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On impractical discussion On mentioning impractical discussion, one may think of something like impractical discussion endangers the country while great efforts make it prosperous, and so on so forth .All in all, most of us do not hold a high opinion of impractical discussion. However, if you connect impractical discussion with Confucius Analects and Plato Dialogues even Wei-Jin Demeanor,you may change your mind and get triggered to speak out something in respect without any consideration. So this impractical discussion is of different style from that one. In the long history of Chinese culture,there has been a trend that a flock of the educated men make impractical discussion. They gathered together and discuss the tide of politic river andadvantages & disadvantages of the current administration, even directly pointing out the defects of the then emperor. They talked about a wide range of topics including politics, social management, economy, especially the policyabout scholars who are called “读书人”（the people who read books）in Chinese. When they had ideas to sell what they had learned to the emperor, they would sit the imperial examination and became an official to carry out their political opinions under the power of the emperor. Before and after their office, they would make impractical discussion to make full use of the vigor and wit, making suggestions to the emperor for the steadfast and everlasting rule. Impractical discussion has been apparently the best way to make contribution to the rule of the NO. 1 family. But the impractical discussion in the history of western mind is absolutely different than what impractical discussion means in the history of Chinese civilization. Socrates made, according to what Plato recorded in his Republic, quite different style of impractical discussion. The Chinese impractical is in fact rather practical.That is to say, what they discussed were meant to solve practical problems, whereas the impractical discussion of western mind were meant to seek truth beyond the practical. They were not content to describe the fact; they wish to ascertainits relation to experience in general, and thereby to get at its meaning and worth. The Chinese impractical discussion ends up with an office; the western impractical discussion truth, which, they think, will not make us rich, but will make us free. The Chinese impractical discussion were useful when the emperor adopted the suggestions; the western impractical discussion were “the noblest pleasure, the joy of understanding ”. The highest knowledge, said Socrates, isthe knowledge of good and evil, the knowledge of the wisdom of life which heall his life sought. Making impractical discussion was his way to do it and hedid it successfully. His wife called him a good-for-nothing idler who broughtto his family more notoriety than bread. He walked and talked with any man hemet in the marker, street, and anywhere. He talked with his disciples under abig tree or anywhere they would like. He talked with those he knew and any strangers about anything. It was by these impractical discussionsthat Socrates preached and awaken the souls. And his last words were: Crito, Iowe a cock to Asclepius; will you remember to pay the debt? |
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