Now I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly, dreaming I am a man. -- Zhuangzi (莊子) Did he appear, because I fell asleep thinking of him? If only I'd known I was dreaming I'd never have wakened. -- Ono no… Continue reading An Anthology on Juxtaposition
Philosophy the Day after Tomorrow
I like people who are clever and arrogant. I like it best when Nassim Nicholas Taleb displays a dose of Nietzschean arrogance. Taleb on why today's readers can be ignored, in Incerto: As an essayist, I am not judged by other writers, book editors, and book reviewers, but by readers. Readers? maybe, but wait a minute…… Continue reading Philosophy the Day after Tomorrow
The Birth of Tragedy
Charlie Chaplin said, "Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot." Reading chapters from Gibbon's Decline and Fall, and Trump's press conference, you will conclude that a nation's decline is the reverse - it is a close-up comedy and long-shot tragedy. Trump has turned White House into reality comedy shows.
The Wall and the Tower
Kafka's Great Wall of China, with the system of piecemeal construction, is filled with gaps and does not offer protection from barbarism. Likewise, the builders of the Tower of Babel, who purport to found a universal language, end up inviting God's punishment, speaking different languages and becoming barbarians to each other. Rather than failures, I… Continue reading The Wall and the Tower
On Ignorance
Who has one voice and yet becomes three-footed and two-footed and four-footed? Sophocles' Oedipus, the most suffering figure of the Greek tragedy. Oedipus crawled on three as a baby (because his ankles were pinned together by his parents who abandoned him), limped as an adult, and walked on four legs as an old man (blinding… Continue reading On Ignorance
The Spirit of 1776 vs. The Spirit of 2016
The Spirit of 1776, by Archibald Willard, represents the zeitgeist of the American Revolution. It refers to the attitude of self-determination and individual liberty. The Spirit of 2016, by David Parkins for The Economist, typifies the global sentiment following the election of Donald Trump as US president. It is an unsettling zest for tribalism and authoritarianism.
How to Hide a Secret in the Information Age
A wealth of information creates a poverty of attention, as Herbert Simon said. When attention is scarce, secrets can be hidden. Dialogues from G. K. Chesterton's The Sign of the Broken Sword illustrate this vividly. Father Brown: Where does a wise man hide a pebble? Flambeau: On the beach. Father Brown: Where does a wise man… Continue reading How to Hide a Secret in the Information Age
The Age of Strong Faith
Many religions promise a reward in the afterlife. Many "religious people" expect a reward in their current life. Their strong faith commands my respect - they do not lose their faith in spite of the hypocrisy.
We Exist for a Book
Staring into the dreamy Shanghai dusk, a few lines of verse cross my mind: The candle died, the water-clock was exhausted, I rose and sat, but could not be at peace. Man's affairs are like the flow of floodwater, A life is just like floating in a dream. A few years ago, an up-and-coming musician… Continue reading We Exist for a Book
Factionalism in War and Peace
In Tolstoy's War and Peace, Prince Andrey enumerated the factions within the Russian high command during Napoleon's invasion. You usually see the full range or a subset of these dynamics as a group responds to situations. Rigid military theorists Non-planners favoring spontaneous actions Courtiers reconciling the first two groups Advocates of surrendering to Napoleon Adherents… Continue reading Factionalism in War and Peace
Andy Yee 