When presented in class we were encouraged to read Descartes through several "lenses" (Latour) one of which was 'as literature' requiring paying specific attention to the author's motive and tone, views and limits of his characters, and general themes present within the work. Thus i would like to divulge from our standard scholarly text into a comparison between Descartes and something a bit more pop... the world of Harry Potter.
Being a Harry Potter fanatic I have collectively read the entire series upwards of five times (consecutively) and each individual book more than that, therefore I appeal to your Cartesian minds to legitimize me in this subject. I identify one of the central themes in Descartes' mediations to be the concept of "I think therefore I am" The principle that the human mind is wired intune with the universe and thus can achieve all obtainable knowledge is also a central theme in the Harry Potter series. In the world of Hogwarts this is demonstrated with the use of magic, the power of magic resides in ones mind and their mind alone. Wands, like our physical bodies, are instruments of the mind. Likewise, denial of the body is for Descartes crazy, and for J. K. Rowling evil. Lord Voldemort, the ultimate villain, with a mind so evil it has physically corrupted his once beautiful human body beyond all recognition, is a product of this Cartesian mindset, for he denies his body as his own, desiring to be only an immortal mind and this denial of body is the basis of his fall from grace. Another Cartesian theme is that of reason being the ultimate representation of humanity. Dumbledore, the ancient heroic wizard is the embodiment of this, for his supreme power to reason manifests itself in his wisdom, and thus saves him (and ultimately the wizarding community)
Our socialital Cartesian reasoning is the basis for the uproar this series caused, for effects within our world witchcraft is NOT credited to be an acceptable cause, it does not fit in a Cartesian plane or box. Paradoxically, Cartesian logic is also what made the series so popular. Rowling, after establishing herself as an author, is able to then present abstract ideas outside the norm without being considered crazy. Once again, I am unable to escape from my Cartesian wiring, as in conclusion I categorize, legitimize, and divide my reason into two, dueling dualisms.
I really loved this post and found it to be completely intriguing! The way you broke down the Cartesian mind set and paralleled it to Harry Potter helped me to understand the whole concept of being Cartesian to an even deeper extent. I think you made a great point at the end, as well, when you noted how being Cartesian actually HELPED Rowling in being able to write this series because she could use these abstract stories and ideas to create the story.
ReplyDeleteIt is absolutely amusing as to how much Cartesian thinking is truly incorporated into our lives. I think this was an extremely interesting and exciting way to portray that.