From: Matt Kundert (pirsigaffliction@hotmail.com)
Date: Wed Jul 20 2005 - 20:37:17 BST
Arlo,
Arlo said:
I don't read this as "intellect is molded by social culture". I read this
that "intellect" is an emergent construct founded entirely within the
analogues of a culture's mythos. This may be nitpicking, but phrased the
other way it suggests that intellect is an "objective" outside entity that
is acted upon by social pressures.
Matt:
Absolutely right. That's why I've been after the social/intellectual
distinction for some time now. I think the distinction gets Pirsig into
trouble and is one of the things that turns him into a crypto-essentialist.
In fact, I'd go you one further: I'm not even sure what "intellect" is that
is an "emergent construct." I'm not sure what this "logos" is, this
"mythos-turn-logos-though-still-mythos" as Pirsig puts it. I'm not sure
that the creation of philosophy, which is what everyone is talking about
with different names, logos, intellect, S/O distinction, reason, symbol
manipulation, reflection, whatever, was as important as Pirsig, or the
philosophical tradition as a whole, thinks it is. I think the important
thing happening in Greece at the time was the creation of democracy. And,
one will notice, the creation of Greek--a.k.a. _Platonic_--philosophy, to
which we are all footnotes, was in a strong, important way, a reaction
_against_ democracy. Plato saw the most virtuous, excellent, successful man
who ever lived, his teacher, his master, mentor, surrogate father,
inspiration for all, killed--and he never wanted that to be able to happen
again. So he created the Republic. But even more, he created theory--that
which attempts to enslave everything in its path, be it politics, knowledge,
or art--the type of intellectualizing that Pirsig reacts against in ZMM and
Lila.
Matt
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