4 ms·

> The removal of foundational subjects So many ideas about improvement. I'll share one uncommon one: Simply reading books older than 100 years will reveal the

> The removal of foundational subjects So many ideas about improvement. I'll share one uncommon one: Simply reading books older than 100 years will reveal the depth of understanding lacking in modern society. I would trade any modern curriculum if students were made to read books from hundreds of years ago (they cover all subjects anyway). Even silly children's books like Pinocchio (1883) are incredibility apt at teaching proper communication and reason. Media these days is very shallow and lacking in character and understanding of the world.

kennywinker 4y ago
> Media these days is very shallow and lacking in character and understanding of the world. Correction: the media you’re exposing yourself to is lacking in character and understanding of the world. There is plenty of media being made now with depth and clarity that 1883 would be stunned by.
- Xeoncross 4y ago
  Can you point to an example? I think you might be confusing information with depth of character and understanding. Yes, we have new and better information now, but the ways in which it is expresses is notably inferior to the writings I've been exposed to from the past.
  - kennywinker 4y ago
    My deep reading won’t be your deep reading, but the two standout books i’ve read recently and have changed my understanding of the world: Parable of the sower by octavia butler All about love by bell hooks Neither of those were written in the last decade - but that’s a product of me not being very aware of the literary scene - it takes a long time for works to reach me, but by the time they do it’s only good stuff. I wonder if that’s maybe some of what you’re experiencing as well - older works that stuck around have stood the test of time, while the crap got forgotten.
Bakary 4y ago
There has never been as big a proportion of the population that is educated and literate as what we have now. For all their wisdom, our predecessors were engaged in the same constant warfare and genocide, whilst also having more restrictive social norms and a lower tolerance of the eccentric. There's also the fact that if we are still talking about a story from 1883, it says more about the quality of that specific work than the average of the era.
- NateEag 4y ago
  > There's also the fact that if we are still talking about a story from 1883, it says more about the quality of that specific work than the average of the era. Yes, exactly! Old things that are still remembered have passed a lot of filters, significantly raising the probability that they're worth attending to. It's not going to be true for everything, but it's a helpful role of thumb.

kennywinker 4y ago

> Media these days is very shallow and lacking in character and understanding of the world. Correction: the media you’re exposing yourself to is lacking in character and understanding of the world. There is plenty of media being made now with depth and clarity that 1883 would be stunned by.

Xeoncross 4y ago
Can you point to an example? I think you might be confusing information with depth of character and understanding. Yes, we have new and better information now, but the ways in which it is expresses is notably inferior to the writings I've been exposed to from the past.
- kennywinker 4y ago
  My deep reading won’t be your deep reading, but the two standout books i’ve read recently and have changed my understanding of the world: Parable of the sower by octavia butler All about love by bell hooks Neither of those were written in the last decade - but that’s a product of me not being very aware of the literary scene - it takes a long time for works to reach me, but by the time they do it’s only good stuff. I wonder if that’s maybe some of what you’re experiencing as well - older works that stuck around have stood the test of time, while the crap got forgotten.

Bakary 4y ago

There has never been as big a proportion of the population that is educated and literate as what we have now. For all their wisdom, our predecessors were engaged in the same constant warfare and genocide, whilst also having more restrictive social norms and a lower tolerance of the eccentric. There's also the fact that if we are still talking about a story from 1883, it says more about the quality of that specific work than the average of the era.

NateEag 4y ago
> There's also the fact that if we are still talking about a story from 1883, it says more about the quality of that specific work than the average of the era. Yes, exactly! Old things that are still remembered have passed a lot of filters, significantly raising the probability that they're worth attending to. It's not going to be true for everything, but it's a helpful role of thumb.