Thursday, June 21, 2007

Stoic or Romantic?




A question that always runs through my mind is -
is it better to be stoic? Or to feel both incredible joy and sadness?

I live with a strange cross-breed of ratio-emotive expression. I can cry and laugh easily - tears come to me easily while watching movies, reading books, even listening to music - but at the time I do it, I can still make a decision in which I'm emotionally against...
I do have 'philosophical' beliefs as to why I should make decisions that lead to best future consequences ---
But perhaps it's not my natural position. Perhaps it feeds my low stamina - as I am always fighting this natural urge...

Or is acting in opposition to my feelings may just be plain old maturity.

1 comment:

Tristan said...

There was a Political Philospher who pondered that very question. His answer, was simple, quality trumps quantity. He used the following example

if you had a choice, between living forever, but to live as a drunken clam, free of pain, and imortality

or would you live the life as Bach, with intense joy, riches, combined with extreme pains.

He argued Bach's life was better. Inorder to feel, one needs something to contrast it to. Therefore in order to feel happy, one must also feel pain.

Living life stoic, would be like living life as a vegetable. I hope this puts forth some light to your question.

Tristan