To the Reader
February 10th 2008 03:10
:
To the Reader
What a downfall, when you bear in mind, by some radical obsession, that man exists, that he is what he is - and that he cannot be otherwise. But what he is a thousand definitions expose and none compels recognition: the more arbitrary they are, the more valid they seem. The airiest absurdity and the weightiest banality are equally appropriate. The infinity of his attributes composes the most imprecise being we can conceive. Whereas the animals proceed directly to their goal, man loses himself in detours; he is the indirect animal par excellence.
Source: E.M. Cioran - A Short History of Decay.
Arcade Publishing, New York
The French/Rumanian writer/philosopher Emile Cioran has fascinated me ever since I was introduced to his work and world when I bought his 1954 book of aphorisms Bitter Syllogisms. Cioran dissects the human mind and traces our human actions back to our hidden agenda like few other 20th century thinkers have been able to do. Highly controversial, mainly for his - too often mentioned - pessimism, Cioran remains an enigma more than ten years after his death in 1995 and I am very happy to dedicate a lot of my time to this enigma by diving into his work again and again.
I consider A Short History of Decay his main work, the source that brought forth all his other works.
After he had said everything he wanted to say, the only thing he could do was repeat himself with other words, wrote French philosopher Bernard-Henry Levy after Cioran died, and I full agree with those words.
His whole life Cioran was looking for the ultimate void, his version of the Nirvana, reason why he was fascinated by Buddhism, even though he always stated that his life and lifestyle could never have made him into a good and genuine Buddhist.
I have used these words from Cioran as the title for my blog, because I am fascinated by the human mind, especially by its detours, as Cioran very rightly calls it.
As I am fascinated by philosophy, poetry, novels, stories, journalism, politics and current affairs (especially the growing influence of a stifling political correctness), I will write about all these matters when I feel like it, when I think there is a need to highlight some nonsense, when I want to vent my annoyance with yet another example of the worldwide follies of political correctness or when I simply want to share my love for a poem or paragraph from a philosophical work or a beautiful story or novel.
I hope to see you back on this web log. For travel tips on Sydney (my present residence), Amsterdam (my former residence) or any other interesting place I have visited, please see my soon to start travel blog.
The Clog from Oz
Source: E.M. Cioran - A Short History of Decay.
Arcade Publishing, New York
The French/Rumanian writer/philosopher Emile Cioran has fascinated me ever since I was introduced to his work and world when I bought his 1954 book of aphorisms Bitter Syllogisms. Cioran dissects the human mind and traces our human actions back to our hidden agenda like few other 20th century thinkers have been able to do. Highly controversial, mainly for his - too often mentioned - pessimism, Cioran remains an enigma more than ten years after his death in 1995 and I am very happy to dedicate a lot of my time to this enigma by diving into his work again and again.
I consider A Short History of Decay his main work, the source that brought forth all his other works.
After he had said everything he wanted to say, the only thing he could do was repeat himself with other words, wrote French philosopher Bernard-Henry Levy after Cioran died, and I full agree with those words.
His whole life Cioran was looking for the ultimate void, his version of the Nirvana, reason why he was fascinated by Buddhism, even though he always stated that his life and lifestyle could never have made him into a good and genuine Buddhist.
I have used these words from Cioran as the title for my blog, because I am fascinated by the human mind, especially by its detours, as Cioran very rightly calls it.
As I am fascinated by philosophy, poetry, novels, stories, journalism, politics and current affairs (especially the growing influence of a stifling political correctness), I will write about all these matters when I feel like it, when I think there is a need to highlight some nonsense, when I want to vent my annoyance with yet another example of the worldwide follies of political correctness or when I simply want to share my love for a poem or paragraph from a philosophical work or a beautiful story or novel.
I hope to see you back on this web log. For travel tips on Sydney (my present residence), Amsterdam (my former residence) or any other interesting place I have visited, please see my soon to start travel blog.
The Clog from Oz
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