First Sentences of Philosophy
If you were a book, your opening sentence would be my first impression of you. It is that type-set handshake, that eye contact, the initial body language of our literary relationship, from which I will...
View ArticleDa Capo
The neuro-chemical thing has worn off and all is again right with the world. That said, it’s a good time to take a little break, a few days away from the desk. The reading is falling behind, the...
View ArticleThe Grand Canyon and other philosophies
The Grand Canyon I’ve been engaged the last couple years in correspondence with a young man in prison. He is a family friend who made a bad decision. He has a bent for big ideas so naturally the two...
View Article“It is a question of understanding my destiny.”
In the fog. (Photo by author) The quote above is lifted from an entry in Kierkegaard’s journal. Here’s the fragment I jotted down in my notebook: “What I really need is to be clear about what I am to...
View ArticleMy Summer with Montaigne–“Of Repentance”
“In all affairs, when they are past, however they have turned out, I have little regret.” III.2 Here’s a thought experiment. Imagine that you have come to the end of your life, and as you lie on your...
View ArticleMy Summer with Montaigne—Update.
Montaigne, “the greatest writer of any time, anywhere.” Orson Welles First a little housekeeping. With Labor Day behind us, you are perhaps wondering about my summer project, is it coming to an end?...
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