Eric Scheske

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Philosophy

Stream of Consciousness

Stream of Consciousness

William James' stream of consciousness addresses that fundamental fact of our mental world: thinking cannot be stopped. We "think" like we breathe. James' observation, says Jacques Barzunm "explains without moralizing what that wonderful self-observer Montaigne found as the chief mark of man: he is [diverse

‘Metaphysical Animals’ and ‘The Women Are Up to Something’: A Philosophy of Their Own

‘Metaphysical Animals’ and ‘The Women Are Up to Something’: A Philosophy of Their Own

From the Wall Street Journal

Jean-Paul Sartre: In Brief

Jean-Paul Sartre: In Brief

Sartre denied that we have any natural traits (i.e., essences, characteristics). Instead of such essences, Sartre said, we have existence, and that’s it. Our essences don’t really exist. At best, they have a secondary reality because we first exist, then select our essences. In his words: “[M]

Was Descartes Nuts?

Was Descartes Nuts?

The Cartesian view of the world adopts a stance normally found only in patients suffering from schizophrenia. Referring to a famous passage from the Meditations on First Philosophy in which Descartes describes looking out of his window and seeing what he knows to be people passing by as seeming to

Transmitting Philosophical Symbols

Transmitting Philosophical Symbols

In order to appreciate what the sage is saying, a person must have already had a parallel experience of some sort. After I was done writing the Russian monk piece last week, I pulled Sergius Bolshakoff’s Russian Mystics off the shelf. It’d been years since I read it,

We Need to Resist the World of Pure Action

We Need to Resist the World of Pure Action

Last week, Michael Osterholm went on the Joe Rogan Experience for the second time. Osterholm, some might recall, went on Rogan early in the pandemic. Later Rogan guests decried him as a “chicken little” who was just trying to hawk his book. Osterholm said things that turned out to be

Albert Camus Knew the Left Hemisphere was Missing Something Crucial

Albert Camus Knew the Left Hemisphere was Missing Something Crucial

He approached his philosophy of the absurd with the left hemisphere rationalist approach, but at least he recognized the rationalist's problem.

The Revolt Against Essence

The Revolt Against Essence

Getting to know the most popular philosophy of the 20th century

Don’t Crowd Me?

SenecaA few years ago, I went to the local high school’s first home football game, which, like most home openers, was well-attended. Afterward, I was exhausted. I mean, absolutely exhausted, like I had lead around my shoulders. I’d had a hard week at work, but the level of

Neil Young Never Hated the Man

Neil Young Never Hated the Man

He just hated THAT man