I'm generally a bit -1 on rigid taxonomies, but one categorisation I definitely wish books were better sorted into is "Is this book better or worse if I take it seriously while I'm reading it?"
-
Show this thread
-
I'm currently reading Finite and Infinite Games and I'd previously have assumed that the answer was "better" but literally everything in it is wrong and people seem to still get a lot out of it so I guess it must have been a "worse" after all.
7 replies 0 retweets 41 likesShow this thread -
Replying to @DRMacIver
I have thought seriously about writing a dissective denunciation of it. It uses a rhetorical trick to seduce unwary readers, and someone needs to warn.
7 replies 1 retweet 38 likes -
Replying to @Meaningness @DRMacIver
I’d love to read this. It’s been a while since I read it and I can’t remember many of the specifics, but I’ve always handwavily associated the idea of getting too engrossed in a finite game with what you might call an eternalistic stance toward purpose.
2 replies 0 retweets 14 likes -
Replying to @JakeOrthwein @DRMacIver
Yeah I think the appeal of the book is that he does vaguely wave at a bunch of phenomena that are important and neglected. But his explanations of each of them is totally wrong.
3 replies 0 retweets 18 likes -
It's one of the rare books I didn't finish. The dichotomies were often too squishy and levels of abstraction often didn't stack. You made my day with this. The book is adored by so many I respect that I've doubted my comprehension at times.
7 replies 0 retweets 18 likes -
Replying to @Grow_Wiser @Meaningness
This is a bit like saying Jurassic Park gets dinosaurs wrong. I think you guys are looking for praxis in a work of poiesis. Carse cannot be dissected like philosophy. He is best experienced as ecstatic poetry and paired with analytical writers on his themes (Arendt pairs well)
2 replies 0 retweets 9 likes -
Replying to @vgr @Meaningness
I am not objecting to it being a source of inspiration. I am objecting because people very much do treat it as a work of philosophy: it becomes a cited premise in logical arguments. Those who actually accept it as no more than a kind of spiritual sermon: may the zen be with you
1 reply 0 retweets 1 like -
Replying to @Grow_Wiser @vgr
Likewise, I think poetic scripture is fine per se. One has to ask “if I take this as poetic scripture, where does it point?” Some of what F&IG points toward (nebulosity, playfulness) I’m on board with.
1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes -
Replying to @Meaningness @vgr
GrowWiser Retweeted GrowWiser
Content-wise I think it has the potential to get people unstuck, but also the danger of undermining dev of competence and responsibility. Kind of what I was snarking at with https://twitter.com/Grow_Wiser/status/1329824706380267522 …
@vgr is a bit torn, but OK with this I think? Mediocrity in a mansion ftw?
GrowWiser added,
GrowWiser @Grow_WiserWhen I read stuff like this I hear: societal broke: Try to build competence and responsibility so we can make the world better. liberal woke: Try to make individuals feel better by putting them into experience machines. meaningness bespoke: Descend/ascend into pure solipsism. https://twitter.com/AskYatharth/status/1329165422684463106 …1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
Torn about what?
-
-
Replying to @vgr @Meaningness
Potentially undermining development of competence and responsibility.
1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes -
Replying to @Grow_Wiser @Meaningness
Ah yes, I’m not torn up about that. It’s not an important problem. Just the usual moral panic.
1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes - Show replies
New conversation -
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.