occasional reflections on culture & politics
“Μόνοι γάρ τον τε μηδέν τῶνδε μετέχοντα οὐκ ἀπράγμονα, ἀλλ᾽ ἀχρεῖον νομίζομεν.” –“We alone regard a man who takes no interest in public affairs, not as a harmless, but as a useless character.”– Περικλῆς (Pericles), 430 BC, in Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War, 2.40, Jowett Translation “Just because you do not take an interest… Continue reading #206: The Importance of Being Political
Aren’t we focused a bit too much on identity lately, or rather, on a very narrow definition of it? What does identity even mean? Who we are always depends on several factors, only part of which is controllable by ourselves. We may want to be seen a certain way, but we cannot change how others… Continue reading #182: Reflections on Identity, Purpose, and the Active Life
Human beings are tribal. As described poignantly by Aristotle, we are animals that form political units, societies, towns, or in the Greek understanding, poleis. We are political animals in the sense that we are animals creating political structures – polis is the political aspect of the city, not the physical one (which would be (ástu).… Continue reading #56: Disentangling Race and Ethnicity
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