Despite my 40 years, your videos have enriched my perspective in general. You seem wise beyond your age, and I think you'll do exceedingly well in all of your chosen endeavors.
@@PandarTheGreat233 his age does matter, through the amount of years hes been on this earth his perspective of things demonstrate how hes spent his time on things to help grow his understanding and depth of learning
@@erik-sr9bj @AhmedFiasco lets make a group cause there is no possible way that you will be able to find people of same mindset just around you 8 billion ans only few wants to grow.
You’re got a lot more grit than most people in your age demographic, me including (I’m turning 20, this July!). To be able to think these things and have these opinions and notions are somewhat quite relatable to people like me, but the ways in which you’ve expressed them are definitely beyond your years. I have just started college in March and then had to study online, due to the pandemic, but I can definitely agree that education is so important. Our perspectives will continue to change because of the experiences we live out in life, and whether ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ or desirable/not, make us who we are and who we will become. Keep all this up :D Subscribed!
It’s so interesting to hear someone talk about going into college exactly 1 year after graduating with a Comparative literature BA! I was definitely a very academically inclined teenager, though I’ve always had trouble with reading due to adhd and information processing issues. I’ve always been a good reader, high reading level, tracked into honours and AP, very good at writing (Better than with speaking) etc. So of course I went to college planning to double major in both neuroscience and English lit. I ended up studying comparative literature and education instead due to health (mental and physical) and money issues getting in the way. I definitely did not have the usual college experience : never partied, or went out, or drank or even made that many friends. I was working all the time, I needed a job to stay in school and that job was actually pretty life changing! I was a reading mentor for a literacy development program : we went to urban elementary schools and tutored kids with low reading levels. By low I mean 5th graders who read at 1-2 grade levels, many kids also didn’t know English yet. My minor in Ed was an interesting juxtaposition to hardcore liberal arts studies because it made me realise some terrible things about academia and the reality of the education system as a whole. There is a lot of elitism in academia and many narratives are lost because someone was not able to write them down or study at a university, especially the histories of non European people! I also learned that getting to study literature was an incredibly privileged thing! I find a lot of value in studying literature and arts, but I would be a liar if I didn’t say that I sometimes feel like I wasted my time :’) Mostly because I became more sensitive to injustices in education and how we OVER value academic education. Many times the best way to experience life is to live life! There are experiences you cannot get from books, like getting to meet kids and their families, the sacrifices and struggles. I’m the first in my family to go to uni and graduate and from a community where all my friend were in the same place. Most of the knowledge that was passed on to me came from real people in real situations, and I never partied or drank in college ;) I always think about going back to uni to get a masters or PhD in literature since I miss getting to read and discuss lit, but my heart pulled me in another direction and I’m getting a Master’s in teaching, so I can become an elementary or middle school teacher, hopefully a middle school English teacher! I was put off from how exclusionary hard core academia is and how we learn more times from actually being in communities and learning from each other. Also my interests sort of gravitated more towards social justice than just the study of literature. I feel like we need less elitism in academia and more incorporating the narratives and experiences of people who would otherwise be silenced, especially people of color. That’s one thing I learned in my ed classes : studying something as an academic is different from living those experiences. I can read about Cuba during Castro’s regime in books about Cuba, but they will pale in comparison to my dad telling me about his time in the army cutting down sugar cane and escaping to the US on a sinking fishing boat. Just like we can research how kids in poor communities cannot read well but we never experience the things kids are learning orally from their families, elders, communities and lived experiences. Reading is important but not accessible to everyone. I think a lot about older people in my family and the things they’ve taught me and some never learned how to read! And the kids I taught who had dyslexia, or English wasn’t their first language and how brilliant they still were. We need to start putting more value into knowledge that comes from outside college studies and how important those experiences are! Literary and philosophy studies are still incredibly important though and I think we definitely need to put more effort and money into humanities studies than we already do! There is so much beauty and importance in reading and studying literature- and literature includes films, visual art, poetry, music and oral histories! During Comp lit studies we really got delve deep into more mediums than just written literature. All important to study and to include who we can in the hopes that better understanding of experiences can help us shape the world we live in. So I wish you lots of luck in your literature studies! I’m so excited for you and the things you will learn! But don’t be scared to live a little and learn a little from the real world too ;) and stay critical about the education system itself and how academics can work towards being more inclusive of all narratives! Think about what is being left out as much as what you are learning. Like you said, thinking critically! The wonderful thing about literature students is the ability to listen to other’s narratives! Which is why I still feel like it is so important even if the system itself is flawed. So, Go forth and do wonderful things! 🙌
I highly recommend to take a Communications class in college. I did it out of necessity of a credit and wasn't expecting to learn so much about myself in that class, Its so useful and eyeopening and i think it will help aide anyone looking to go down this intellectual journey in not only being able to give out a message to someone but we were also taught about body language, cultural languages, and most importantly how to Receive a message from another . 10/10 Recommend.
Although your field of study might be a minority, what you talk about is relevant to every single field of study. What you teach us are the essentials for not only school but life. Thanks man.
I'm 28 years old and the ideas you are talking about with changing how see thing and having a different perspective is something I started thinking about until the last couple of months. I realized that I have never had an independent thought in my life until all this stuff with the pandemic, (which I won't get into). When I was still in college towards the end I was just getting into moral philosophy. This video is proof that you can start a journey at whatever point in life.
This is /brilliant/! This is a kind of wisdom that most young people (myself included) would never have gained at your age. I also appreciate the way that you take stands on avoiding harmful things in your life that may be "popular" but the way you have an intelligent and intentional reason behind those decisions, because if other people look down on those decisions, having an intelligent and wise reason behind them gives you security against their judgement, if that makes sense? Sometimes we do the right thing without thinking on a deeper level about our reasoning for that thing.
On your point to actions and consequences I usually try to explain it to people as deviations from point of origin. In that moment of time and space, you can't see the difference of the paths from the decision and consequence, but expand the line (or path) out in time and space (say 5 years) and the points on those lines are a vast distance apart. Thanks for the vid R.C. Waldun. I'm impressed by your maturity and conclusions you've come to this early in your life.
I agree with your point that people need a critical thinking faculty. However, I believe this can be attained in multiple ways, and not just through reading books. One example of how critical thinking could be achieved is through listening to long video essays. Although video analyses are riddled with bias and other people's interpretations, there is still merit! It can really help create foundations for people to base their ideas on if they just don't know where to start. When I watch video essays about my favorite philosophers and other people's interpretations of them, it reveals a lot of insight to me that I might have passed over if I read it. Why should we privilege one form of media over the other? Doesn't the act of listening to a video still contain the same amount of significance and validity as the act of reading a book?
Ya but reading books are considered more meritorious than listening. Like large chunk of people could acces and interpret information by seeing images, few people can do it by listening and further few while reading coz it requires more skills to actually comprehend each and every word and then attribute a sense of meaning to it
could you make a video comprising a list of books youve read and how do you get to know which to read now and the nexts? how and when did you start your intellectual journey?
I'm 62 and have always been a reader. I went to community college for 2 years but never got my degree. I'm not saying that's good. I'm not saying it's bad. I was lower working class, had to pay my own tuition, and lived at home in the rural farming community I grew up in, about 10 or 15 miles away. I had to drive the old junker my Dad gave me, that was constantly breaking down. I love the liberal arts, but majoring in them would've been an extravagance I couldn't afford, in the eyes of my class and culture. I read philosophy, literature, pop fiction, some science, anything that will give me insight into what I call "my well-being", a thing I have yet to define in any clear or simple way. I'm drawn to Existentialism, not as an academic subject to be understood "correctly", but as a constellation of ideas and perspectives that explore the inner person and his relation to his world. Three of my favorite authors are Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, and Peter Straub. I don't just read. I think. I ponder. Many, I'm sure, believe I think too much. But I'll think as much as I want. I may be wrong, but I don't think much of what you're say will resonate with people your age. I'm not trying to flatter you, just stating frankly, that "you're rare". I don't suppose you even want to be. The life of the outlier is hard. Good luck to you on your learning journey. I'm not going to tell you it'll be easy. But I think it'll yield great rewards. I'm still on my mine. I still have a lot to learn.
Simple but very on-point perspective, and eloquently delivered. I wish more young people (and older generation as well) were as excited as this guy about learning and education.
"literature is a virtual reality machine... you are accessing other people's experiences, you are accessing experiences beyond yourself, which is hard to get."
I know this is a very serious and thoughtful video. I'm new to this channel, and even with all this great advice, I just cannot get over the fact that you said "Doing alcohol."
I love your ideas about literature and philosophy and strongly agree with what you say about our society. I am a high school student from China and am really interested in stuff like literature, philosophy or current events as well. I think it would be even better if you can make your videos or ideas into a podcast so that people can listen to it whenever they want to and your voice is really nice to listen as well.
For many it is different I realized everything is connected when I was in 6th grade. I learned what is worth it and what isn't. I was never addicted to anything I played videogames but I can easily let them go for months and not be worried about it. I learned to say no to things that would only harm me. I'm a sophomore now in college I learned to balanced everything in life at a young age and has helped me in the long run. I don't know how I learned it I spent most of the time thinking and just observing people. I recently started to reading alot more and it has helped me more.
Ive been watching a lot of your videos. You’re a very impressive young man. As much as I appreciate your passion and perspective, I am equally surprised by how early in life you’ve found it. Judging by the path you seem to be on I’d say you’re going to have a rich and beautiful life. Thanks for sharing some of it with all of us. Take care, and keep it up 👍
I was too busy studying, remodeling my home, and working to have any wild college time. I felt my responsibilities were too many to make poor choices. I am 40 and don't regret it. I now love my reading time with an occasional cognac in the evening. My father would often sit and talk with us about life, choices, and consequences and we felt it truly guided us in the right direction to have a full, enjoyable life.
whoever this guy is.... he cannot fail, he will be a boon to any organisation, to any family, to any social group...what a fantastic USEFUL person to know....very interesting and he is probably only about 23 years old....what happens when he is about 45 and even better read ? He could take on the world.
I definitely admire your view on life and university, however I wouldn’t write-off certain aspects of life just yet. You’re so young, sometimes it’s just timing. Keep up the good work!
I really really wanted to study natural sciences esp. Physics. But I always read a lot of great Philosophers and their works. However Philosophy is such an enormous field of study that just blew my f*ckin head off on how rich and also diverse the field is. There's also a lot of great writers that I really admired e.g. Is Goethe. And I could never not read that before I die. So I figured it out and settled down by studying Philosophy as the most center of my interest; read Physics and history of ideas and just contributed to Philosophy of physics. Learn logic and mathematics because they really compliments each other. And chug it down all by great literatures and OED. And also paint and draw biology and anatomy to show appreciation with both arts and life sciences. I'm also quite invested in social sciences esp. Psychology since its also compliments Phenomenology and Philosophy of mind. And I also love Linguistics complimented by Philosophy of language, I really think it will revolutionize Philosophy as a whole because Philosophy mostly depends on language.
High school for me was a dead loss. I failed all my exams, largely because I didn’t know how to study. I then went to technical college where the lecturers were excellent. The light switched on and I won a place at university, where I sailed through and stayed on to do a PhD. I’ve changed careers many times because I have an innate curiosity. Yes I did all the crazy things-drinking, womanizing, etc, but I always knew when to stop.
Education is important, but often people focus too myopically on formal education. Informal education is life changing also. The growth one can do on one’s own by following their interests is valid also. I know you mentioned the importance of a liberal education, and you might not have meant any political leanings in that comment, but universities have become very closed off from diverse conversations and debate. It the west universities tend to be far left or alt-liberal. Many universities do not teach or encourage critical thinking, and shame students for respectfully expressing different views . I still believe education is such a privilege, but one must be mindful of what they will find there. Great video. I hope your post secondary experience is wonderful.
I fully agree with your point on self-education-academic studying of much the same stuff one studies in college done on one's own-so long as it's legal to do so. Law, medicine, and engineering require training in college and that's a good thing. But it's fine for a learner to read the kinds of literary texts a literature major would read for fun, to improve themselves.
i really want to study literature in university, but i worry about how i will make money afterwards... so i am thinkin about goin study medicine instead. i love your videos
Yes ~ there are 2 states of Consciousness ~ Mindfulness & Mindlessness & 2 Methods of Inquiry ~ Self Deception or Self Enlightenment *Both can be pursued to negative or positive ends* The Dilemma is ultimately Spiritual in nature.
I like the take, but everything is good in moderation. Partying, drinking, etc. they are just different types of socializing, you don't have to do it but it wouldn't be fair to just brand it as bad. For me, its okay to make mistakes on purpose because we have made societal rules on what is good and what is bad. Everything in moderation. Its bad to go too far into the wild or too far into the sophisticated. its important to learn, but it is also important to live.
That's why I value feminism and philosophy, it 'transforms' you. It's able to turn you unlimitedly and completely in ways no other subjects can, I think.
I recommend Allan Bloom The Closing of The American Mind; Melville's classic Moby Dick; and the premier novel of the last two hundred years, The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky. And Pollock's Spinoza before The Ethic. College should hone a mind to a razor's edge, a student should read across a wide liberal curriculum, to prepare for life. Take the most difficult courses under the most demanding instruction. Drink, sip, gulp the smoke from the scholar's lamp. Feast upon all that life offers the mind. Pax vobiscum.
I like to reflect on people's nature rather than their actions. Blunders are blunders because they are outside the nature of the person committing them. Therefore we learn because we stepped outside. The people who took drugs and then went back to a reasonable life learned, hopefully without too much cost. But then there are those who have such actions in their nature. They keep making blunders because blunders are their nature. It's very hard to change your nature. The philosophers need to determine whether it's even possible.
It depends, and I like to see it as a progression. Start with inspectional reading for a broad overview, then use analytical reading to tackle parts of the book you find relevant and eventually map out your thinking with syntopical reading.
People are like fire, we have the need of consumption. Call it filling a hole, or simply having the need to put meaning into existence, but we all got that thing. Some people consume religion, some consume books, some consume experiences like travelling, and some end up falling into their addictions through that plus genetic predisposition. People have different ways of satisfyingly their need for consumption, but just because we have different ways of doing it, it doesn’t make the consequences of those ways comparable. An addiction isn’t a way to fill the hole in people’s souls, it’s a disorder, an illness, and it’s often discovered through this act of trying to find something that satisfies our need of consuming. You can’t (you can, but that’s getting out of track) compare an addiction to the simple need of finding a purposeful activity like studying. One is fulfilling, the other is a consequence of the process of discovery of those fulfilling activities.
Smart people learn from their own mistakes. Wise people learn from others mistakes. Let's just say I wasn't wise at 20ish and I can't even say "at least I made it with all my appendages attached"...
there has been a few book that changed my opinion drastically to the point of making me feel weird when walking in the wild. You grow to live with it. Just something that happens.
So... learning and challenging yourself through philosophy and literature keeps you on track of your life? Was that what you were trying to say or do I got it wrong? 😁
@@RCWaldun ¡Yo! Yesterday I was reading Marco Aurelio's Meditations and in the second book I found something quite interesting. Its a bit extense for writing it here so Ill try to resume it. ... The body and its parts are a river, the soul a dream and mist, life is warfare and a journey far from home, lasting reputation is oblivion. Then what can guide us? Only philosophy. ... This I extract from the second book when he talks about human life (point 17).
the trouble with humanities is there are literally endless things you can research and learn about. but the trouble is not many lead to a well paying job.
As long as it's not Rousseau or any men trying to come up with the utopical idea of "perfect society" (John Lennon teachers) or "equality of classes". That's a good book. It may look good, but it's not. Hope students don't be brainwashed. [Edit] Those idealistic guys, btw, are the ones our schools tend to portrait as geniuses. Since elementary you gotta know "the man thinks, then he exists", when even I fool could tell the existence of any being comes first, and the idea of existence independs of it. I admire Platos, the one modernist like Nietzsche hates. It's really hard to read those books, when you start to realize what they actually meant, and how it turned out to be when some societies followed some of their "tips" of how to be "illuminated society".
Hey! Can you mention your mbti type sometime? I guess you are an INTJ or INTP. It's just that I derive pleasure from talking and reading about mbti types 🙃
I think you have a lot of interesting thoughts, however I didn't so much appreciate your comparison between alcohol and 'getting high' to speeding and getting arrested. There's a very big gap between enjoying yourself and ruining your life or doing 'stupid stuff'. A lot of people can function normally and still enjoy themselves. You mentioned that you quit playing video games, which I think was a mistake. Just because you're involved in such a mentally demanding field doesn't mean you have to substitute other things in your life. Unless you want to, which is also fine. Of course, education matters. But it shouldn't be so intense that it makes you forfeit other enjoyable things in your life.
Anybody who has connected the dots form history to our present situation in this society should be doing more drugs and drinking more alcohol ,not less. Until of course you don't need it anymore , then you sit down to write your first novel.
... you’re kidding me I thought you were in your mid 20s for being able to say all these profound stuff turns out YOU’RE EVEN YOUNGER THAN I AM? Especially how you mentioned treating some books like university material-
Although... I guess, your age is showing on this video. It’s not a bad thing (at least I don’t think). It’s good that you’re getting to the point where you realize how little you know and you’re doing your best to fill in the gaps you identify, but I can’t help but worry as someone who’s been-there-done-that how you might be disappointed about the things being taught and prioritized in college, as well as your more nebulous feelings about things. I’ve learned the hard way that having cold feet, being uncertain, and not being able to cast judgement can leave you late to the party. Perceived apathy and indecisiveness - at least in regards to social justice - is not “neutral”, it is siding with status quo, with a system that ensures violence and exploitation. It is allowing whoever is in power to do what they want. I don’t like being cornered into those snap decisions and I hesitate to make verdicts, but I also can’t not acknowledge that my lack of urgency could be costing people their lives. Then there’s all the talk about how much privilege I have to be able to dawdle on these thoughts, how my birth granted me the fortune to be allowed to think of these things in abstract. I guess my point is, be careful to keep your feet firmly planted on the ground. Never forget the real world context of which you are considering these ideals because the context could show you how ideals can be twisted and used against people. Philosophers and intellectuals run the risk of being stuck in their ivory towers and not considering the cold, hard reality of the implications of their ideas. This is part of what they mean when they say it isn’t “practical”. I don’t wish for you to fall into that trap. Books and education are wonderful for finding tidbits about the humanity and the world, but they don’t reveal to you the full reality of the situation. You have to go out there and experience it, read about it from various news sources (as BLM has demonstrated, local news outlets can be selective and biased and there are some thing you wouldn’t know unless you delved into social media posts), and speak to the people who live it every day.
I feel as though this came across quite condescending? I listened to try to understand where you are coming from but to label alcohol/drugs/college experiences as hideous is quite closed-minded. Saying you were addicted to video games for 2 years is not comparable to lifelong addiction to other things. It felt like an anti-drug advertisement more than a video on education... it’s okay to indulge in these things, they’ve often aided me and many others with their writing/ideas. Correct me if I misunderstood.
There's a difference between indulgence and addiction. A close family member of mine was addicted to video games. As an addiction, it generally isn't taken as seriously as it should be, and it can be just as completely devastating as other addictions can be. There are cases of parents neglecting their children to the point of causing their deaths. I believe he's talking about addiction, not the average healthy person's choice to indulge.
I didn't see it as condescending, he seems to really value education, and he doesn't enjoy all the so called typical 'college experience'... Of course college is where most find themself, yet that is not the only point of college. he seems to be about academia, and he warns about distractions.
The argument is that being able to experience mistakes and their consequences by proxy is preferable to experiencing an actual job loss or deteriorating relationships. It certainly would be a hideous thing to be on the road to addiction and not be able to see it (i mean this sympathetically, it’s a terrible thing to be in that position). And ofc not everyone that drinks is on this road, drinking responsibly isn’t under criticism here
the more I know, the more I realize how this world, society, relationships, human nature works, the more miserable I become. Sometimes I think if it is worth it to educate myself more or just stay ignorant and be happy.
Despite my 40 years, your videos have enriched my perspective in general. You seem wise beyond your age, and I think you'll do exceedingly well in all of your chosen endeavors.
His age doesn't matter. As a self-proclaimed 80 years old, I don't like your comment.
@@PandarTheGreat233 his age does matter, through the amount of years hes been on this earth his perspective of things demonstrate how hes spent his time on things to help grow his understanding and depth of learning
I need friends with your mindset
Same ;(
@@erik-sr9bj @AhmedFiasco lets make a group cause there is no possible way that you will be able to find people of same mindset just around you 8 billion ans only few wants to grow.
I was awestruck when you said that books were a virtual reality! It blew my mind
You’re got a lot more grit than most people in your age demographic, me including (I’m turning 20, this July!). To be able to think these things and have these opinions and notions are somewhat quite relatable to people like me, but the ways in which you’ve expressed them are definitely beyond your years. I have just started college in March and then had to study online, due to the pandemic, but I can definitely agree that education is so important. Our perspectives will continue to change because of the experiences we live out in life, and whether ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ or desirable/not, make us who we are and who we will become. Keep all this up :D Subscribed!
It’s so interesting to hear someone talk about going into college exactly 1 year after graduating with a Comparative literature BA!
I was definitely a very academically inclined teenager, though I’ve always had trouble with reading due to adhd and information processing issues. I’ve always been a good reader, high reading level, tracked into honours and AP, very good at writing (Better than with speaking) etc. So of course I went to college planning to double major in both neuroscience and English lit. I ended up studying comparative literature and education instead due to health (mental and physical) and money issues getting in the way. I definitely did not have the usual college experience : never partied, or went out, or drank or even made that many friends. I was working all the time, I needed a job to stay in school and that job was actually pretty life changing!
I was a reading mentor for a literacy development program : we went to urban elementary schools and tutored kids with low reading levels. By low I mean 5th graders who read at 1-2 grade levels, many kids also didn’t know English yet. My minor in Ed was an interesting juxtaposition to hardcore liberal arts studies because it made me realise some terrible things about academia and the reality of the education system as a whole. There is a lot of elitism in academia and many narratives are lost because someone was not able to write them down or study at a university, especially the histories of non European people!
I also learned that getting to study literature was an incredibly privileged thing! I find a lot of value in studying literature and arts, but I would be a liar if I didn’t say that I sometimes feel like I wasted my time :’) Mostly because I became more sensitive to injustices in education and how we OVER value academic education. Many times the best way to experience life is to live life! There are experiences you cannot get from books, like getting to meet kids and their families, the sacrifices and struggles. I’m the first in my family to go to uni and graduate and from a community where all my friend were in the same place. Most of the knowledge that was passed on to me came from real people in real situations, and I never partied or drank in college ;)
I always think about going back to uni to get a masters or PhD in literature since I miss getting to read and discuss lit, but my heart pulled me in another direction and I’m getting a Master’s in teaching, so I can become an elementary or middle school teacher, hopefully a middle school English teacher! I was put off from how exclusionary hard core academia is and how we learn more times from actually being in communities and learning from each other. Also my interests sort of gravitated more towards social justice than just the study of literature.
I feel like we need less elitism in academia and more incorporating the narratives and experiences of people who would otherwise be silenced, especially people of color. That’s one thing I learned in my ed classes : studying something as an academic is different from living those experiences. I can read about Cuba during Castro’s regime in books about Cuba, but they will pale in comparison to my dad telling me about his time in the army cutting down sugar cane and escaping to the US on a sinking fishing boat. Just like we can research how kids in poor communities cannot read well but we never experience the things kids are learning orally from their families, elders, communities and lived experiences. Reading is important but not accessible to everyone. I think a lot about older people in my family and the things they’ve taught me and some never learned how to read! And the kids I taught who had dyslexia, or English wasn’t their first language and how brilliant they still were. We need to start putting more value into knowledge that comes from outside college studies and how important those experiences are!
Literary and philosophy studies are still incredibly important though and I think we definitely need to put more effort and money into humanities studies than we already do! There is so much beauty and importance in reading and studying literature- and literature includes films, visual art, poetry, music and oral histories! During Comp lit studies we really got delve deep into more mediums than just written literature. All important to study and to include who we can in the hopes that better understanding of experiences can help us shape the world we live in.
So I wish you lots of luck in your literature studies! I’m so excited for you and the things you will learn! But don’t be scared to live a little and learn a little from the real world too ;) and stay critical about the education system itself and how academics can work towards being more inclusive of all narratives! Think about what is being left out as much as what you are learning. Like you said, thinking critically! The wonderful thing about literature students is the ability to listen to other’s narratives! Which is why I still feel like it is so important even if the system itself is flawed.
So, Go forth and do wonderful things! 🙌
Such great insight! Thank you so much
👏🏼👏🏼
I highly recommend to take a Communications class in college. I did it out of necessity of a credit and wasn't expecting to learn so much about myself in that class, Its so useful and eyeopening and i think it will help aide anyone looking to go down this intellectual journey in not only being able to give out a message to someone but we were also taught about body language, cultural languages, and most importantly how to Receive a message from another . 10/10 Recommend.
Although your field of study might be a minority, what you talk about is relevant to every single field of study. What you teach us are the essentials for not only school but life. Thanks man.
I'm 28 years old and the ideas you are talking about with changing how see thing and having a different perspective is something I started thinking about until the last couple of months. I realized that I have never had an independent thought in my life until all this stuff with the pandemic, (which I won't get into). When I was still in college towards the end I was just getting into moral philosophy. This video is proof that you can start a journey at whatever point in life.
This is /brilliant/!
This is a kind of wisdom that most young people (myself included) would never have gained at your age.
I also appreciate the way that you take stands on avoiding harmful things in your life that may be "popular" but the way you have an intelligent and intentional reason behind those decisions, because if other people look down on those decisions, having an intelligent and wise reason behind them gives you security against their judgement, if that makes sense? Sometimes we do the right thing without thinking on a deeper level about our reasoning for that thing.
On your point to actions and consequences I usually try to explain it to people as deviations from point of origin. In that moment of time and space, you can't see the difference of the paths from the decision and consequence, but expand the line (or path) out in time and space (say 5 years) and the points on those lines are a vast distance apart. Thanks for the vid R.C. Waldun. I'm impressed by your maturity and conclusions you've come to this early in your life.
I agree with your point that people need a critical thinking faculty. However, I believe this can be attained in multiple ways, and not just through reading books. One example of how critical thinking could be achieved is through listening to long video essays. Although video analyses are riddled with bias and other people's interpretations, there is still merit! It can really help create foundations for people to base their ideas on if they just don't know where to start. When I watch video essays about my favorite philosophers and other people's interpretations of them, it reveals a lot of insight to me that I might have passed over if I read it. Why should we privilege one form of media over the other? Doesn't the act of listening to a video still contain the same amount of significance and validity as the act of reading a book?
Ya but reading books are considered more meritorious than listening.
Like large chunk of people could acces and interpret information by seeing images, few people can do it by listening and further few while reading coz it requires more skills to actually comprehend each and every word and then attribute a sense of meaning to it
I have an English and Philosophy BA . I love them both too! There is so much hidden treasure in them.
I love how youtube gives us the perspective of young people. Good work brutha
could you make a video comprising a list of books youve read and how do you get to know which to read now and the nexts? how and when did you start your intellectual journey?
I'm 62 and have always been a reader. I went to community college for 2 years but never got my degree. I'm not saying that's good. I'm not saying it's bad. I was lower working class, had to pay my own tuition, and lived at home in the rural farming community I grew up in, about 10 or 15 miles away. I had to drive the old junker my Dad gave me, that was constantly breaking down. I love the liberal arts, but majoring in them would've been an extravagance I couldn't afford, in the eyes of my class and culture.
I read philosophy, literature, pop fiction, some science, anything that will give me insight into what I call "my well-being", a thing I have yet to define in any clear or simple way. I'm drawn to Existentialism, not as an academic subject to be understood "correctly", but as a constellation of ideas and perspectives that explore the inner person and his relation to his world. Three of my favorite authors are Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, and Peter Straub. I don't just read. I think. I ponder. Many, I'm sure, believe I think too much. But I'll think as much as I want.
I may be wrong, but I don't think much of what you're say will resonate with people your age. I'm not trying to flatter you, just stating frankly, that "you're rare". I don't suppose you even want to be. The life of the outlier is hard. Good luck to you on your learning journey. I'm not going to tell you it'll be easy. But I think it'll yield great rewards. I'm still on my mine. I still have a lot to learn.
Simple but very on-point perspective, and eloquently delivered. I wish more young people (and older generation as well) were as excited as this guy about learning and education.
I just adore the way that you speak with passion and the way you talk about topics that matter to you.
"literature is a virtual reality machine... you are accessing other people's experiences, you are accessing experiences beyond yourself, which is hard to get."
I know this is a very serious and thoughtful video. I'm new to this channel, and even with all this great advice, I just cannot get over the fact that you said "Doing alcohol."
I'm secretly a 50 year old stiff-up-the-lip grumpy man.
I love your ideas about literature and philosophy and strongly agree with what you say about our society. I am a high school student from China and am really interested in stuff like literature, philosophy or current events as well. I think it would be even better if you can make your videos or ideas into a podcast so that people can listen to it whenever they want to and your voice is really nice to listen as well.
For many it is different I realized everything is connected when I was in 6th grade. I learned what is worth it and what isn't. I was never addicted to anything I played videogames but I can easily let them go for months and not be worried about it. I learned to say no to things that would only harm me. I'm a sophomore now in college I learned to balanced everything in life at a young age and has helped me in the long run. I don't know how I learned it I spent most of the time thinking and just observing people. I recently started to reading alot more and it has helped me more.
Ive been watching a lot of your videos. You’re a very impressive young man. As much as I appreciate your passion and perspective, I am equally surprised by how early in life you’ve found it. Judging by the path you seem to be on I’d say you’re going to have a rich and beautiful life. Thanks for sharing some of it with all of us. Take care, and keep it up 👍
Love your stuff but...
I was very addicted to video games,
From 12 years old to,
Em - 14 years old xD.
It's not a phase mom.
@@RCWaldun haha
I admire your dedication!
I was too busy studying, remodeling my home, and working to have any wild college time. I felt my responsibilities were too many to make poor choices. I am 40 and don't regret it. I now love my reading time with an occasional cognac in the evening. My father would often sit and talk with us about life, choices, and consequences and we felt it truly guided us in the right direction to have a full, enjoyable life.
whoever this guy is.... he cannot fail, he will be a boon to any organisation, to any family, to any social group...what a fantastic USEFUL person to know....very interesting and he is probably only about 23 years old....what happens when he is about 45 and even better read ? He could take on the world.
Please get off your knees
I definitely admire your view on life and university, however I wouldn’t write-off certain aspects of life just yet. You’re so young, sometimes it’s just timing. Keep up the good work!
You're so young yet reading some incredibly difficult, though imperative, books.
I really really wanted to study natural sciences esp. Physics. But I always read a lot of great Philosophers and their works. However Philosophy is such an enormous field of study that just blew my f*ckin head off on how rich and also diverse the field is. There's also a lot of great writers that I really admired e.g. Is Goethe. And I could never not read that before I die. So I figured it out and settled down by studying Philosophy as the most center of my interest; read Physics and history of ideas and just contributed to Philosophy of physics. Learn logic and mathematics because they really compliments each other. And chug it down all by great literatures and OED. And also paint and draw biology and anatomy to show appreciation with both arts and life sciences.
I'm also quite invested in social sciences esp. Psychology since its also compliments Phenomenology and Philosophy of mind. And I also love Linguistics complimented by Philosophy of language, I really think it will revolutionize Philosophy as a whole because Philosophy mostly depends on language.
High school for me was a dead loss. I failed all my exams, largely because I didn’t know how to study. I then went to technical college where the lecturers were excellent. The light switched on and I won a place at university, where I sailed through and stayed on to do a PhD. I’ve changed careers many times because I have an innate curiosity. Yes I did all the crazy things-drinking, womanizing, etc, but I always knew when to stop.
Education is important, but often people focus too myopically on formal education. Informal education is life changing also. The growth one can do on one’s own by following their interests is valid also. I know you mentioned the importance of a liberal education, and you might not have meant any political leanings in that comment, but universities have become very closed off from diverse conversations and debate. It the west universities tend to be far left or alt-liberal. Many universities do not teach or encourage critical thinking, and shame students for respectfully expressing different views . I still believe education is such a privilege, but one must be mindful of what they will find there. Great video. I hope your post secondary experience is wonderful.
I fully agree with your point on self-education-academic studying of much the same stuff one studies in college done on one's own-so long as it's legal to do so. Law, medicine, and engineering require training in college and that's a good thing. But it's fine for a learner to read the kinds of literary texts a literature major would read for fun, to improve themselves.
i really want to study literature in university, but i worry about how i will make money afterwards... so i am thinkin about goin study medicine instead. i love your videos
So glad I found this video, was never able to put this feeling in to words like you just did! Thank youuuu
Yes ~ there are 2 states of Consciousness
~ Mindfulness & Mindlessness
& 2 Methods of Inquiry
~ Self Deception or Self Enlightenment
*Both can be pursued to negative or positive ends*
The Dilemma is ultimately Spiritual in nature.
I like the take, but everything is good in moderation. Partying, drinking, etc. they are just different types of socializing, you don't have to do it but it wouldn't be fair to just brand it as bad.
For me, its okay to make mistakes on purpose because we have made societal rules on what is good and what is bad. Everything in moderation. Its bad to go too far into the wild or too far into the sophisticated.
its important to learn, but it is also important to live.
That's why I value feminism and philosophy, it 'transforms' you. It's able to turn you unlimitedly and completely in ways no other subjects can, I think.
I recommend Allan Bloom The Closing of The American Mind; Melville's classic Moby Dick; and the premier novel of the last two hundred years, The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky. And Pollock's Spinoza before The Ethic. College should hone a mind to a razor's edge, a student should read across a wide liberal curriculum, to prepare for life. Take the most difficult courses under the most demanding instruction. Drink, sip, gulp the smoke from the scholar's lamp. Feast upon all that life offers the mind. Pax vobiscum.
I like to reflect on people's nature rather than their actions. Blunders are blunders because they are outside the nature of the person committing them. Therefore we learn because we stepped outside. The people who took drugs and then went back to a reasonable life learned, hopefully without too much cost. But then there are those who have such actions in their nature. They keep making blunders because blunders are their nature. It's very hard to change your nature. The philosophers need to determine whether it's even possible.
Hi Robert my name is Salem Aarja I wanna thank you about all your videos they inspired me to start documenting my life
Well said brother.I am reading wealth of nations.which method is best.Synoptical,Analytical or Inspectional.
It depends, and I like to see it as a progression. Start with inspectional reading for a broad overview, then use analytical reading to tackle parts of the book you find relevant and eventually map out your thinking with syntopical reading.
People are like fire, we have the need of consumption. Call it filling a hole, or simply having the need to put meaning into existence, but we all got that thing. Some people consume religion, some consume books, some consume experiences like travelling, and some end up falling into their addictions through that plus genetic predisposition. People have different ways of satisfyingly their need for consumption, but just because we have different ways of doing it, it doesn’t make the consequences of those ways comparable. An addiction isn’t a way to fill the hole in people’s souls, it’s a disorder, an illness, and it’s often discovered through this act of trying to find something that satisfies our need of consuming. You can’t (you can, but that’s getting out of track) compare an addiction to the simple need of finding a purposeful activity like studying. One is fulfilling, the other is a consequence of the process of discovery of those fulfilling activities.
so what i take away is
addiction = bad
passion = good
was that it?
idhruv ibhimj addiction= disease, passion= passion.
Smart people learn from their own mistakes.
Wise people learn from others mistakes.
Let's just say I wasn't wise at 20ish and I can't even say "at least I made it with all my appendages attached"...
there has been a few book that changed my opinion drastically to the point of making me feel weird when walking in the wild. You grow to live with it. Just something that happens.
Which books?
Nice video you've made.
So... learning and challenging yourself through philosophy and literature keeps you on track of your life? Was that what you were trying to say or do I got it wrong? 😁
:)
@@RCWaldun ¡Yo! Yesterday I was reading Marco Aurelio's Meditations and in the second book I found something quite interesting. Its a bit extense for writing it here so Ill try to resume it.
... The body and its parts are a river, the soul a dream and mist, life is warfare and a journey far from home, lasting reputation is oblivion.
Then what can guide us?
Only philosophy.
...
This I extract from the second book when he talks about human life (point 17).
I done saw this before, but i just got what you're saying just now.
I loveeeeee these videos and topics
Sorry for the dumb comment, but I really like your voice.
Great as always!
the trouble with humanities is there are literally endless things you can research and learn about. but the trouble is not many lead to a well paying job.
So don't do it as a degree
Studying World Literature at the age of 40's brings me here ...
You are an interesting man
As long as it's not Rousseau or any men trying to come up with the utopical idea of "perfect society" (John Lennon teachers) or "equality of classes". That's a good book. It may look good, but it's not. Hope students don't be brainwashed.
[Edit] Those idealistic guys, btw, are the ones our schools tend to portrait as geniuses. Since elementary you gotta know "the man thinks, then he exists", when even I fool could tell the existence of any being comes first, and the idea of existence independs of it. I admire Platos, the one modernist like Nietzsche hates. It's really hard to read those books, when you start to realize what they actually meant, and how it turned out to be when some societies followed some of their "tips" of how to be "illuminated society".
🙏🙏
18? I am 27 learning from an 18 year old.🤣🤣💯💯 But I love you bruh
Hey! Can you mention your mbti type sometime? I guess you are an INTJ or INTP. It's just that I derive pleasure from talking and reading about mbti types 🙃
in a previous video he said he's intj :)
@@wannabeacademic4829 yeah I saw that later😅
Everything you said makes sense. Not a single word you uttered is useless.
keep making videos please!!!
Dostoyevski would blow ur mind.
The Brothers Karamazov
@@TerryStewart32 his best book.
@@noname3609 yea it’s his best book
I need a better day schedule to make time for reading brah
I think you have a lot of interesting thoughts, however I didn't so much appreciate your comparison between alcohol and 'getting high' to speeding and getting arrested. There's a very big gap between enjoying yourself and ruining your life or doing 'stupid stuff'. A lot of people can function normally and still enjoy themselves. You mentioned that you quit playing video games, which I think was a mistake. Just because you're involved in such a mentally demanding field doesn't mean you have to substitute other things in your life. Unless you want to, which is also fine. Of course, education matters. But it shouldn't be so intense that it makes you forfeit other enjoyable things in your life.
Yeah it seems like context and scope need to be considered.
how old are you?
oh wait you said it in the video already.
The Secret History in a nutshell.
If you drink only to get drunk, then that’s on you bud.
Anybody who has connected the dots form history to our present situation in this society should be doing more drugs and drinking more alcohol ,not less. Until of course you don't need it anymore , then you sit down to write your first novel.
Been there, done that.
... you’re kidding me I thought you were in your mid 20s for being able to say all these profound stuff turns out YOU’RE EVEN YOUNGER THAN I AM? Especially how you mentioned treating some books like university material-
Although... I guess, your age is showing on this video. It’s not a bad thing (at least I don’t think). It’s good that you’re getting to the point where you realize how little you know and you’re doing your best to fill in the gaps you identify, but I can’t help but worry as someone who’s been-there-done-that how you might be disappointed about the things being taught and prioritized in college, as well as your more nebulous feelings about things.
I’ve learned the hard way that having cold feet, being uncertain, and not being able to cast judgement can leave you late to the party. Perceived apathy and indecisiveness - at least in regards to social justice - is not “neutral”, it is siding with status quo, with a system that ensures violence and exploitation. It is allowing whoever is in power to do what they want. I don’t like being cornered into those snap decisions and I hesitate to make verdicts, but I also can’t not acknowledge that my lack of urgency could be costing people their lives. Then there’s all the talk about how much privilege I have to be able to dawdle on these thoughts, how my birth granted me the fortune to be allowed to think of these things in abstract.
I guess my point is, be careful to keep your feet firmly planted on the ground. Never forget the real world context of which you are considering these ideals because the context could show you how ideals can be twisted and used against people. Philosophers and intellectuals run the risk of being stuck in their ivory towers and not considering the cold, hard reality of the implications of their ideas. This is part of what they mean when they say it isn’t “practical”. I don’t wish for you to fall into that trap.
Books and education are wonderful for finding tidbits about the humanity and the world, but they don’t reveal to you the full reality of the situation. You have to go out there and experience it, read about it from various news sources (as BLM has demonstrated, local news outlets can be selective and biased and there are some thing you wouldn’t know unless you delved into social media posts), and speak to the people who live it every day.
Have you ever encountered David Icke's work? Just wondering.
Want an intellectual conversation?
lego films 1 yes
Jordan Peterson
I feel as though this came across quite condescending? I listened to try to understand where you are coming from but to label alcohol/drugs/college experiences as hideous is quite closed-minded. Saying you were addicted to video games for 2 years is not comparable to lifelong addiction to other things. It felt like an anti-drug advertisement more than a video on education... it’s okay to indulge in these things, they’ve often aided me and many others with their writing/ideas. Correct me if I misunderstood.
He's right though
There's a difference between indulgence and addiction. A close family member of mine was addicted to video games. As an addiction, it generally isn't taken as seriously as it should be, and it can be just as completely devastating as other addictions can be. There are cases of parents neglecting their children to the point of causing their deaths. I believe he's talking about addiction, not the average healthy person's choice to indulge.
I didn't see it as condescending, he seems to really value education, and he doesn't enjoy all the so called typical 'college experience'... Of course college is where most find themself, yet that is not the only point of college. he seems to be about academia, and he warns about distractions.
The argument is that being able to experience mistakes and their consequences by proxy is preferable to experiencing an actual job loss or deteriorating relationships. It certainly would be a hideous thing to be on the road to addiction and not be able to see it (i mean this sympathetically, it’s a terrible thing to be in that position). And ofc not everyone that drinks is on this road, drinking responsibly isn’t under criticism here
Drinking and drugs both are injurious to health hence can never be a good thing.
the more I know, the more I realize how this world, society, relationships, human nature works, the more miserable I become. Sometimes I think if it is worth it to educate myself more or just stay ignorant and be happy.
You're young. When you're older, you'll read for enjoyment not culture points
Bertrand Russell? Are you fucking kidding? Awful choice for a guide in history of philosophy.
Who do you suggest?
i really enjoyed listening to you 😊