Comments on: Life of the Mind

By: Top Five in 2004

Top Five in 2004 — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 07:05:51 +0000

[...] Life of the Mind - [W]e can expect some level of activism/intellectualism from Average Citizen X, and anyone who goes beyond that level can fairly claim to be an activist or an intellectual. [...]

By: yami

yami — Sat, 15 May 2004 19:22:00 +0000

I suppose they are a bit high - I also expect many/most people not to meet them. The tricky and vexing bit is when I start wondering why it works that way…

By: LiL

LiL — Sat, 15 May 2004 18:03:00 +0000

Okay, I can live with that dividing line. You have high expectations of people, right? Which also means you’re an idealist and unapologetic about it. I like that!

By: yami

yami — Fri, 14 May 2004 22:01:00 +0000

I guess writing one’s congressperson does count as activism - but I would feel weaselly about calling myself an activist because I don’t feel I’ve done anything more than I can rightfully expect of fellow citizens. If there needs to be a dividing line I think that’s where it is: we can expect some level of activism/intellectualism from Average Citizen X, and anyone who goes beyond that level can fairly claim to be an activist or an intellectual.
Not a full response, but it’s FRIDAY! and it’s FIVE! so I’ll keep thinking on the drive home =)

By: LiL

LiL — Fri, 14 May 2004 20:58:00 +0000

I meant to add this: I think the point you make about the cultural habit of devaluing paid work is a really good one and worth exploring at more length.

By: LiL

LiL — Fri, 14 May 2004 20:57:00 +0000

“…thinking critically and writing blog entries shouldn’t qualify me for any special labels either.”
Why not?
Although I actually meant those of us who (as it happens) are writing blog entries, are highly educated or very well-read, and also happen to work or at one time happened to work in those amorphous jobs that require critical thinking in one form or another but are not generally counted as part of academia. I include adjuncting or being a grad student in this category. I probably don’t say it clearly enough, what I mean is, our jobs or careers are not the sum total of our intellectual or thinking activity, but for my part, I want that activity recognized as part of my identity. (They usually aren’t for academics either, current language usage makes it seem appear as though for academics, their jobs equaled their identity.)
You also mention writing to your congressman not qualifying as activism, which is an interesting parallel. Why does it not qualify as activism? Why can someone not be an activist sometimes and not at other times? Where are the dividing lines here, what amount of activism-type activity does one have to do to qualify as an activist? Similarly - how much intellectual activity does one have to do to qualify to be an intellectual?

By: yami

yami — Fri, 14 May 2004 18:53:00 +0000

I’m not sure if I need to clarify this or not, but I’m not thinking of intellecualism as the kind of generic civil service where if you don’t like to think you can just pick up trash on the freeway or something; more along the lines of voting. We have the same inherent, non-transferable obligation to be active, critical participants in culture as we do in politics. Voting and writing occasional letters to my congressfolk doesn’t make me a politician, or even an activist; similarly, thinking critically and writing blog entries shouldn’t qualify me for any special labels either.

By: Liliputian Lilith

Liliputian Lilith — Fri, 14 May 2004 18:36:00 +0000

discussion continues
Academics, intellectuals or civic duty - muses yami, via rana, and Adam Kotsko coins the term the “universitization of knowledge.” I know I’ve missed a number of interesting posts in this debate and I’d really like to know what you…

By: LiL

LiL — Fri, 14 May 2004 18:21:00 +0000

I’m so amused at how obviously I grew up in a different culture… I don’t usually think of it, but clearly my interpretation of being intellectuals is rooted in Socialist 70s Hungarian culture. Where being an intellectual was sort of like choosing to do your civic duty with thinking. Then again, university professors are actually civil servants in Hungary.
(I guess this means you can take the socialist out of socialism but you’ll never take socialism out of the socialist…)

By: yami

yami — Fri, 14 May 2004 15:14:00 +0000

I keep quiet about the equivocations between academia/intellectualism and the liberal arts because science gets so much more money and respect… but I’m not generally happy about it.
I wonder if such a bumper sticker would be undermined by public expectations that “I read Bourdieu and I vote” means the voting is left-wing - I’m not sure I’d want one appearing right next to “Kucinich 2004″ anyway. I think this might be an instance where a change in cultural discourse comes first, and politics is dragged after kicking and screaming.