Subj : Everyone's Philosopher
To   : FRANK MASINGILL
From : LEE LOFASO
Date : Thu Jul 19 2001 07:15 am

Hello Frank,

>LL>Dr. Adler viewed philosophy not as a field for some, but rather an
>  >endeavor for many - as the title of a journal he published since the
>  >early 90s states, "Philosophy is Everyone's Business."

>LL>And so it is, "Everyone's Philosopher" has left us for another
>  >world, the pursuit of which can only be found at the very end.

FM>    You have not responded to me in a vituperative manner so far so I'll tak
FM>chance and hazard a reply.  I share your admiration for Adler.  He did, inde
FM>write for people everywhere and in all walks of life.

I try not to respond to anyone in a "vituperative manner", although
I do have a tendency to poke fun at some arguments.  :)  I have several
books by Dr. Adler, although not all, having read each of them more
than once.  His writing style was such that almost anyone could easily
understand what he was trying to say.

Dr. Adler was not only a philosopher and author, but also an educator,
being a professor at several universities - such as Columbia University
and the University of Chicago.  He was well-known and highly respected,
not only in academia but also in the halls of Congress and elsewhere.

FM>    If by "another world" (the phrase of Christopher Colombus when he
FM>discovered the waters of the Orinoco pouring into the sea) is meant the
FM>timelessness of eternity, (NOT the meaning of Colombus) then one may be cert
FM>that Adler was purusing this "other world" (in the sense of Aristotle's
FM>"immortalizing" to the extent that man may do so) his life long.

True, at least since the age of 14, when Adler read John Stuart Mill's
autobiography, thus learning that Mill had read all of Plato's works by
age 5. :)

FM>The question
FM>everyman has to ask (unless he is silly enough to rely on the garbable heap
FM>private opinion) are the same questions asked throughout this mysterious
FM>reality of man by saints, philosophers and prophets.   Philosophy as a priva
FM>affair pursued in an immanent world is almost unthinkable despite the unhapp
FM>realization that as Parmendides discovered the "not is" is as real as the "i
FM>in the world of the marketplace where a Socrates has to contend with the
FM>Calicles taught by the Gorgias and sidekicked by the Polus.

How can philosophy be a private affair when one intermingles with the
rest of his/her community?  "No man is an island unto himself" may seem
cliche, but it is nonetheless a truth.

FM>    Philosophy is STILL the love of being unto its source in the divine grou
FM>of being just as it was conceived to be by its founder and definer, Plato.
FM>else is the love of doctrine and private hubris on a grand scale.  It does n
FM>belong to the builders of systems and is BY FAR not confined to those who
FM>merely call themselves philosophers.  Adler's love was for the Great Books o
FM>the world  (genuine thought).

Dr. Adler was the editor of the 60 volume set, The Great Books of the
Western World, and also responsible for the Great Books reading program.
But you *knew* that...  :)

FM>    It is by definition a pursuit of man even though it has lost its way qui
FM>often, especially for those dedicated to living in a world of "post this and
FM>post that" rather than in the present under God which is the existence that
FM>defines man as human.

"I have reasonable grounds for affirming God's existence."
- Mortimer J. Adler (d. June 28, 2001)

--Lee


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