August 2019 – Davood Gozli

Out of Service

By Davood Gozli | 30/08/201929/05/2023 by Davood Gozli

Here is a sentence by Alva Noë (2015) which hints at the distinction between philosophy and practical problem-solving. … if there is a pornographic art, whatever else is true of it, it will not be good for masturbating. (from Strange Tools: Art and Human Nature, p. 116) The “function” of art, similar to the “function” of philosophy, involves being anti-functional, as it moves us against the ways we assume we ought to serve and be served. Philosophy (like art) refuses to serve our taken-for-granted purposes. To…

J. D. Caputo

By Davood Gozli | 27/08/201927/08/2019 by Davood Gozli

Postmodern hermeneutics, in which we reserve the right to ask any questions, is constitutionally anti-authoritarian and democratic. Without [presupposing] hermeneutics, you would never be able to explain what a democracy is. Without democracy, you would never be able to practice hermeneutics; you would end up in jail, or worse. (from Hermeneutics: Facts and Interpretation in the Age of Information, p. 11) My idea is to see not whether religion can save us but whether hermeneutics…

Education

First Day of New Semester

By Davood Gozli | 26/08/201929/05/2023 by Davood Gozli

I arrived back in Macau last night. I started cleaning before starting to prepare my lectures. Mold everywhere due to humidity. It’s surprising how dirty a place can get in such a short span of time. And, yes, there were also three dead cockroaches. Why are they always upside down when found dead? Is it because they struggle to survive against insecticide? Is it because their top “shell” is heavier than their legs? On an…