/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.5639762]

Someone explain why metaphysics is not a total waste of time

[Anonymous No.5639784]

>>5639762
>What is South Africa?

[Anonymous No.5639816]

Because you transcend the homo sapiens sapiens and become a new hominin clade, that is the homo novus. This is only acquired via metaphysics. I can teach you, but you must donate me a sum fee of £10,000, a fee that is necessary for your ascension. Contact me @obama on Twitter for more details.

[Anonymous No.5639824]

No one can. It is.

[Anonymous No.5639957]

Because people are interested in learning how things work; this extends to things we can't get observable data for and thus need to attempt a transcendental approach. Read Kant, and if you already have and think he's a 5 foot tall faggot, then no one here is going to be able to explain it better.

[Anonymous No.5640568]

>>5639762
It's difficult to know what you want because of how subjective and emotion laden "total waste of time" is. You're basically saying "boo metaphysics!" and expecting us to respond to this in a thoughtful and reasonable way.

[Anonymous No.5640575]

I enjoy it. I don't care whether you do or not. Either way this isn't /lit/.

[Anonymous No.5640618]

>>5639762
it is a waste of time, but so is everything else

[Anonymous No.5640656]

>>5639762

Metaphysical thinking is the most pragmatic.

[Anonymous No.5640659]

Because there are open metaphysical questions, and some think that there is a real basis for them.

>categories
>qualities
>correspondence
>nature of the existence of numbers
>nature of the existence of ideas

Just to name a few.

You can try to slingshot these away as human constructions, but even then there is the question of "human constructions vs. what?"

[Anonymous No.5640719]

EVERYTHING is a PRESSING ISSUE.

If you don't share our enthusiasm and care for the VISION of this ONTOLOGICAL PROJECT...

GET OUT.

Get your shit and get out.

You're done.

[Anonymous No.5640866]

>>5640568
BOO METAPHYSICS!!!

[Anonymous No.5640923]

Before anyone can give a meaningful answer to that question, we need to get clear on what you have in mind by "metaphysics", as metaphysics is notorious for being a somewhat amorphous concept insofar as it is defined as something beyond "the physics of physics", which is popular as a sort of aphoristic definition, but is not particularly enlightening.

Despite this, I would certainly say that at least some of the issues usually considered broadly metaphysical (for example, the mind-body problem, or the debate surrounding how to handle the status of possible entities) can very much be meaningfully discussed, and are not necessarily totally divorced from empirical fact, since scientific findings, while they probably cannot solve these problems, can certainly urge us towards some positions, and away from others.

On the other hand, I'd say that some purported debates within the usual parameters of metaphysics (such as the discussions that were fashionable back in the 19th century about Hegel's "Absolute") probably cannot be meaningfully discussed.

So, OP, unless you have a highly divergent conception of metaphysics, I would say that at least some of the issues within metaphysics can at least be MEANINGFULLY discussed. Now, I'm not sure just being able to MEANINGFULLY discuss an issue is sufficient, in your view, to keep it from being a "total waste of time", but I think I can at least say that some (if not most) broadly metaphysical topics can entertain a meaningful discourse (of course, this depends on one's definition of meaning, but I operate on the Davidsonian view, which I think is generally fairly agreeable to most theories of meaning in terms of what it judges to be meaningful, even if it arrives at these conclusions in a rather different manner).

So, OP, does meaningfulness constitute value when it comes to philosophical topics for you? If not, then what does constitute value? If you're not familiar with Davidson's view on meaning, I can give a brief explanation so you can see where I'm coming from.

[Anonymous No.5640928]

I AM FARTING

[Anonymous No.5640939]

Someone explain why phtsics is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why biology is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why philosophy is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why religion is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why geology is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why ecology is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why sociology is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why meteorology is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why radiology is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why medicine is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why paleontology is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why art is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why kayaking is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why why posting on 4chan is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why living is not a total waste of time

Someone explain why being dead is not a total waste of time

[Anonymous No.5640984]

>>5640939
Explain why time is not a total waste of time.

[Anonymous No.5640988]

>>5639762
You must be one of those fucktards who thinks metaphysics means the spoopy skellington section at Barnes and Noble.

[Anonymous No.5641004]

Someone explain why a total waste of time is not a total waste of time

[Anonymous No.5641014]

>>5640988
>spoopy

[Anonymous No.5641015]

>>5639762
because, properly done, it informs everything that is not metaphysics

[Anonymous No.5641019]

Waste the time of someone by explaining.

[Anonymous No.5641086]

>>5640988
>Barnes and Noble

what the fuck do you live in Turkey or something