Part 1.
Dear George,
I hope you are keeping well old friend.
Well, I did say that I wanted to write to you about that matter we
discussed on Skype last week – that of using spare leisure time more
productively – as advised by Aristotle – if we wish to be as happy as possible
and live “the good or best kind of life possible”. Now there is a chap call A E
Taylor, who is a respected academic who has written this very interesting
little book called simply ‘ARISTOTLE’ – and he gives an easily read summary for
enthusiastic but slightly lazy people like me on Aristotle's main areas of
influence. One of these areas is “practical philosophy” – that of making either
ourselves and/or our communities better in some way.
Aristotle believes that the two are closely connected –
communities only being the sum of the parts i.e. individuals like us. We cannot
improve our communities until we improve ourselves in other words – well at
least according to Aristotle anyway.
One of the points of Aristotle I mention in my regular “practical
philosophy” talk is: Leisure
time as the best use of life –and not work for works sake…. I also quote from Taylor’s book as
follows:
[According to Aristotle…] ‘…
leisure time calls into play the very highest of our own capacities as
intelligent beings, and for that very reason the active living of it is
attended with the purest of all pleasures. In it, moreover, we enter at
intervals and for a little while, so far as the conditions of our mundane
existence allow, into the life which God enjoys through an unbroken eternity.
Thus we reach the curious paradox that while the life of contemplation is said
to be that of our truest self, it is also maintained that this highest and
happiest life is one which we live, not in respect of being human, but in
respect of having a divine something in us.
When we ask what this
life of contemplation includes, we see from references in the Politics that it
includes the genuinely aesthetic appreciation of good literature and music and
pictorial and plastic art, but there can be no doubt that what bulks most
largely in Aristotle's mind is the active pursuit of science for its own sake,
particularly of such studies as First Philosophy and Physics, which deal with
the fundamental structure of the universe. Aristotle thus definitely ends by
placing the life of the scholar and the student on the very summit of
happiness…...’
Of course George, it does not have to be scientific studies that
give us the most pleasure – as Taylor believes is what pleases Aristotle most;
it can be all manner of artistic, musical, or practical things; some people
love gardening, fishing, walking, reading, acting or whatever George . The
point is – it’s no good having lots of leisure time if we are not going to
enjoy that time – and feel fed up and bored all the time - and wish we had
something to do.
Looking forward to our next Skype.
James.
Part 2
Hi George,
I just wanted to add 3 or 4 short paragraphs to that previous note
I sent you on Aristotle and using leisure time better – hopefully without
repeating myself too much. Be sure George – that while it may appear that I am
giving you advice here – it is much more accurate to say that by articulating
these important “essences” of philosophers like Aristotle to you – it is
helping me to clarify them myself and then keep them fresh in my own mind as
well.
Well this ancient
Greek idea of ARETE – is basically about developing VIRTUE and EXCELLENCE in
various aspects of our life – and in particular during that aspect of life over
which we have most control LEISURE; which as mentioned above is what Aristotle sees
as the most important part of life. We should work to live he believes – and
not live to work. I wonder what Angela Merkel would have to say about that
:)
However, if we are
not going to waste our leisure time – and use it productively and indeed wisely
– and in time use it with virtue and excellence – then we need a way of
measuring it and assessing how we are doing in the process. Now to review how
we are doing in “specific” areas of our leisure and spare time (as opposed to
that part of the week/month we obliged to earn a living) it is helpful to have
a “doable” measurable list of 'specific' items you would like to achieve by say
a certain date – e.g. “within the next 3 or 6 or 12 months”.
A very practical and easy example might be the moderate fun
marathon runner who wants to knock 20 minutes off his time; or old James going
to the gym who wants to lose 6 kilos in 3 months and wants to up the weights by
10% in the same time frame. All are easily “doable” with just a little routine
and minimum extra effort – providing we can up the self-discipline a bit. I
have chosen physical examples – but I can add intellectual activities to my
list as well – e.g. read a minimum of 6 books a year – try to write a short
blog post every month to each of my two blogs, attend four good lectures in a
year, see one good play and a concert every 6 months.
Now the important
thing about my example “TARGETS” above – is that they all reflect MILD
IMPROVEMENT (i.e. are all very doable) – and I can accurately assess my targets
– since they are clear, specific and measurable.
The tiny extra bit
of self-discipline required might be more easily improved if I see the whole
process as a “sacred” or at least “spiritual and philosophical” endeavour.
Socrates advises
us to KNOW THYSELF – and after we get some way towards this we must then try of
course to BE OURSELF – or the person we at least think we are or ought to be.
This is often not easy at all at first – especially with the outside pressures
of the modern consumerist world requiring our time and physical plus mental
energies . We most likely will get things wrong for some periods of time. But
after a while we will start to get better at it – this excellent way of living
which gives us ARETE and feelings of happiness and well being. (Greek:
Eudaimonia) We begin to see the results of our efforts.
Then comes the last challenge in this area - of keeping it all
going – which is made easier with sensible and moderate targets in the first
place. (e.g. How many people loose 10 kilos at the gym one year - simply to put
it all back on again the following year.... ) Aristotle says we
want to achieve a “settled” condition of character and soul – where we are not
“trying” too hard after a while – it all becomes natural and just the way we
are. That is; we will actually start to be our self on a sustained and
effortless basis – which is all part of living with virtue and excellence.
In short we have
to stop faffing about at things and wasting time – and especially leisure time.
We need to get on with what we have to do for a few hours a day – or days per
week – and then stop worrying about them and do something we enjoy doing – and
then try to do it well - or a little bit better.
I guess that this
is basically the “essence” of what Aristotle is on about when it comes to ARETE
and living with VIRTUE and EXCELLENCE. I will take a more formal look at the
four virtues of Aristotle another time – but it is the “essence” of the matter
that is the most important think to grasp…..
James.
Note:
For a more formal look at Virtue and Excellence and how this plays
on the psyche and soul in Socratic and Platonic philosophy see the post on my
other blog at:
The Three Powers of the Psyche (Soul) and their Virtue
