Thinking Nonthinking Essay example

Thinking Nonthinking Essay example Thinking Nonthinking Essay example Nell Bornhorst Philosophy 103 March 2, 2015 Thinking and Non-Thinking In this paper, I will be analyzing and interpreting Arendt Hannah’s lecture, â€Å"Thinking and Moral Considerations†, focusing on her take on evilness and the dangers of non-thinking, and the document â€Å"Letter from Birmingham Jail† written by Martin Luther King Jr., focusing on the necessity of tension within the mind. Arendt’s argues that evilness is a person’s inability to contemplate what is unjust, and King offers a solution. Both Ardent and King relate their arguments to the words of Socrates. Socrates believed in the necessity of a dialogue and a relationship with ones thoughts, and believed tension in the mind allowed a person to evaluate and question to find meaning and truth. Socrates’ concepts will help to support my explanation of the two texts and their idea that evilness is only a product of thoughtlessness, with thinking comes natural morality, and â€Å"creative tension† promotes â€Å"a kind of action† leadi ng to â€Å"positive peace†. In our society what is right and what is wrong is presumably decided for us. Laws and restrictions are taught to be the truth, and with these set standards the need to think for oneself is diminished. The threat of non-thinking becomes dangerous. By following the law instead of following our own virtues, we become tied to a blind obedience. Arendt describes this idea as a clichà © or â€Å"standard codes of expression and conduct†. In her study she contemplates the idea that evilness is caused by the absence of thought and use of clichà ©s. Arendt along with Socrates believes examination is good for the mind, and â€Å"By shielding people against the dangers of examination, it teaches them to hold fast to whatever the prescribed rules of conduct may be at a given time in a given society†(Arendt 436). Socrates, a man who she believes to be a model or professional thinker said, â€Å"an unexamined life is not one worth living†. This is because you have no love or desire to discover or find â€Å"what is not†. Without this love you cannot have a relationship with ones thoughts. This being said, Arendt concludes that â€Å"only people filled with this eros a kind of love), this desiring love of wisdom, beauty, and justice, are capable of thought† (Arendt). When considering evil, such as in Otto Adolf Eichmann, one of the main organizers of the Nazi regime, Arendt does not believe it is inherent. In an article on the capture and trial of Eichmann, for The New Yorker, Arendt describes Eichmann’s character and contemplates the truth of his corruption or evilness. Eichmann was accused of crimes against the Jewish people, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, and eventually sentenced to death. Arendt stated, "The deeds were monstrous, but the doer ... was quite ordinary, commonplace, and neither demonic nor monstrous"(Arendt). She believed it was not his character that of the man that was evil, but the â€Å"thoughtlessness† of Eichmann that led him to commit evil acts or his â€Å"authentic inability to think". This example of non-thinking shows the dangers of it. If the conversation we have with ourselves when making decisions is gone, any form of morality goes with it. Especially in the hands of someone like Eichmann, non-thinking is extremely dangerous. If thought is never incited, evilness and corruption can go on unnoticed. However, we were born with a sense of right or wrong. This being said, thinking is natural, and naturally in the opinion of Arendt and Socrates, all humans are good by nature. The idea of non-thinking is in reality unnatural. In the last paragraph, I interpreted Arendt to be saying, in summary, that thinking makes us who we are. If we are who we are only when we think and we are good by nature, then it only makes sense that when we do wrong, we are not who we are and we are non-thinking. By acquiring our human virtues, we can avoid allowing wrong doings and clichà ©s to strip us of our identity. Clichà ©s can be detrimental if they become

Use the French Verb Dire to Tell Someone Off

Use the French Verb Dire to Tell Someone Off The French verb dire  means to say or to tell and is used in many idiomatic expressions. Learn how to tell someone off, talk nonsense, be a yes-man and more using this list of expressions with dire. Dire is a widely used irregular verb, which means it follows the beat of its own drum regarding conjugations. This is one of those verbs whose forms you simply have to memorize. Formulas dont apply.   Common French Expressions With Dire dire quelquun ses quatre và ©rità ©sto give someone a piece of ones minddire quelquun son fait, dire son fait quelquunto tell someone offdire ce quon a sur le cÅ“urto get something off ones chestdire des sottises / bà ªtisesto talk nonsensedire queto say; to think thatdire toujours amento be a yes-man ce quil ditaccording to him qui le dis-tu  ?youre telling me! vrai direto tell you the truthAussità ´t dit, aussità ´t faitNo sooner said than doneautrement ditin other wordsÇa ne me dit pas grand-chose.I dont think much of that.Ça ne me dit rien.That does nothing for me; I dont feel like doing that.That means nothing to me; I dont remember that.Ça me dit quelque chose.That rings a bell.Ça te dit  ?Do you feel like doing that?   Does that sound good to you?Ceci/Cela ditThat said; Having said thatCela va sans dire.It goes without saying.cestdirethat is; i.e.; I meanCest beaucoup dire.Thats saying a lot.Cest moi qui te le dis.Take my word for it.Cest peu d ire.Thats an understatement. Cest plus facile dire qu faire.Easier said than done.Cest toi qui le dis.Thats what you say.Comment dirais-je  ?How shall I put it?  What can I say?comme on ditso to speak; as they sayDis donc / Dites doncWow; hey; listenentendre dire queto hear (it said) thatEst-ce dire que...?Does this mean that...?Il ny a pas direTheres no doubt about it.Je ne dis pas non.I wont say no.Je ne te le fais pas dire  !Im not putting words in your mouth!I didnt make you say it!Je te lavais dit.I told you so.Mon petit doigt ma ditA little birdie told mene pas se le faire dire deux foisnot to have to be told twiceon dirait que...youd think that...ou pour mieux direto put it another way; in other wordspour ainsi direso to speakpour tout direin factQue dites-vous  ?I beg your pardon? What did you say?Tu as beau dire, je ne te crois pas.It doesnt matter what you say, I dont believe youvouloir direto meanse direto say to oneself;  to think; to claim to be; to be saidCela ne se dit pas. (passive r eflexive)That (just) isnt said. Cela te dit de (sortir, manger)?How does (going out, eating) grab you? What do you think of (going out, eating)?On se dirait en France.Youd think you were in France.