Taking risks and making commitments (Hubert Dreyfus, Nihilism on the Information Highway) Flashcards
What is the public sphere?
A sphere outside of political power where ideas can be freely exchanged.
What is “leveling”?
The mass distribution of information makes every sort of information immediately available to anyone, producing a detached spectator.
Example: social media doesn’t tell you real vs. fake news
What is the difference between the three kinds of commitments?
- Aesthetic: Being fully engaged in trying to satisfy one’s interests.
Ex. Passion for singing - Ethical: Being fully engaged in a cause of one’s own choice.
Ex. Fighting or not fighting for a social cause - Unconditional: Pledging oneself unconditionally to something.
Ex. Oath to a religion
From 1 to 3, the more it gives meaning to life.
Why are unconditional commitments the key to a meaningful life?
Humans possess the ability to care. (unlike computers). These commitments are the key to a meaningful life because they allow us to care about something. We commit ourselves to things we determine to possess meaning, and as such without them, our life would not have meaning just in itself.
