My Philosophy lecture today was one of the most interesting lectures of the semester. The professor, hilarious and CLEVER (omg so clever) Dr. Joe White, introduced Aristotle to the class, and he did so with his unique, weird, and funny approach that relates strictly to the students’ life on a daily basis. Dr. White, or Joe, started by introducing the concepts of Eudaemonia and Euthanasia. These words come from Greek and indicate, respectively, “Good Life” and “Good Death.” Joe informed the class that according to national polls, only about 40% of Americans declare to be happy. So what’s up with 60% of people in the States? How can you be happy? What makes a happy life?
Well, Joe laid down the some important facts. First of all, happiness is a different concept than joy. A person who is joyful all the time is not necessarily happy, as a matter of fact— suggested Joe— that person probably has some sort of problems! For example, when you get a bad grade, your girlfriend leaves you, or someone dear to you passes away, you are not joyful, you are sad, and you may cry… but that doesn't mean you are not a happy person in your life.
Secondly, humans never talk about death, but thinking about it is actually very important. Humans tend to never address the issue, and they often end up unprepared (see what I did there, with “end up?”)… Jokes apart, we all need to recognize that death is unavoidable: the clock is clicking for all of us, and as a matter of fact, you are two minutes closer to your death than when you started reading this blog post. Accept it, and carry on.
Then Joe claimed that most people focus their attention on “Eudemonia,” or reaching for a happy life. And in doing this, they often get confused and distracted by material desires. And then they end up always chasing things, always chasing happiness, like they’re ever going to get it. Thoughts like… “I want to go to school, so I can get a degree, so I can find a job, so I can make money, so I can have a house, and then I’ll buy a nice car, and then I will go on vacation in Hawaii, and then I will be happy!” are dangerous. What about the journey to get there? By chasing happiness, people can forget to live.
Instead of focusing on Eudaemonia, in order to understand what makes for a happy life, we need to use reverse engineering and figure out what makes for a good death. We need to think about that dreaded moment, when— hopefully at an old age— each of us will die. What will make you die happy?
First of all, accepting the fact that you are doomed. Joe talked to us about a person close to him, who was scared and didn't want to let go. He compared this to another person, also close to him, who one day in her 90s woke up and said: “I think today I am going to die… I think it’s my last day.” She felt it, and she accepted it, and all she wanted to do was to think about her past, her journey, her presence in this world, and be able to say: gosh it was good! She knew she had a meaningful life and she knew it was going to end at one point so so she did those things that really created meaning to her life. So… if you want to die comfortable and not in the middle of the street… plan ahead! If you want to hold your son’s hand, or die knowing that your grandchildren will be great, but you still don't have a boyfriend/girlfriend… Figure it out! These are some of the ways Joe made his students smile and laugh even when talking about something so serious and dreaded as death.
I thought the lecture was very inspiring and thought-provoking. I like Joe White because he is extremely clever, meaning that he is not only very knowledgable, but he also knows how to use his knowledge greatly. He knows his audience and makes every lecture interesting, and funny. And when I say funny, I actually mean students laugh out loud, like at a comic show. This is because he has a great personality and he makes examples that directly relate to the life of a student at SBCC. Here is an example: he told us a story about a guy asking a girl out on a date, and then he didn't show up. He was very descriptive and made sure to tell the story so we would all hate the guy (again, he is very clever). Then he asked us what we would call that guy, and people said words like “a-hole” and many other not-nice descriptive adjectives. Then he conclude: so, when you start the semester, and you make an appointment with me, and you say I will be there, room A-160, Tuesday at 12:45, and then you decide not to come to class… What are you? You are a… [insert here all the adjectives that were on the board]. Everybody bursted out laughing. He is a great man, and I am so glad I took his Introduction to Philosophy class. Totally worth it!
A presto,
- Fede
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