Sophie's World

I am reading this book described as the history of philosophy- Sophie's world!! What a wonderful course in its subject it is! Besides making me realize of all the wonderful words that we take the meanings of granted as- materialism, rationalists, stoic, cynics, epicureans etc etc- it almost walks you through the gamut of human thoughts in the matters of concern that haven't  changed- especially the question- who are we!! And does so without attempting to answer the question at all!! 

As somewhere in the book- maybe what the world requires is a course in philosophy - for everybody!! At the early school level!! That scientific thinking is a philosophy in itself, that has developed as an idea only about four centuries back may come in a revelation to many! Or that we are all sparks from the same light may help promote tolerance!

The writing could be read as a description of western thought - but not necessarily - for those acquainted with the eastern history of thoughts - it shows the universal nature of thought in human civilization! And that all of it is a result also of syncrenization- of all thoughts- western , eastern and others!

So, the philosophy has always been in between the contrast of Plutonian and Aristotelian thought- read Mahavira and Buddha, Christianity and others, Descartes and  Spinoza etc etc. To me it looks like the description of reality as either from accepting the unknown or describing from the known! The state of human knowledge has changed the explanations but the duality of the approach has been constant.

Much like the formation of the society has remained a dual proposition- between the settled and the nomadic! Since the times before of Kane and Able!! The struggle between the ways of chengis khan and the settled societies, between the rural and the urban!! That, is a subject of another day!