“Philosophy translates as love of wisdom, but I like to think of it as the foundations of everything. Philosophers are like the little kid who keeps asking, Why? or What is that? or How do you know? or What does that mean? or Why should I do that? Ask those questions a few times in a row and you rapidly reach the foundations. You’re examining the assumptions that underlie things we take for granted.” - David Chalmers, Reality+
I heard someone on a podcast recently say, “The older I get, the more I’m interested in reality”.
She meant that she was no longer interested in listening to the voices who try to convince the public that what they are experiencing is not real.
I think her interest has less to do with age and everything to do with the broader culture.
Mainstream media*, social media, Hollywood, Ivy Leagues, and Washington DC constantly insist that we deny reality.
Joe Biden is razor sharp, has been for years, and the best person to run the free world.
Donald Trump fights for good values, and will right this ship back in a moral direction.
America has always loved and championed Kamala Harris.
I don’t know why the term “gaslighting” caught on and became the default language for systematically manipulating someone to believe that the reality they are experiencing isn't real. According to a Forbes article,
The term “gaslighting” comes from a 1938 play titled Gas Light, which was adapted into the 1940 film Gas Light, followed by the better-known 1944 film Gaslight, starring Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman. In each work, a male protagonist convinces his wife she’s imagining things that are actually happening—including the dimming of the house’s gas lights—with the result of making her believe she’s gone insane.
It's so bizarre that this overused word for distorting reality comes from a mid-20th century play-turned-movie-turned-four-years-later-remade-movie.
But that’s where we are.
As much as I believe in the value of philosophy, philosophy won’t save us from systemic dysmorphia.
That’s not philosophy’s job.
Anyone who looks to philosophy itself as an ultimate source of meaning will be disappointed (and I've seen it happen).
Philosophy is a tool, not an end in itself.
Its purpose is to serve. (And the discipline itself is currently plagued with reality-denying activism.)
If philosophers had a store, it would be filled with arguments. Arguments for and against dualism would be in Aisle 9, arguments for virtue theory would be on Aisle 15.
If someone came in and asked, "Where is your best argument?", it would be like walking into Lowes and asking, "Where is your best tool?"
It depends on what you need for what you want to do.
The good news is that the best parts of philosophy can tell us a thing or two about reality (metaphysics), truth (philosophy of language), and lying (ethics).
Here’s where philosophy can be useful: the best of philosophy is unrelenting in its quest for truth and good arguments.
For a while now, I’ve been convinced that one of the biggest, brightest dividing lines is between those who refuse to compromise on speaking truth, and those who play fast and loose with the truth.
When quasi-pragmatist reasoning values outcomes over process, the value of truth is going to suffer.
What passes as currency in the mainstream--talking points, sound bites, slogans--has no currency within the halls of philosophy.
To be a good argument, vibes and feels do not win points.
At its best, philosophy might be one of the last strongholds against reality-denying, “gaslighting” trends.
Until next week,
Jared
*In the middle of writing, I saw this article about reality, lying, and journalism.
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