The Usefulness of the UselessPaul Dry Books, 21 feb 2017 - 176 pagina's “A little masterpiece of originality and clarity.”—George Steiner “A necessary book.”—Roberto Saviano “A wonderful little book that will delight you.”—François Busnel International Best Seller / Now in English for the First Time In this thought-provoking and extremely timely work, Nuccio Ordine convincingly argues for the utility of useless knowledge and against the contemporary fixation on utilitarianism—for the fundamental importance of the liberal arts and against the damage caused by their neglect. Inspired by the reflections of great philosophers and writers (e.g., Plato, Dante, Montaigne, Shakespeare, Borges, and Calvino), Ordine reveals how the obsession for material goods and the cult of utility ultimately wither the spirit, jeopardizing not only schools and universities, art, and creativity, but also our most fundamental values—human dignity, love, and truth. Also included is Abraham Flexner’s 1939 essay “The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge,” which originally prompted Ordine to write this book. Flexner—a founder and the first director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton—offers an impassioned defense of curiosity-driven research and learning. |
Inhoudsopgave
nothing is useless not even uselessness itself | 48 |
the choice of the useless against the utilitarianism of a proud and foolish age | 50 |
what is useful is ugly as the jakes | 53 |
a useful man is a squalid one | 58 |
John Locke against poetry | 60 |
bread and poetry | 62 |
The madness of Don Quixote the hero of the useless and the gratuitous | 63 |
Dickenss criticism of utilitarianism | 66 |
Zhuangzi and Kakuzo Okakura | 68 |
the useful is a useless burden | 70 |
the gratuitous is revealed to be essential | 71 |
Emil Cioran and Socrates flute | 72 |
science does not study nature | 106 |
Loving in order to possess is the death of love | 120 |
Bibliography | 137 |
The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge | 155 |
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