classics digests, reflections and reviews
Perhaps because I read Crime and Punishment after Brothers Karamazov, viz. in the reverse order in which Dostoevsky wrote them, I find the former psychologically more coherent, more relatable, than the latter, but philosophically less thought-provoking. It is almost as if Dostoevsky is working things out through his writings. When one reads them in the reverse order, like reading the end of a mystery novel first, the element of wonder is […]
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The Brothers Karamazov (TBK) has the reputation of a great philosophical and psychological novel. This was the main reason I chose to read the novel, but it disappointed on both counts. Dostoevsky’s philosophical arguments lack clarity and logical coherence. He shares this characteristic with another Existentialist philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, who openly acknowledged his influence. His psychological portraits are perspicacious in many aspects. However, they lack the type of coherence that would […]
Read moreChoice vs. Freedom There is an important distinction, which most people overlook, between free choice of the will, commonly known as free will, and freedom. Choice is consequent of multiplicity, but freedom is consequent of power of being or becoming. For example, when a person is present at a crossroad, he has a choice between one way or the other, but he does not necessarily have the freedom to walk […]
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The Natural Law The word morality comes from the Latin root mos (meaning “custom or law”), which in turn is a translation of the Greek word ἠθικός (“character or moral nature”). The idea of natural law originated with Plato and the Stoics, and found its full expression in Cicero. God, who governs the universe, has implanted the immortal soul in man from His own divine nature. The Mind of God […]
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