I've just finished reading The Republic, for the third time. You'd think that after three complete read throughs I'd have it down cold, but every time I open it up again, I feel as though I've never really read it at all. And I don't mean that I discover something new each time I read it, I mean that I really feel like I'm reading it for the first time. Again.
This is not a good thing. There is no joy, at least for me, in never quite getting a grip on something. You know all that romantic comedy bullshit about every time you kiss someone, it feels like the first time? I never thought that was a particularly compelling idea either. Familiarity is nice. Especially after the third reading.
Plato, you are clearly brilliant, but you give me a headache. So there.
2 comments:
I didn't know if you'd check back into the comments over at my site, so:
"Julia:
You are definitely smarter than me. They'd never let me into the PhD program."
Consequently, there is no excuse. At least Plato has the dialogue format. He's not Heidegger going on and on about the thingness with which some thing things thingly.
Absolutely no one is as frustrating as Heidegger, that's true. Except maybe Hegel.
Also, I never said I had a good excuse, hence my frustration. One day, Plato and I will learn to love each other. I hope.
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