The Wisdom Letter #275
5 quotes from George Bernard Shaw, Carl Jung, and more.
✹ For today’s edition of Wisdom Letter, we have carefully curated five bite-sized quotes from brilliant thinkers such as George Bernard Shaw and Carl Jung, each paired with a philosophical question designed to provoke deep reflection.
Quote № 01:
“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”
— George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
~ Follow-up Question:
How does the concept of reasonableness, as defined by social adaptability, constrain human potential, and what are the implications for those whose visions of reality diverge radically from the majority?
Quote № 02:
“There are as many nights as days, and the one is just as long as the other in the year's course. Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word “happy” would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness.”
— Carl Jung (1875–1961)
~ Follow-up Question:
Can the pursuit of constant happiness be considered a flawed or incomplete goal, and what philosophical or existential implications arise from accepting suffering as an integral part of a fulfilled life?
Quote № 03:
“By art alone we are able to get outside ourselves, to know what another sees of this universe which for him is not ours, the landscapes of which would remain as unknown to us as those of the moon.”
— Marcel Proust (1871–1922)
~ Follow-up Question:
In what ways does art function as a bridge between isolated consciousnesses, and can it ever truly convey the subjective reality of another person, or does it merely reflect the viewer’s own interpretation?
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Quote № 04:
“I think we ought to read only the kind of books that wound and stab us. If the book we are reading doesn't wake us up with a blow on the head, what are we reading it for?”
— Franz Kafka (1883–1924)
~ Follow-up Question:
Can a work of art be considered successful if it merely entertains or reassures, or must it challenge the reader’s beliefs and assumptions to hold any lasting significance?
Quote № 05:
“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.”
— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832)
~ Follow-up Question:
What does the suggestion of engaging daily with art and reason imply about the human need for beauty and meaning, and can such small, deliberate acts serve as a form of resistance against the chaos and triviality of modern life?
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“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832)
- Of course, this was written in a time without blaring media, when fine arts were scarce and treasured. Modern times call for more emptiness and silence, if you ask me.
Q1: "How does the concept of reasonableness, as defined by social adaptability, constrain human potential, and what are the implications for those whose visions of reality diverge radically from the majority?"
Clearly Netanyahu is an unreasonable man - one cannot reason with psychos - but I'd hardly call the vomiting output of his unreasonable actions "progress".
Q4: "Can a work of art be considered successful if it merely entertains or reassures, or must it challenge the reader’s beliefs and assumptions to hold any lasting significance?"
Both and.