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Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2015 5:27 pm
by Rachelc93
Often when I tell people that I study philosophy, the conversation tends to shut down. I am beginning to wonder whether this common response is out of a general disinterest in the subject, or a fear of the unknown.
I have found that increasingly (with my generation especially) people do not invest time into developing their ideas; instead they opt for the easy option of being fed information through modern technology, which means they are never really alone with thoughts. I recognise that this is not the case for everybody, but a large majority of people whom I have encountered have no interest in discussing philosophical matters.
I personally believe that philosophy is relevant to everyone, given the diversity of topics it encompasses which is why I find it so difficult to understand how anyone would want to avoid the topic. Has anyone had any similar experiences or thoughts as to why this might be the case?
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 2:11 pm
by Systematic
It may be due to an education system that says, "Sit down, shut up, and believe what I tell you." And it can't help that the curricula rarely involve anything to do with deep thinking.
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 2:57 pm
by thedoc
There's an old saw,
"Those who can, do.
Those who can't do, teach.
Those who can't teach, teach the teachers to teach."
When education is valued as much as production, things will change. I'm not saying the present educational system should be valued, but the idea of education needs to be valued. Now, many believe you can learn more out in the world than you can from a book, and in many cases they are correct, especially with today's system. Some things are better learned by doing, some things are better learned from a book, the trick is to know which is which.
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 3:00 pm
by uwot
Rachelc93 wrote:I personally believe that philosophy is relevant to everyone, given the diversity of topics it encompasses which is why I find it so difficult to understand how anyone would want to avoid the topic. Has anyone had any similar experiences or thoughts as to why this might be the case?
Funnily enough there are several contributors to this forum who do their best to avoid philosophy. Generally it's because they're a bit dim, or mad as a box of frogs.
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 9:58 pm
by thedoc
uwot wrote:Funnily enough there are several contributors to this forum who do their best to avoid philosophy. Generally it's because they're a bit dim, or mad as a box of frogs.
Hey! I'm right here ya know.
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 3:49 am
by Blaggard
It's not that anyone is scared, it's just that it is a very esoteric subject.
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 3:52 am
by GreatandWiseTrixie
Blaggard wrote:It's not that anyone is scared, it's just that it is a very esoteric subject.
Actually some people are scared, it's because they play a game with themselves, called "make-believe."
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 5:12 am
by SpheresOfBalance
I believe it's because they believe their superficial existence shall be questioned during the conversation, whether inadvertently or not. Some things are just bumped into, during the course of conversation, that lends to one questioning oneself, and that just doesn't fly in the face of this mostly superficial day and age. But then I'm extremely jaded!
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 5:13 am
by thedoc
GreatandWiseTrixie wrote:Blaggard wrote:It's not that anyone is scared, it's just that it is a very esoteric subject.
Actually some people are scared, it's because they play a game with themselves, called "make-believe."
Why don't you tell us more about yourself?
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 5:15 am
by thedoc
SpheresOfBalance wrote: But then I'm extremely jaded!
Which is why you fit in so well here.
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 5:28 am
by SpheresOfBalance
thedoc wrote:SpheresOfBalance wrote: But then I'm extremely jaded!
Which is why you fit in so well here.
Fit in..., right...!
I'm like someone trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.
I touch on things most would rather not entertain.
I do honestly believe that I have contributed some though, that I have caused a few to question things, which is so important. Question everything!
Oh, I see, you were being sarcastic! Thanks!
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 7:52 am
by Systematic
thedoc wrote:Why don't you tell us more about yourself?
According to her, she is the wisest person here.
GreatandWiseTrixie wrote:I will let you know, I am the wisest one here. Though Carl Sagan perhaps has more zeal than I, I am most certainly wiser than he. (100% percent probability.)
GreatandWiseTrixie wrote:I am the GreatandWiseTrixie. I come from a land identical to yours, the genius forums. It is fate, then. The genius forum too has the same body as these forums. The colors are harmonious, and I see that it was good.
But the Genius forums, The Absolute Index, banned me, for they do not comprehend my teachings, nor do they wish to understand. In their ignorance, they banned and censored my wisdom. I do not hold them in contempt, for they not know what they do. At the time of my arrival, the others were not there to defend me. One man, in his haste and ignorance, banned and censored my wholesome teachings. He does not know it, but he only furthers his own suffering. It is truly sad, that they others were not there, to rule over him, as he chose to abuse his rule over me.
Are you any better than Genius Forums? From what I can tell, you are not very wise. You restrict access to color blind persons, barring them from entry, basing your security measures on color codes. But perhaps I am too hasteful in my judgement of you. Only time will tell.
In a moment, we will see the Truths revealed to you. But, I must wait for an arbitrary amount of time, because the human mind, and human culture, in its cacophony of errors, is quick to censor, and quick to pass judgement.
I hope that she knows herself better than those censors.
I thought that she might just be a fool who thinks that she is wise so I confronted her:
Systematic wrote:
I hope that what you are saying is true, because if not, your arrogance is going to leave you without a chance to learn.
GreatandWiseTrixie wrote:If you want true arrogance, you need a moderator for that. I do not try to hush and stomp out things I do not wish to comprehend. If I do not wish to comprehend them, I take a sip of tea. Then, I come back later, when I have more energy, and try to get the jist of them and see if it worthy of my time and energy.
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 8:09 am
by Systematic
Blaggard wrote:It's not that anyone is scared, it's just that it is a very esoteric subject.
Maybe it's because philosophers are so cryptic in their speech, using words like esoteric. And we never act on any of our thoughts. We just keep writing in our cryptic speech hoping that the world will learn. I apologize to any of you who put things into practice and speak so others can understand you. It's just an hypothesis.
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 9:17 am
by GreatandWiseTrixie
thedoc wrote:GreatandWiseTrixie wrote:
Actually some people are scared, it's because they play a game with themselves, called "make-believe."
Why don't you tell us more about yourself?
Someone is an eager beaver.
Systematic wrote:carl sagan
Yeah, get your lols, you are going to continue to be laughing till the dawn of time from that statement. I meant Christopher Langan, not Carl Sagan, but laugh it up fuzzball. I guess people have nothing better to do with their time than analyze the wise to see if they have any slight imperfections. No different than TMZ, or a typical supermarket tabloid, really.
Systematic wrote:Maybe it's because philosophers are so cryptic in their speech, using words like esoteric. And we never act on any of our thoughts. We just keep writing in our cryptic speech hoping that the world will learn. I apologize to any of you who put things into practice and speak so others can understand you. It's just an hypothesis.
They use words like esoteric because it's basic everyday language for adults and if someone doesn't know a word, they can google it. This isn't hoodrat speak. The use of complex words should be kept a minimum, many just use them to satisfy their egos. However "esoteric" saves time and space, saying "That joke was esoteric" is better than "That joke was so stupid only someone who knew the original obscure reference you were talking about would get it."
Re: Why are people scared of philosophy?
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 9:30 am
by HexHammer
Rachelc93 wrote:Often when I tell people that I study philosophy, the conversation tends to shut down. I am beginning to wonder whether this common response is out of a general disinterest in the subject, or a fear of the unknown.
I have found that increasingly (with my generation especially) people do not invest time into developing their ideas; instead they opt for the easy option of being fed information through modern technology, which means they are never really alone with thoughts. I recognise that this is not the case for everybody, but a large majority of people whom I have encountered have no interest in discussing philosophical matters.
I personally believe that philosophy is relevant to everyone, given the diversity of topics it encompasses which is why I find it so difficult to understand how anyone would want to avoid the topic. Has anyone had any similar experiences or thoughts as to why this might be the case?
Tell me please where philosophy is actually proven relevant in every day life? Why doesn't multi billion dollar companies hire philosophers, now that philosophers allegedly are good at thinking? The industry spends billions in research and market analysis.
So why are there so little demand for philosophers?