Anachronistic Kantian Dialogue

On Autonomy
What is autonomy?
• That I give myself a law, which I act upon. Auto : Self. Nomos : Law.
Can you give yourself any law you choose?
• Yes, of course. That’s why its autonomy.
Can you give yourself a law that is unjust?
• Yes. I’m autonomous.
Should someone submit to/obey an unjust law?
• Of course not.
If someone can’t be expected to obey a law, and in fact, should not, is it even a law?
• No.
So, if autonomy is the giving of one’s self the laws of one’s actions, then to give one’s self an unjust law wouldn’t be autonomy would it?
• I don’t follow.
You are giving the law, so the pre-fix “auto” applies, yes?
• Of course.
But if an unjust law is no law at all, then the greek suffix “nomos” would not apply. Do you agree?
• I’m still not following.
The autonomous person gives themselves the law of their action, and what is being given by the self here is NOT a law. The self and the giving remain, but the law would be excluded by the injustice “prescribed,” correct?
• Ah, yes, indeed.
So, the autonomous person must be just? Insofar as one is unjust, one fails to be autonomous?
• But that seems a constraint upon the autonomous person!
Indeed, but isn’t it only a constraint of rationality in the most basic sense?
• How do you mean?
The principle of non-contradiction is an indemonstrable first principle of reason. By it, we know that an unjust law is not a law, because justice is analytically contained in the concept of law. It cannot both be a law and not-a-law (unjust) at the same time and in the same respect.
• Oh…right. But its still a constraint upon my autonomy, however minimal, necessary and basic.
If the autonomy of every possible person falls under the same “constraint,” as you call it, wouldn’t that constraint be the bounds of the universal. Though definite, it would be absolute. Could there be any “beyond” into which to go, unrestrained by the PNC?
• Well, one would bound into nothingness, it seems.
So, would you like to have the freedom to give a nothing-law to yourself? To give a not-law? That, too, would be not-autonomy, for there would be neither a law to give, nor a self to give it, nor giving.
• No, I suppose that nothing is opposed to autonomy.
Indeed!

Morning Tide of Thought

I think the one of Jesus commands that I'm most focused on these days is to not worry. I'm trying to be obedient, but sometimes I just end up worrying about worrying.

This kind of obedience is especially important for philosophy right now. If I'm doing philosophy to try to meet the expectations of an exterior, posited, super-ego-like standard of what a philosopher should be or do or whatever, I end up lying all the time.

"Sure, I love reading Wittgenstein."

I end up reading things in order to impress people and to try to be someone else. To try to be the REAL philosophy student and not just my fraudulent self.

Even Truth isn't really my goal, if by truth we mean some out-there-now-real that has to be discovered and comprehensively comprehended. If that were the case, I would never stop worrying about all that will inevitably escape my grasp.

No, I think I'm here to do only this: To do the work I love and love the people I'm doing it with.

That and, as Shaq says, not "come inside the paint w/ any weak shit."

No more ambition. It is just the self divorcing and judging itself. It's horrendous doubleness.

If I pursue this place, these people and this work in passionately LOVE, I will be exactly the kind of successful I'm supposed to be.

and nothing more.

Godspeed.

Education, Sex and Pears...but mostly education

Boston College update:
- I've got a list of 6 or 7 perspective classes for the Fall. Everything from Plato's "Theatetus" to a seminar on Heidegger's "Being and Time." I'm so excited about this...and a little intimidated too, I suppose. It's going to be weird from being in the upper 25% in my classes at NPU to sitting in class w/ PHD candidates who, as Emily Johnson says, are experts in Hegel. Oh yeah, I'll probably take a class in Hegel's "Phenomenology of Spirit," too.
- E.J. also gave me the name of a friend who's looking for a roommate. This could cut my housing costs by two-thirds. Hopefully everyone's cool and the place isn't a total crap-pile. But, I'll probably just have to take my chances, unless I want to drop a bunch of cash to live alone or stay in Boston hotels for a month shopping for Apartments w/ those guys.
Never mind that. Back to square one. No big deal.

Next Step:
- Start hunting down financial aid. B.C. isn't prohibitively expensive, but it's close. If anyone has a rich aunt who wants to be a patron of the "old style" let me know, yeah?

Tomorrow I'll be teaching my second Sunday School class on Augustine's "Confessions." Last week went really well. 20 people, which is a lot for a kick-off. Good spread on the ages, from JD (22) to a fella' named Walt Von Flue (late 70's?). Walt Von Flue is a name that sounds as old as he is, doesn't it? Anyways, we're talking about Books I and II this week, so that means we're discussing education, sex and pears.

But aren't we always? Godspeed.