Thomas,
I've had these same thoughts as you have, and a book
that really helped me to better understand Quality and
it's implications was "An Inquiry Into the Good" by
Kitaro Nishida. In this book Nishida discusses "pure
experience" (which is the same as Pirsig's Quality),
why it precedes the subject and object, and, most
importantly, how this understanding of the the true
reality effects one's life. You should definitely
pick up a copy of this book, it is amazing to see how
2 people from entirely different social backgrounds
have ideas that run so parallel.
Adam
--- Thomas Op de Coul <todcoul@koncon.koncon.nl>
wrote:
> Hi everybody,
>
> yesterday I was thinking a bit about the above
> things while waiting for a
> concert to start, and I have the following problem:
>
> Pirsig solves the question wether quality is s.t.
> objective or subjective
> by putting quality so to say in front of it.
> Subjects en objects both
> emerge from Quality, which sounds ok
>
> But what is the difference between this and putting
> quality so to say
> behind S/O; in saying that Quality emerges from the
> continuing interaction
> between subjects and objects? This neither doesn't
> require one to position
> quality in either subjects or objects.
>
> In both options, Q is neither absolutely objective
> nor absolutely
> subjective. So why the apparent preference for
> putting Quality as the
> "primary" concept, from which objects and subjects
> emerge? I could not
> think af any argument in favour of (either!)
> position...
>
> The only thing I tentatively supposed, was that it's
> a matter of taste
> (NB, what one finds qualitatively superior) - some
> people prefer a sort of
> holistic worldview where there has to be ONE concept
> 'at the heart of it
> all', so to say. This seems to be a driving force
> for holding that Quality
> is primary. Some people (many in the anglophone
> philosophical
> tradition) prefer a DUALISTIC world view, with real
> existing objects in
> the world at the one hand and with real existing
> subjects (people) on the
> other hand.
>
> But furthermore: does it really matter in daily
> life? Quality is something
> we experience all the time; you could almost say it
> comes hand in hand
> with experience. Experience always comes with a
> certain quality to it. And
> I don't see a problem in the fact that we do not
> always agree with what
> has quality. Why would we want to absolutely
> determine wat has quality and
> what does not, and where it is placed?
>
> Quality is per definition a
> metaphysical concept (you can't see it in itself,
> you can't measure it
> etc.) but what does that matter? It doesn't prevent
> us from continually
> experiencing Quality - luckily, for it gives one
> great depth, joy, sorrow,
> etc etc in life! One might call Quality a
> "metaphysical experience", which
> could give the whole discussion a different turn.
>
> Perhaps that is why we all are so obsessed with
> Quality and where it is to
> be found - because it is such a central part of our
> lives. Yet it is hard
> to get hold of when speaking about it - as we also
> experience all the
> time, also in the MOQ forum :o) Quality gives us a
> glimpse of something
> "not of this world" (especially when it now and then
> sends shivers down
> one's spines - in the concert which I heard after
> thinking about this
> all for example), yet it is unquestionably bound to
> this world we live
> in...
>
> In the next weeks I will hopefully rceieve an
> ordered book via mail on
> th philosopher Theodor W. Adorno, called "Negative
> dialectics and the
> metaphysical experience - on Adorno's philosophy of
> enlightenment". I have
> already read s.t. of this philosopher, and its very
> fascinating in view of
> the whole problem of SOM and Quality. He takes an
> extremely nuanced (alas
> also difficult) stance in this tricky business, and
> I think you will all
> be interested!
>
> I'll keep you updated,
> yours
> Thomas
>
>
>
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