2 August 2012
Discussed text: Gabriel Marcel, "Introduction," The Mystery of Being
“To gain insight, we must be there to know more and face the experience or what is unknown.”
An important aspect of gaining insight through experience is thinking. In philosophy, thinking is important in order to understand, rationalize, and appreciate situations we experience daily. In the discussions of Dr. Garcia, two types of thinking were analyzed. The first type talks about subjectivity or personal thinking. This type of thinking varies and depends on a person’s values, beliefs, attitudes, feelings, and the like. It is private and can be experienced by any subject. On the other hand, the second type of thinking discusses objectivity or abstract thinking. Unlike the first one, this way of thinking is universal. It is universal in a scientific way, tackling arguments on history, biology, chemistry, and the like. This approach is more general and seeks to describe mind-independent realities.
Philosophy cannot be generalized into just a single way of thinking but rather, is a combination of both ideologies. There exists an intermediary way of thinking between the two types. It is subjective and at the same time universal. Three levels make up this way of thinking: Art, Religion, and Politics, respectively. In understanding the connection of subjectivity and objectivity better, the first level of intermediary thinking will be discussed.
Art is a form of experience that does not only occur in an individual sense but also universally. Human beings can have varying perceptions on different artworks, yet still maintain the universal insight the artist intended for it to encompass. The experiences we go through when appreciating and viewing art are usually not quantifiable and verifiable but are very real.
A recent experience I had in relation to the ideologies discussed occurred when Dr. Garcia asked us to visit The Ateneo Art Gallery. I visited the gallery before but it was the first time I really took the time to analyze and reflect on the paintings and structures displayed. A particular painting that caught my attention was a creation by Marciano Galang. From a far, it looked like a chaotic and cluttered piece of art. But as I approached the piece, I saw the intricate and realistic details plastered on the canvas. I was a bit disturbed because I did not expect to see the things before me. What seemed like burnt objects, such as shoes, a wallet, a can, and the like, were strategically displayed on the canvas. I read the description beside the artwork and saw that the painting was entitled “Cavite.” Different theories started formulating in my mind on what might have occurred in the production of the artwork. The personal insights and observations I had could be classified as subjectivism, a personal way of thinking. On the other hand, the objectivism or abstract thinking in this situation was the fact that the artist had his own perception or background on why and how he created this piece. A universal truth is preserved by accepting the fact that the artist has his own voice as well as inspiration for creating such an intricate piece of artwork.
Experiences we go through can be categorized into two kinds: grasping and being grasped/gripped. Grasping is a metaphor used in techniques. Techniques talk about a group of procedures that are capable of being taught and reproduced to achieve a concrete goal by manipulating physical and mental factors. We view knowledge as way of grasping – a manipulative approach which has a series of steps or instructions. On the other hand, being grasped is an experience of something gripping us from outside which we cannot put into numbers but is real. It is an experience of metaphysical unease, a discomfort at a more spiritual level. It asks fundamental questions that go beyond us: “Is there something before me?” or “What is life?”
In experiencing something, one must not only settle on grasping alone but also on being grasped. It is not enough that we just focus on the technical or practical aspects of life. We must also take the time to allow ourselves to be grasped or gripped. After all, it is through being grasped that we grow as human beings and go beyond ourselves. Not all of human reality is quantifiable. There exists an inner intellectual need that we must undergo in order to experience a greater reality that awaits us.
When sir Garcia was discussing the idea of grasping and being grasp, I didn't understand it at first. I kept thinking whether or not there is a difference between the two. Then, when he explained it again I somehow got the idea that grasping is the notions of manipulating into achieving something,like in scientific experiments. The idea of being grasped is more like when something (ex. an artwork) caught your eye or something that was able to caught your interest. Perhaps this can be related to the word "passion" like when we love doing something that we feel "grasp" or "hooked" that we continue to love doing it (ex. our hobbies or our interests) I think, perhaps, this may be the reason why our culture and civilization are so rich and vast because we are surrounded by people who are "being grasp" that continues to contribute for the welfare of our society (ex. the Renaissance period)
ReplyDeleteKatrina-Anne Balonan
Philo 101 A
Last week's discussion reminded me of Heidegger and Critchley's works. In a way, I kind of realized how these two works could be connected through Marcel's discussion on the exigency of philosophy.
ReplyDeleteHeidegger emphasized that in philosophizing, the philosopher becomes aware that we are part of a greater existence beyond us (all being is in Being), while Critchley talks about how in philosophy is needed to know the nature of being by asking the right questions in order to live an examined life, as said by Socrates.Both these ideas, I feel, are both summed up in Marcel's work when he says that a philosopher is a man who asks the true questions.
True questions (as said before by Critchley) are questions that what we ask when we know something but only a up to a certain extent, making us curious to know more. This limited knowing, therefore, brings us into a certain metaphysical unease, a yearning to know more than what we know and to know something more. Thus, philosophy makes us gripped by a call--an exigency-- to realize and experience something we already know (because we are part of what we know as beings in Being, as explained by Heidegger) and yet yearn to know something beyond ourselves (which is the greater and mysterious Being that we are part of). We simply must then continually grasp onto and not let go of asking ourselves the true questions on the nature of being because, as Dr. Garcia said, if you let this go, you also let go of something real within you.. because we are all part of the greater scheme of things. All being is in Being.
-Samantha Ysabel J. Lichauco
I like how you said that "Not all of human reality is quantifiable. There exists an inner intellectual need that we must undergo in order to experience a greater reality that awaits us." It is important that we grasp the realities of life which we have reflected on and that we take hold or control of the things we discover and realize. As much as it's important to do so, it is equally essential that we ourselves are being grasped/gripped by these things and realizations that we find, most especially when we think about them in a philosophical way - like when we extend ourselves to others, and when we consider ourselves as conscious people to participate in the world as part of the whole. To be gripped is to acknowledge that other things - things beyond or outside of ourselves - can move us; to be susceptible to the beautiful things in life like the arts. To be swayed by artworks, music, dance, literature and so on is to let oneself be affected or open to metaphysical unease. This feeling of metaphysical unease will then, through time, help us satisfy our intellectual, spiritual and philosophical hunger because it is this "unease" which drives us to experience and/or think about things in different ways. Dr. Garcia said that a thing will open up when there is an opening in the subject. A realization will only occur once you have let yourself be touched by it. And I believe that in order to create/discover an insight, we let ourselves be grasped by the things around us. We will never appreciate the captivating life if we close ourselves from its beauty.
ReplyDelete~ Cara Garcia, Ph101 - A
"We must also take the time to allow ourselves to be grasped or gripped." In the seemingly fast-paced world in which we now take part of, seldom do we stop and acknowledge the opportunity of being grasped. Because of the daily routines we attach our lives too, we tend to focus on the petty things in life (i.e. close-mindedly manning our own lives) and neglect pondering on the essential ones (i.e. asking ourselves "who am i", "what do i live for" or "what makes me, 'me'").
ReplyDeleteWhat struck me most during Dr. Garcia's lecture (regarding these topics) was when said, "if you let go of someone/something that is gripping you, you also let go of yourself."
Acknowledging that a certain someone is gripping you can be synonymous to humbling yourself to another being or thing, not as a slave is to a master, but rather in the context of trying to be one with that person/thing. If we allow this someone (say, a Higher Being or a best friend) or something to take hold of us, then that means we admit that this someone/something occupies a special place in our life and hence, is of personal value to us. (Otherwise, we will not grant the permission that we be grasped/gripped in the first place.)
Similarly, being grasped may also mean that we anchor ourselves to that someone/something, to which we attach a certain value. And so, at some point, our life will be centered on it (and probably even revolve around it). Therefore, once we let go, it as if a huge chunk of what makes up who we are is cut off and just magically fades in the dark abyss.
Kara Leongson
PH101, C
My problem and the problem of so many others is the fact that we do not allow ourselves to be gripped. We continuously grasp yet we fail to realize that we, ourselves, can be grasped by reflection and thinking. On the other hand though, I think it "allowing" is the wrong word. I don't think we can allow ourselves to be grasped because it has to come naturally. Yes, reflection occurs because of a break in a chain of daily events as mentioned in the reading, but we cannot become overly conscious and see everything as breaks in the chains. As mentioned in the article only important things worth reflecting on are supposed to be reflected, not every single thing. And so I think it is a struggle and challenge for all of us to really discern what the important things are in our life, the relevant questions plaguing our minds and other things that are worth thinking deeply about. And as mentioned in the reading again, these things are usually centered outside the human life for we need to acknowledge the fact that we can only live productively if we realize that live in a sea of people not of our selfish interests.
ReplyDeleteThomas Matthew Manalac
Ph101-A
*that we live in a sea of people and not of our selfish interests.
DeleteThomas Matthew Manalac
Ph101-A