Hi Rick and everyone
Rick:
Glove,
Is that to say that the human species is still evolving biologically? I
was under the impression that the biological level needed to "latch" so
that anything can evolve on top of it.
Rick
Glove:
Yes, I would say the Metaphysics of Quality says we are still evolving as a
species,
although the nature of biological evolution is only apparent in
retrospection. Static latching occurs at all
four levels of the Metaphysics of Quality in a self-regenerating fashion as
long as a stasis does not appear. That is why Pirsig labeled
a perceived stasis in the Metaphysics of Quality as an evil, dont you think?
According to the Metaphysics of Quality, its a matter of balance. There
needs to be a certain amount of stability and a certain amount of force, but
that stability/force should operate like a wave in the ocean. The force of
the wave moves thru the water, but moves the water itself very little. Why
is that? The force of the wave is impinging upon each individual water
molecule at a 90 degree-ness, or a right angle, and thus the force
generating the wave doesn't push the molecules ahead, but sideways.
Still, the force of the wave itself moves ahead. This would appear to be a
good analogy of the way static latching occurs. And so, even though static
latching occurs at each level of the Metaphysics of Quality, a stasis is
never really reached. There is always a lateral drift occurring, a
right-angle shifting. Pirsig seems to be a big fan of lateral drifting, as
am I. There may be a perceived stasis, as the Victorian era signifies. But
those patterns of value simply grow old and die, thats all.
However, evolution does not appear to be a continuous event in the
biological level as it appears to be at the social level. Rather it seems to
make "jumps" which are only apparent from a later perspective. It seems as
if biological evolution is tied to catastrophic geological and climatic
changes on the earth.
At this particular time we live in, biological evolution is in a seemingly
lateral drift, value forces of creation and discreation in a balance, which
is a Good thing for us, just as it was a Good thing for the dinosaurs before
that meteor slammed into the earth 65 million years ago.
At this particular time, the social level seems to be in a continual state
of evolution, due in part to the predominance of the intellect level and its
(in my opinion) destructive nature. Since the social level is how we
perceive our reality, we automatically assume since it is continually
evolving, so is the rest of reality. But the Metaphysics of Quality says
each level is discrete, and subject to its own moral codes.
Any thoughts?
glove
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