Jacob Luedecke's Archive

Frederick Nietzsche

3 Commentsby   |  02.21.11  |  Renaissance/Premodern (Part II)

While attending another class I realized very quickly that the topics of Nietzsche and Existentialism were overlapping. Frederick Nietzsche struck me as a revolutionary thinker upon hearing this quote: “He who has a why to live can bear almost any how”. This hit me like a brick wall! I had been searching for the reasons as to why I do what I do and to what purpose exists for striving to be extraordinary. By hearing this quote I have the answer to this daunting question. If I have a purpose to live, a why, then no matter what the condition placed upon me, the how, I will be able to overcome it.

Existentialism seeks to address the issue that we are not defined by our choices in the past, but by the path we are walking now determined by the choices we are currently making. We are not slaves to the past, but “architects of our future”. There is not a right or wrong answer to a choice, but simply making a choice and owning your decision is enough to provide you with meaning. If we live by other’s standards we are doing ourselves a disservice by not allowing for our “authentic” self to shine. Nietzsche would agree wholeheartedly with this statement. When we as humans give ourselves a why to live, we can accomplish any how we set our minds to.

The Allegory of the Cave

4 Commentsby   |  02.02.11  |  Pre-Renaissance (Part I)

When examining the Plato’s Allegory of the Cave my mind drifted to the possibility of this in relation to belief in God. As we are chained to the inner walls of the cave and first hear of God we are mystified, in a sense, and cannot fully fathom or grasp who or what God really is. We take other people’s opinions and accounts of God as truth and reality, when in fact most of what we initially experience is hear-say and second hand evidence of God’s existence.
Then, when we are set free and can truly gaze on the events at hand for ourselves we begin to develop our own opinions and thoughts about religion. We begin to think and analyze on our own. This is when our true relationship with God begins. The truth may be painful and difficult to grasp at times, but ultimately if we stick it out and discover God on our own we are said to have a more fulfilling relationship with him.
Similarly The Allegory is related to the developmental cycle of a child. We are under the control of our parents and take explanations of reality from them as absolute truth. When we progress through our schooling we are taught to judge and question the world around us. I can remember going off to college during my freshman year, then visiting home again and my mother noticing that I had developed some ideas about the world that definitely did not originate from her. I simply needed to look on the world with my own eyes and see for myself.
The enlightening process was not an easy one, but I am confident that I am a better and more well-adjusted adult because of my experiences.

Jacob Luedecke's Comment Archive

  1. Jacob Luedecke on God is Dead
    10:56 pm, 02.21.11

    I’m not sure that Nietzsche intended for his words to be taken so literally or to mean that he wished or desired God to be “dead”. I agree that the church had, at the time, taken a predominantly secular approach and Nietzsche was merely providing a social commentary on the events of the time. I do agree with the idea of perspectivism. We, as humans, are incapable of fully seeing ideas or events from other’s points of view simply because we are not someone else. We look at the world through our own eyes and do our best to sympathize and empathize with others even in spite of our limited capacity to expand our thoughts.

  2. Jacob Luedecke on Goethe’s Growing Goal
    10:49 pm, 02.21.11

    I love the quote used about ignorance. This says volumes about our society today. As humans we should constantly strive for personal growth and not become stagnant pond scum in the great sea of life. We should inherently seek out the best for our lives and, in turn, make the world around us a better place.

  3. Jacob Luedecke on Jean Jacques Rousseau says what?
    10:39 pm, 02.21.11

    I don’t think babies are inherently evil, but I would agree that they are indeed selfish. Think for a moment: when a baby wants something it cries. Most babies would not sit contently and allow their needs to go unmet. They require constant attention due to their, for lack of a better word, neediness. We all have needs regardless of our state or position on the great totem pole of life. They are not evil, but most definitely selfish.

  4. Jacob Luedecke on Rousseau & Education
    10:19 pm, 02.21.11

    Very similarly lies the idea that people with mental illness should not trust their natural instincts or impulses. If an individual truly desires to make the voices in their head stop, then, in Rousseau’s eyes they should not go against their instinct, how can we trust our senses?

    On a different plane is the idea of colorblindness. When one is colorblind their interpretation of reality is shifted so much that they require the assistance of others to help distinguish colors. Should they trust their instincts and impulses? Absolutely not.

  5. Jacob Luedecke on Reason and Bones
    8:11 pm, 02.02.11

    I would like to think that I am more of a rationalist more than anything else. I do hold to the belief that emotions misguide our thoughts and ultimately hold us back from our true potential. I find it increasingly more and more difficult to continue to live in a world filled with emotional motives and skewed logic, but not everything can be cut and dry I suppose. That’s just part of life I find difficult to accept.

  6. Jacob Luedecke on Allegory of the Cave (Parental Version)
    8:06 pm, 02.02.11

    It must be difficult to have raised children with the best of intentions and the best morals only to see them stumble and fall along the way, but that is essentially what life is, right? We learn through a series of trials and errors and ultimately come out on the other side scarred and bruised and wiser because of it. Experience is the true root of knowledge; I don’t imagine that makes it any easier to watch your kids make mistakes though.

  7. Jacob Luedecke on The Happy Life
    8:02 pm, 02.02.11

    I loved what you had to say about happiness being free from physical pain and mental anxiety. I could also not agree more with your statement about your attitude and outlook on life changing during times of stress and turmoil. If we as a people learned how to regulate our stress in more beneficial and effective ways there is no limit to the amount of happiness that awaits us.

  8. Jacob Luedecke on Plato and Aristotle: The Relationship of Teacher and Student
    7:58 pm, 02.02.11

    I completely agree with you. Plato once said “The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.” This could not be more true in our day and age. In a time where conformity to societal standards buys you a get out of jail free card and a key to the city outspoken beliefs are not exactly readily accepted. Even at a University that prides itself in speaking up for what you believe there are some severe limitations and glass ceilings that prevent free thought.