Month: September 2012
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Openness: The 5th virtue of philosophical life
There’s a certain sense of being open to what may come to pass that seems indispensable for living today. In The Guidebook to Philosophical Life, I had written only of four virtues–namely, of courage, patience, humility, and compassion. I had neglected the virtue of openness. Openness–the scourge of routine, an antidote to stubbornness, a lighthearted laughter…
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Musings on a mountain home
Are you alone, dear philosopher, there on that northern rock, bordered by ocean on one side and by sea on the other? Long ago, Philoctetes was–was alone, that is, was homeless, atopos, unmoored and unmanned… Feel free to look around at the blank walls, at the one-woman fashion show, at the small piles of Yes’s and…
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‘A radiant life, being good, expresses beauty…’
I am reading The Guidebook to Philosophical Life for the first time. I had written it without reading it through. Even now, I only read and mumble lines and phrases and stray poetic turns. I had written it but hadn’t realized the beauty of lines such as these. I have been reading them aloud this morning.…
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On leaving New York City
The time I spent in Scandinavia last month has led me to reflect upon the nature and course of my life. In an attempt to lead a simpler life (see Guidebook to Philosophical Life, Chapter 7: Living Simply), one that is more in tune with nature, I’m considering the possibility of moving away from New York City. The…
Andrew Taggart, Ph.D. 
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