day 2: practice for dying
Today I read a little bit of Plato's Phaedo. I had just woken from a nap, but was too lazy to get out of bed. At the same time, I didn't want to completely succumb to bed rotting. Thankfully, on my bedside table, I keep a stack of books and a notebook for moments just like these.
Phaedo is a very slim text, but I'm only 13 pages in. While reading, I carefully transcribe interesting quotes and the main arguments Socrates makes.
This text is required reading for an upcoming philosophy course, so I try to anticipate what will need to be known. But I do find the first discussion really compelling.
Socrates states that philosophers do not fear death. He says this on the day of his execution. His friends are bewildered. But as Socrates explains the role of a philosopher, it slowly starts to make sense. Totally rejecting the body and the material, no wonder Socrates doesn't fear death.
A very enlightened take. Reminds me of the state of nirvana. A state where death simply just is the best and desired outcome.
I'm also trying to get ahead of an English course. It's just an intro course to novels. I'm admittedly a bit disappointed by the selection. Currently, I'm reading Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead. It's a rather easy read, although I am constantly thinking, "how exactly am I going to analyse this book?"
The novel is filled to the brim with symbolism. Many words are capitalised and made proper nouns. An easy way to figure out the recurring themes. The narrator is also an astrologer, and quite often refers back to the configuration of the stars. Symbolism overload. Trying to narrow it down a specific and succinct thing will prove to be quite a task.
As an astrology hobbyist, I do find the astrology bits amusing. To me, it's good information. But I wonder how my classmates feel reading this, especially those with no astrology knowledge at all. And the narrator rarely uses modern pop astrology tropes. None of the, "Leoa are like this" bullshit.
This narrator is, refreshingly, focused on the planets. She describes chatacters as Saturine. She tries to calculate longevity with the hyleg1 (and how, too). She talks about the houses of the chart, house rulership, and aspects between planets. It's all very technical when the narrator goes on these tangents. And it feels a bit out of place. But I enjoy it. I hope to maybe try to get some astrology talk into my final essay.
With all of these books in progress, I've also been steadily consuming graphic novels on the side. I just finished reading Agnes, the Murderess. The art is quite rudimentary, but somehow it just works. It feels a bit primal, like something you'd see etched on cave walls.
Tomorrow will be a busy day. I hope to do some philosophy coursework, and continue planning the rest of the semester.
I've tried to calculate how long I have left to live before. My hyleg was either the moon or Jupiter. If astrology is to be believed, I will not live for very long. According to the technique, I'll live until the ripe age of 30 or 31. I am currently 30 years old.↩