ps: you know how much I dislike mobile phones? I would ban them from use inside schools, I think SMSes are partially responsible for this expression & spelling degradation ... but then again, this is a conversation we've had here on ET before, and someone argued that there was no reason to believe that SMS style was any less good than correct grammar/spelling, and that langauges evolved anyways ...
Libération (in French, partially translated here to make commenting possible ) - Paper grayderz tested on there scillz of the language it is being they are Brushing aside any apocalyptic discourse on the decline of France's heritage, they sometimes admit to feeling scared and powerless. Benoît, 34 years old, professor of Philosophy in Paris, explais: "The philosophy dissertation (examination) requires a level of language that is not necessarily shared by all. And, the less you master the language, the less access you have to its meaning." And philosophy, only taught in the final year in high school, and implicating the manipulation of concepts, reveals itself as out of reach for students that are weak in the literary field. "Sometimes, I simply do not understand what the student meant", says this teacher, "and I ask myself if I have to grade the content, meaning the philosophical argumentation, or stick to requiring a minimum level of expression"
Brushing aside any apocalyptic discourse on the decline of France's heritage, they sometimes admit to feeling scared and powerless. Benoît, 34 years old, professor of Philosophy in Paris, explais: "The philosophy dissertation (examination) requires a level of language that is not necessarily shared by all. And, the less you master the language, the less access you have to its meaning." And philosophy, only taught in the final year in high school, and implicating the manipulation of concepts, reveals itself as out of reach for students that are weak in the literary field. "Sometimes, I simply do not understand what the student meant", says this teacher, "and I ask myself if I have to grade the content, meaning the philosophical argumentation, or stick to requiring a minimum level of expression"
I wouldn't deny that I have struggled at times to get my ideas to coalesce. It's not that the ideas aren't there, but I lack any form of training in marshalling them into a coherent argument.Yes, it is frustrating.
It's why my diaries are so few and often trivial in nature and seem happiest with the short sharp shock of commenting. One idea, one argument, 2 - 3 paragraphs at most.
However, that said, I used to frequently cross argumentative swords with a friend who had a good degree in Philosophy and taught english & philosophy at 12th grade level. what used to frustrate me was the intellectual dishonesty she brought into her discussions, legalistic arguments that were intended to win competitively at the expense of expanding comprehension. She viewed these not as exchanges of views intended to widen discussion, but as mere challenges to be seen off.
She used to justify it with "of course I cheat, you're better at this than I am". So, just cos you can frame your thoughts well, doesn't mean those thoughts were worth the effort of framing. keep to the Fen Causeway
When I say "conceptual thought" I don't mean "literary conceptual thought". I am, after all, a mathematical physicist. guaranteed to evoke a violent reaction from police is to challenge their right to "define the situation." --- David Graeber citing Marc Cooper
I am, after all, a mathematical physicist.
Methinks you doth protest too much. Somebody who even knows what a sophist is, let alone what a socratic response to them might be, has got a good grounding in the formulation of of literary argument. keep to the Fen Causeway
But I do protest too much because I was referring to conceptual though outside of the literary sense.
By the way, what the french call litteraire is arts in English, I think, or more generally humanities.
When I was in my last year in high school, two people came from the university to give us a presentation about the access examinations. It turns out they were husband and wife, him a mathematician and she from the humanities. At one point she said something to the effect that "of course" writing well was not that important for a math exam. You should have seen the man's face. guaranteed to evoke a violent reaction from police is to challenge their right to "define the situation." --- David Graeber citing Marc Cooper
The idea of teaching philosophy to 18 year olds would make a lot of heads explode here. What possible relevance could philosophy have to the corporate job market? (And so on.)
And yes, a lot of what we take for granted intellectually is socially maintained and not intrinsic. And that makes it terrifylngly fragile.
