PHILOSOPHY - Blaise Pascal Flashcards
Question: Why did Pascal write the Pensées, and what was his approach in the book?
Answer: Pascal wrote the Pensées to convert readers to God, and he believed the best way to do this was by evoking the terrible aspects of life, expecting readers to turn to the Catholic Church for salvation.
Question: According to Pascal, what is the source of human suffering and dissatisfaction?
Answer: Pascal suggests that the greatest source of suffering is boredom and the incompatibility between the size of human aspirations and the reality of their condition.
Question: Why does Pascal’s pessimism have a consoling effect on readers?
Answer: Pascal’s pessimism consoles readers because it emphasizes that it is hope, more than negativity, that often leads to disappointment and bitterness. By publicly rehearsing the facts of human existence, his work helps people find comfort in realizing their own condition is not as bleak as it may seem.
Question: How does Pascal’s perspective on secular and religious views on human nature differ?
Answer: Pascal’s work reveals that the secular are often more optimistic than the religious, which is ironic because religions insist that humans are inherently flawed. Pascal’s pessimism, in a way, strengthens individuals to face the troubles of their own lives on Earth by showing them a more extreme form of pessimism.
Question: What is the main paradoxical idea presented in this content?
Answer: The paradoxical idea is that dark thinkers, like Pascal, can effectively lift one’s mood by emphasizing the negative aspects of life and helping readers find consolation in the recognition of their own condition.
Question: According to Pascal, what role does hope play in human suffering and disappointment?
Answer: Pascal suggests that it is hope, more than negativity, that often leads to human disappointment and bitterness because it creates an incompatibility between the size of one’s aspirations and the reality of their condition.
Question: Why is Pascal’s pessimism considered consoling and even humorous at times?
Answer: Pascal’s pessimism is considered consoling because it helps readers realize that their own condition is not as bleak as his perspective. It is also occasionally humorous, offering moments of lightness amid the seriousness of his reflections.
