RE: The role of the teacher

Jim, you didn't have to write this here you just could have referred him to
the Heaven's Gate manual.

Daniel

No, there's nothing wrong with reading and not getting it. I don't
think anyone short of absolute genius or stricken with an insanity
empathetic to these ideas gets it the first two or three or five times
they read it. I've invested some time and effort in this and only get
part of it.

Here's what happens for most people approaching Derrida:

First, they read something like Diego's link and don't get it.

Then they read the primary texts and don't get them.

Then they go back and read something like Diego's link and get more of it.

Then they read the prior philosophy Derrida made reference to, and don't
get a good bit of that. But it's still necessary reading.

Then they go back and read Diego's link and get more of it.

Then they read Derrida and get about 1/3 of it.

Then they read more things like Diego's link and get more of it.

If they keep this up, over time, they'll keep getting more and more of
it. They may even come up with defensible, respectable readings of
Derrida that get a good bit of it.

I hardly expect anyone here to invest that kind of time unless it's
their field. Kudos to you for actually reading the whole page. If
you're really interested in understanding the ideas there (very hard
without having read Heidegger, at least), you might want to try asking
what one or two of the paragraphs refer to, specifically.

Even simple explanations like Diego's link don't make sense without some
reading. That's the real problem with this type of philosophy. It's so
completely foreign to the way we're used to thinking it almost takes
training to think differently before we can understand it. It's an
enterprise best suited for true masochists.

Jim

Scottie Bowman wrote:

> '... Still not holding my breath ...'
>
> Because we're all lazy goodfernuttins? Or just invincibly stupid?
> Or because the material really isn't accessible to those without
> prior inclination & training in the subject?
>
> I DID try - but as you suggest, I might as well have been
> attempting a text in Sanskrit.
>
> Scottie B.
>
>

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Received on Wed Mar 12 11:11:14 2003