makes life more meaningful than a realization that every moment of consciousness is a precious gift." Pinker: The Blank Slate p. 7
As I was reading through the article by Pinker, this was the quote that stood out to me because it reflects my own personal view of life. It parallels the sayings of "live life to the fullest" and "you only live once". It is easy to get caught up in the science wars, but this quote for me puts it all in perspective. There are many different theories that Pinker touches on, including the blank slate, the noble savage, and the ghost in the machine. These theories all try to answer the ever mysterious workings of human nature, and all I thought had some air of truth to them. But, human nature is so complex that it is hard to understand it fully.
The point in my life when I knew that living was a precious gift was when I lost my older sister, she had just graduated high school and had many ambitions on what she wanted to do with her future. This broke down the invincibility fallacy for myself, and I knew that time really was limited and that you never knew when you were going to die. So why not make the most of it?
Human nature and what makes us tick is intriguing to everyone. It is who we are, that is why it matters. As time passes more and more people try to develop new theories to explain it, and disprove old theories. I personally am not convinced that we will ever know, which is why I'm glad that Pinker also seems skeptical.
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ReplyDeleteFirst, I'd just like to say that I'm sorry for your loss. The fact that you grew from the experience is nice to hear!
ReplyDeleteSecondly, I agree with you and Pinker's conclusion that every moment of consciousness is a gift. If nothing else, we all can agree that what humans have that no other organism we have come across has: our level of consciousness or awareness - which is something that we're all truly fortunate to have. Consciousness is a gift of power (organisms with consciousness in higher degrees have the most amount of power, influence, etc.) and a gift of understanding, even if what we know might just be a drop in the bucket of what's out there, which certainly justifies being skeptical.
Eric Best
I think that your point is something that we all should wake up and think about constantly and on a day to day basis. The point of why we want to know and come to a conclusion about anything anyway what is fact and truth is to get the most out of life isn't it? Why are we always looking for causes or reasons for things? I would say it's to come to the conclusions that get us closer and closer to understanding ourselves and what all this life can bring. Life is a gift and knowledge and education is a gift as well but it shouldn't take away from the simplicity of life itself. I am sorry for your loss but I believe that when things happen there is always something positive to take away from it as difficult and tragic as it may be. The loss of life is so difficult for us to comprehend and take in and that is why living it every second keeping that in mind is important
ReplyDeleteSorry for your loss; there is nothing like the loss of a loved one to make you realize of life’s preciousness. However I would like to stress the importance of hypothesizing and questioning. It is as essential to society like the cycle of life and death. The process of theorizing, rejecting, and re-theorizing is fueled by curiosity, the element which brings cultures together. Curiosity invites people to share personal experiences, seeks similarities, builds empathy and drives the formation of international alliances and partnerships. Undisclosed topics such as the question of human nature are therefore essential to upholding cross-cultural relationships.
ReplyDeletePerhaps human nature is the blank slate, the noble savage, or ghost in the machine, or maybe none of these are correct. Whatever the answer may be (or may not be), we cannot deny the sense of connectedness we students feel when we think about this timeless topic. So please, do not give up on your search. Thankfully, it seems that you have not given up yet, as you took the time to write this thoughtful post.
What can we say that doesn't sound sort of lame and stupid? Buckets of loss; we're fragile. So sorry.
ReplyDeleteWarren Zevon said 'enjoy every sandwich.' Yes.
What's Pinker up to in this sentence that led us all away from the argument? If nothing else, he takes a shot at religion (in its supposed role of keeping us focused on the afterlife).