.jpg)
Immanuel Kant
This passage of reading was very enlightening so I decided to analyze it for this blog. I like Kant definition of enlightenment. What Is Enlightenment? "Enlightenment is man's release from his self-incurred tutelage" Norton 105). Enslaved by "guardian" who bestow “shackles of a permanent immaturity” inhibiting us from enlightenment as Kent states. I believe a person is enlightened when they come into their own way of thinking and is able to think and reason for themselves. Kant was talking about mankind remaining under a lifelong tutelage, but I don't think that's true in this day in time. The world and people has changed so much from 300 years ago until now. The things they use to do then has changed from the way we as mankind do things now. We may be encouraged or persuaded to do things, but in the end we are still left with a choice to do what we want to do. This is all I can come up with on this particular subject.
One thing that I think is cool about the Enlightenment is that although it was a long time ago, some of the complaints about society that they had, we still deal with to this day. One issue that jumped out immediately to me was the idea that the people who are in charge, are actively working against other people moving up and sharing their wealth and/or power. "That the step to competence is held to be very dangerous by the far greater portion of mankind...is seen to by those guardians who have so kindly assumed superintendence over them" (Kant 105). The passage goes on to describe how these "guardians of competence" keep people in fear by showing them the possible dangers of thinking for themselves, even though a few tries would suffice to grant them the knowledge or freedom they were searching for. This fear-mongering is a tactic used to this day by leaders of various groups, to keep their followers just scared enough to not ask too many questions, or have too many doubts.
ReplyDeleteI like what you had to say...I feel the world and the people have changed. I also feel in some ways we still let everyone else make decisions for us. I know there are people out there who can have a thought, make a decision, and stick with it. However, there are some people who love to have the input of others: can't make a decision if their life depended on it. I guess I'm somewhere in the middle myself. I like what Kant had to say, "It is so easy not to be of age...I need not trouble myself...others will readily undertake the irksome work for me" (Kant 105). How freaking true is that! I had to laugh, mainly because I spent half of my life letting others make my own decisions. I mean really, when I was younger I let others do the work for me...Now, I'm back and doing it myself. Kant went on to say that "...for by falling a few times they would finally learn to walk alone" (Kant 105). It's so hard to let people fall, but I think that is why God gave us our own free will. Only by falling do we learn to get up and stand again; and only by the grace of God are we allowed to stand again. Support is a wonderful thing: friends, family, prayer; none of this should be taken lightly.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me comment!