SOPHIE'S WORLD
(Sofies verden), by Jostein Gaarder (JG), translated from Norwegian into American by Paulette Møller (PM)Guestbook | Guestmap | Discussion forum | Inspired by...
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| CH = chapter, P = page, L = line, C = comment, N = Norwegian, T = (alternative) translation, usually closer to the original text, TTR = Two-Tier Reality (metaphysical system bridging East and West) |
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CHAPTER 25: KANT (PP267-283) |
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| P267 LL13-15: I can't wait ... you've gotten T: Don't make me suffer then! What do you think (of it)? - It's terrific. I've hardly eaten all day - You must eat - But it's so exciting - How far have you got? L25: You haven't given up then? T: You understand some of it, then? L26: I can hardly believe T: It's unbelievable | ||||||||
| P268 L5: Why? T: Oh! L8: You were going to say she's only (T: someone you've) made up L13: Have (T: Go on having) a nice day L18: she could see (T: out over) the garden L23: a few more pages T: further L25: mantel T: mantelpiece L26: not unimportant T: right enough L28: worry too much about that T: take it so hard L29: Nevertheless T: At any rate L37: That gives us T: So we have L38: Let's start T: Carry on / Off you go L41: His family was deeply pious T: He came from a strict Christian home | ||||||||
| P269 L1(cont): and his own religious (T: Christian) conviction(s) formed a significant (T: an important) background to his (T: whole) philosophy L4: I've heard enough about Berkeley, thanks C: Patience, Sophie, patience! L6: to have taught (T: who was a professor of) philosophy at a university. He was a professor of philosophy T: what we call a 'professional philosopher' L8: Professor? T: Professional? L13: And Kant was that kind? T: such a 'professional philosopher'? L15: carved T: made L20: I asked you not to mention Berkeley again C: Sophie is convinced that Berkeley is a square L24: which T: what L29: The question was ... what we can know about the world C: Little or nothing objectively or certainly; we construct our (subjective) world(s) as we go along L31: preoccupying T: common to L32: drawn up T: put forward L32: either the world is exactly as we perceive it C: But, to some extent, our perceptions differ, so we all see different (subjective) worlds L33(cont): or it is the way (T: as) it appears to our reason C: Or both; perception and reason cannot be divorced L34: Kant thought that both "sensing" and "reason" come into play in our conception of (T: when we experience) the world C: Right | ||||||||
| P270 L1: in our reason there are also decisive factors (T: important assumptions) that determine how we perceive the world around us C: Right L2(cont): In other words, there are certain conditions in the human mind that are contributive to (T: help to determine) our conception of the world L4(cont): You call (T: Was) that an example? L5: bring T: get L6: Thank you T: That's it L11: the glasses limit (C: affect, rather) the way you perceive reality L12: How you see (the world) is (C: partly) determined by the glasses you are wearing C: but also by mental preconceptions L13(cont): So you cannot say the world is red (C: Why not? Temporarily, everything is red) even though you conceive (T: perceive) it as being so L17: the way T: as L20: (that is) what Kant meant when he said that there are certain conditions governing the mind's operation (T: dispositions in our reason) which influence the way we experience the world T: influence all our experiences L27: we can know before we experience things that we (C: including babies?) will perceive them as phenomena in time and space L29(cont): For we are not able to take off the "glasses" of reason C: the "glasses" of humanly ordered creation L30: innate T: an innate ability L31: may depend on T: depends on L35: beyond ourselves T: us L36: Kant ... time and space belong to the human condition T: make-up C: Right L37(cont): Time and space are ... modes of perception (T: attributes of our reason) and not attributes of the physical world C: They are both L41: The mind leaves its imprint on (T: takes an active part by influencing) the way we apprehend the world C: Yes | ||||||||
| P271 L2: our perceptions adapt themselves to our "forms of intuition" C: and to our forms of culture and language L5: not only mind which conforms to things. Things also conform to the mind C: Yes! L6(cont): Kant called this the Copernican Revolution in the problem of human knowledge C: But Kant, like Copernicus, went only halfway. L8: By that he meant that it was just as new and just as radically different from former (T: the old) thinking as when Copernicus claimed that the earth revolved around the sun (C: Right) and not vice versa C: Wrong: both viewpoints are valid. Copernicus and his opponents were operating on the basis of exclusive-OR logic L12: right up to a point T: partly right L12: almost T: in a way L15: even the law of causality ... belongs to the mind C: Like all 'natural laws' L19: a causal link T: a necessary causal link L20: Hume ... we cannot perceive (T: that) the black billiard ball as being (T: is) the cause L25: Kant ... the law of causality is eternal and absolute (C: subjectively) simply because human reason perceives everything that happens as a matter of cause and effect C: Yes! And it seems to follow that cosmythologists positing an uncaused Big Bang are not using their powers of reason but their powers of metaphysical fantasy L29: physical world T: nature L31: we cannot know with certainty what the world is like "in itself" C: There is no world (of things) "in itself" L32(cont): We can only know what the world is like "for me" - or for everybody C: Yes, but all those worlds are different, although they largely overlap, especially in a particular culture with a common language L33(cont): Kant's greatest contribution to philosophy is the dividing line he draws between things in themselves - das Ding an sich - and things as they appear to us T: das Ding für mich C: there is no such dividing line because "things in themselves" do not exist. We create things - all things - by defining and delimiting them: the appearance is the reality (subjective/secondary reality) and there is no other reality except objective/primary reality, which is one-and-indivisible (TTR theory) L37: made T: drew | ||||||||
| P272 L9: different feeling about (T: experience/concept of) space L10: We could even have been created (C: have developed, rather: 'created' has religious overtones) in such a way that we would not go around searching for the cause of things that happen (T: that we did not look for the causes of what happens) around us L13(cont): How do you mean? T: Can you give me an example? L21: You will inevitably look for the cause of every event C: Nobody looks for the cause of every event L24: So K. says T: Is it really? L25: Hume showed (T: pointed out) that we could neither perceive nor prove natural laws L26(cont): (Kant) believed he could prove their absolute validity by showing that in reality we are talking about the laws of human cognition C: Including physical laws?! L29: Will a child T: a small child LL30-33: C: Norwegian 'fornuft' - literally 'reason' - can also be translated as 'mind'. Somewhat confusing | ||||||||
| P273 L1: saw T: caught sight of L6: was wearing some kind of red hat T: had something red on her head C: Is a hood a hat? L7: distracted T: by that sort of thing L9: K. believed (T: pointed out) that there are clear (C: ?!) limits to what we can know T: through the mind/reason LL18-19: these T: such L18: argument T: problem-posing L22: K. believed that reason operates beyond the limits of what we humans can comprehend C: Meaning?! L24: there is in our nature (T: - or in our reason - ) a basic desire (T: urge) to pose these same (T: such) questions L25: we ask whether the universe is finite or infinite C: Logically, the universe must be infinite L35: must conform to T: complies with L38: If you like T: For example L38: we wonder where the world came from C: Foolish question: it (the world/universe) has always existed L39: reason is in a sense "on hold" T: inoperative C: ?! L40: make use of T: hone itself on L41: we have never experienced the whole of the great reality that we are a tiny part of C: Agreed, but we can still give a rational and unequivocal answer to the question of "where the world came from" by dismissing it as nonsense. In a sense, this "great reality" (secondary reality, that is) is part of us, while we are part of primary reality (TTR theory). | ||||||||
| P274 L2: We can't know where it came from C: But we can know - by reasoning - that it (the ball/world) did not 'come from' anywhere L3(cont): But it will always be an attribute of human reason to ask where the ball comes from C: A ball is a thing which 'comes from' somewhere; the world/universe is not a thing and there is nowhere for it to 'come from' L5: find answers to all the deepest questions C: In this case, not deep but foolish L6: we never get a satisfactory answer because reason is not locked on T: not operative C: So let us engage reason: reason says that the temporally and spatially infinite All cannot have a cause or a beginning and cannot 'come from' anywhere L9: as to T: about L9: Kant ... there will always be two contrasting (T: opposing) viewpoints, depending on (T: viewpoints, from) what our reason tells us C: Nonsense L13: It is just as meaningful to say that the world must have had a beginning in time as to say that it had no such beginning C: Nonsense L14(cont): Reason cannot (C: can and does) decide between them T: For (our) reason, both possibilities are equally impossible C: Nonsense L15(cont): We can allege (T: assert) that the world has always existed (C: Right), but can anything always have existed if there was never any beginning? C: The universe is not just anything - or any thing - but the infinite ever-existing All L18: We say that the world must have begun sometime C: Wrong L20: Can something come from nothing? C: No, says Sophie, and she is right. Cosmythologists, please note L23: the materialists said that nature must consist of minimal parts ... Others believed that it must always be possible to divide extended reality into ever smaller parts. But which of them was right? (Sophie:) Both. Neither C: Sophie hits the nail right on the head L30: everything happens through the necessity of natural law C: 'Laws' do not cover all events, either in society or in nature L38: there must be a God because everything must have a first cause C: Every thing - but the universe is not a thing: it is All | ||||||||
| P275 L1: As far as reason goes (T: For reason), it is just as likely as it is unlikely that God exists C: "Does God exist?" is not a simple Yes/No question; rational analysis is needed, showing that God exists, not objectively but subjectively, for believers only, as their creation. Their God is present in the world(s) they have created but does not overlap into the world(s) of non-believers. In other words (using inclusive-OR logic), God exists and God does not exist: exists in the world(s) of believers but not in the world(s) of non-believers. We are the creators; we decide L5: where reason and experience fall short, there occurs a vacuum (T: a vacuum arises) that can be filled by (T: religious) faith C: How irrational! L10: Protestantism has been characterised (T: marked) by its emphasis (T: building) on faith L11: The Catholic Church ... has ... believed more in reason as a pillar of faith T: more/rather that reason can be a support for faith L16: it is essential for morality to presuppose ... will C: No L18: does the same T: almost the same L18: of everything T: about what L19: he smuggles God (T: and more) in by the back door C: Whereupon reason flies out of the window L22: faith T: belief L29: It is a moral necessity to assume the existence of God C: For Kant, perhaps, but not for everybody L34: bonnet T: hood | ||||||||
| P276 L2: He gestured in a way T: He said that with a gesture L5: bonnet T: hood L15: went T: got L22: to that effect T: similar L23: We cannot expect to understand what we are C: Meaning?! L24: We can never comprehend ourselves. Even less can we expect to comprehend the universe C: All 'comprehension' is relative L27: we are not going to be interrupted T: We shouldn't let ourselves be disturbed L33: area T: field L35: draw conclusions T: argue L38: our sentiments C: Our prejudices? L40: I can imagine T: That I can understand | ||||||||
| P277 L1: Kant had always felt (T: strongly) that the difference between right and wrong was a matter of reason, not sentiment T: was something truly real C: Or really true?! L1: C: The difference between right and wrong is a matter of language, custom and culture L4: Everybody knows what is right or (T: and) wrong ... because it is born in the mind C: No; we all have different ideas about what is right and wrong L6: Kant ... everybody has "practical reason" ... the intelligence that gives us the capacity to discern what is right or wrong in every case T: a faculty of the reason which always tells us what is right and what is wrong in the field of morals C: Subjectively, not objectively: moral views differ L11: Just as we are all intelligent beings ... perceiving everything as having a causal relation (T: as being caused), we all have access to the same universal moral law C: There is no universal moral law L14(cont): This moral law has the same absolute validity as the physical laws C: The validity of moral laws is even more limited than the validity of physical laws L19: (The moral law) applies to all people in all societies at all times C: Kant egotistically believes that his personal moral ideas must be universally valid L28: absolutely authoritative T: absolute LL37-39: Act in such a way ... as an end T: Always treat a person as an end in himself and not just as a means (to an end) C: Yes, but rather elastic in practice L40(cont): So we must not exploit (T: 'use') other people to (T: simply for) our own advantage L42: You must not exploit yourself as a mere means to achieving something C: Meaning?! | ||||||||
| P278 L2: Do unto others T: as you would have them do unto you L3: covers all ethical choices T: all situations of ethical choice L4: the golden rule says (T: expresses) the same thing (T: idea) as Kant's universal law of morals T: moral law L6: Hume was probably (T: doubtless) right in that (T: in saying that) we can't prove (T: by reason) what is right and wrong (by reason) L8: the law of morals (T: moral law) is just as absolute and just as universal as the law of causality C: No L9(cont): That cannot be proved by reason either, but it is nevertheless absolute and unalterable. Nobody would deny that C: Except cosmythologists, whose Big Bang theory contravenes that law L13: don't they? T: right? L14: When K. describes the law of morals, he is describing the human conscience C: Conscience is little more than a reflection of imposed authority, especially authority imposed during childhood. The form and extent of such imposed authority varies from family to family and culture to culture, and it forms a poor basis for the development of any rational moral code L21: if it is to be (T: called) a moral action, you must have conquered yourself T: it must be the result of self-conquest C: The appalling conclusion of a brilliant mind corrupted by religion and the doctrine of original sin L22(cont): Only when you do something purely out of duty (T: something because you feel it is your duty to follow the moral law) can it be called a moral action C: So a 'naturally good' person never takes what K. would call a moral action L27: the important thing T: what is decisive L30: it is this good will T: the attitude of mind L33: a good will ethic T: mind-set ethic / mental attitude ethic L40: kind of T: rather | ||||||||
| P279 L3: Search me T: Don't ask me L4: not dissimilar to the way Descartes claimed T: which recalls Descartes' claim L6: As material creatures, we are ... at the mercy of causality's unbreakable law C: Acknowledging that 'every event has a cause' does not impede or restrict us in any way L7: We do not decide what we perceive C: We decide to some extent what we observe, for example L10: creatures of reason T: mental creatures/beings L11: We are ... subject to causal relations T: the law of causality L12(cont): As such, we have no free will C: There is no conflict or contradiction between the law of causality and free will L14: the world as it exists in itself, independent of our sensory impressions C: There is no such world (of things) L17: when we conform (T: bow down) to moral law, it is we who make the law we are conforming to T: following C: Meaning?! LL20-21: mean T: bad/nasty L21: when you choose not to be mean ... you are then acting freely C: Meaning?! L23(cont): You're not especially free or (T: and) independent if you just do whatever you want T: follow your inclinations C: A peculiar and paradoxical attitude, revealing the typical fear of freedom shown by the deeply religious and the deeply conservative. Under the cloak of philosophy, Sophie is being indoctrinated L25: One can even become a slave to one's own egoism C: Like Kant, as he seeks to give his peculiar form of personal morality the status of universality L26: Independence and freedom are exactly what are required to rise above one's desires and vices C: Independence and freedom are exactly what are required to break free from the chains of a Kantian religious morality which puts desires and vices on much the same level L30: That's the difference between animals and humans T: it's precisely that freedom which makes us human L36: epoch T: period L40: moral law within me C: Then sentence omitted: T: And he continues: "For me, they are evidence/proof that there is a God above me and a God within me" | ||||||||
| P280 L3: is T: says he has L7: obey universal reason C: Meaning?! L11: believe T: fall for L13: turn the other way T: turn away L21: flap T: move L24: What a silly performance T: That sort of thing is tasteless L25: idiotic T: foolish L28: he can't (T: won't manage to) trick us L29: Because T: Then L30: If he lets the sky go dark or elephants fly T: darkens the sky with flying elephants L34: Sophie sat for a moment (T: a while) staring at him in amazement T: wonder L36: You also need to T: Then we shall also L37: arrives T: lands L38: his gluey (T: sticky/sentimental) fantasies | ||||||||
| P281 L9: hurry T: run L11: She wondered if it was T: She thought of L15: sweater T: pullover L19: no surprise T: no great mystery L20: preoccupied C: Then sentence missing: T: The little figure turned abruptly L22: Winnie-the-Pooh N: Ole Brumm L28: I'm only a small bear T: a bear of little brain L39: Owl N: Ugla L39: Eeyore N: Tussi | ||||||||
| P282 L1: stupid T: shy/embarrassed L1: It's much easier to figure out the weather C: Isn't that right, Mr Fish! L5: Piglet N: Nasse Nøff L6: Rabbit T: Petter Sprett L6(cont): and his friends C: and relations L10: produced T: held up L11: lose my way T: come away L13: Hilde-through-the-Looking-Glass T: Mirror-Hilde L18: Christopher Robin N: Kristoffer Robin L29: set off T: ran off L31: too bad T: shameful L41 contract to keep the peace T: set up an international order to prevent war | ||||||||
| P283 L1: laborious T: long L2: The establishment of such a league (of nations) ... was philosophy's ultimate goal C: Okay, you get the onions and we'll have some nice tripe and onions ... | ||||||||