Experience and Nature

John Dewey's Experience and Nature is the first pragmatic work I have read. Although at times difficult because of my scant background in the philosophy of knowledge, I found it illuminating and stimulating. The book is an extended critique against the artificial dualities that so extensively pervade the way we think such as the distinctions between mind and body, and experience and nature. It is an argument for understanding the relationship as one of continuity and context.

Indeed, I find it easier to believe that experience is not distinct from nature, but is a part of nature. In the course of evolution, an organism called man developed a mind and a consciousness capable of apprehending nature through the senses and then accumulating such perceptions that then constituted experience, which then influenced how he subsequently perceived nature. To claim special powers for man by saying he has a mind separate from and observing nature from the outside is more difficult to accept from a scientific and empirical perspective, but that is, of course, the Christian viewpoint.

Democracy in America

De Tocqueville, in his incisive political treatise Democracy in America, attributed many of the features of the American polity to the general equality of conditions pervading in society. Because most of the citizens were neither extremely rich nor destitute, they easily formed associations, believed strongly in majority rule, and had relatively uniform views on politics. America may be prone to the dangers of the tyranny of the majority, and the lack of refined aristocratic taste, but the spontaneous formation of groups and the individualistic focus on economic welfare prevented politics from becoming the winner take all, life and death struggle that characterized class-ridden European polities. America just suffered the worst recession since the Great Depression, but it remains the single most powerful and most important nation on earth despite the imminent rise of China.

Through the obverse logic, much of Tocqueville’s analysis may be relevant to Philippine politics and similar countries characterized by high inequality of conditions. A small group of wealthy families continue to dominate politics and economics. Patron-client ties remain the typical relationship between the elites and the masses although the mass media now mediates this as attested by the rise of celebrities in politics. All of this makes the spontaneous formation of associations unlikely, much less the creation of stable political parties, which almost guarantees that elections are won by those with money and fame instead of those with the best party programs. Such is the state of Oligarchy in the Philippines in the 21st century.

Things Fall Apart

Okwonko, like many heads of the family, worked hard and paid his due. He respected his elders and ancestors, followed tradition, and fought valiantly for his village. But he was swimming against the tide of history, the remorseless, ruthless, and relentless tide that uprooted centuries of culture and tradition, and replaced it with the religion and government of the white man.

In 1571, there was someone like Okwonko in Manila who was about to take his place in society, but was suddenly subjugated by the conquistadors of Spain. He lost his status and was baptized a Catholic. Centuries later, we, his descendants, hardly understand him. It is hard to imagine what were his hopes and dreams, what gods he worshiped, what values he held.

Such is how things fall apart. Now, however, the destructive power of colonialism has been replaced by the centrifugal forces of globalization. More than ever, we must understand who we are and where we came from so we can learn to adapt to our time without losing our sense of self.

The Prophet

I read Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet to nourish my spirit. I was not disappointed.

On marriage, he says:
Love one another, but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.

On love he says:
Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself. Love possesses not nor would it be possessed; For love is sufficient unto love.

These thoughts are now a cliche, but they are true. There was a time when my wife and drank from each other's cup, but there really was nothing to sate the thirst. We were both empty and thirsty. Only when we overcame our existential angst with the fortuitous arrival of the fruit of our union did we begin filling our own cups; only then did we live life instead of wallowing in despair. Only then did love become sufficient unto love.

Trust

Francis Fukuyama's Trust, an excellent synthesis of economics, political science and sociology, makes a brilliant case about how the level of trust in a society - social capital - influences the scale of economic organizations. Familistic societies like China and India tend to have small family businesses while high trust societies such as Germany and Japan are likely to develop huge corporations. The lack of trust for non-kin serves as a limit to the expansion of business as the family runs out of competent members to act as managers.

The Philippines falls more closely at the familistic end of the spectrum. We do not have large, global brands like Samsung and Sony and our biggest companies are controlled by families such as the Sys, Tans, and Ayalas. While we have a noisy media, a vocal church, and vibrant NGOs, it is hard to characterize our society as having high spontaneous sociability - the capacity to associate with others. It is no surprise then that in the political arena, there are no cohesive political parties that articulate and aggregate interests. Rather, personalities and money still dominate.

It seems that for the Philippines to achieve economic and political modernity, Filipinos will have to get better at the art of association. Dirty public spaces and dangerous driving habits both attest to our disregard for others' welfare. Yet we were all taught as schoolchildren about the traditional idea of bayanihan. I can only hope that the virtual social networks of the 21st century will allow us to rediscover and recreate that lost social capital.

Lovely Bones

Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold, is the story of girl who was raped, murdered, then dismembered by a neighbor and who then observes how her family copes with the shock and grief of her loss as she lingers in the In-between. It was a sad, painful, and, at times, scary, read. As a father of two kids myself, the loss of a child to violent death is something I cannot imagine recovering from. The decision of Susie's mom to run away and commit adultery should have driven her husband Jack Salmon mad, but he was only happy to see her back home when she finally returned.

But life goes on as sister Lindsey finishes college and decides to get married to childhood sweetheart Samuel. Life begins anew as the family is reunited by Jack's heart attack and Susie finally lets go and moves on to heaven.

I know intimately a place where violent death happened. Just today, I read about a couple shot and killed at their own home. The violence Susie experienced is real. I can only hope that the acceptance she and her family finally felt will be just as real for those who suffer violence.