Maybe we should start a Derrida thread, and then one for Foucault. Olivierco could be sub-mod, since he is French.scruffmcgruff wrote: how did you learn so much about it, Aphroditea? Grad school?
Apr 23rd, '08, 11:45
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Apr 23rd, '08, 12:22
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Oh, SalSalsero wrote:Maybe we should start a Derrida thread, and then one for Foucault. Olivierco could be sub-mod, since he is French.scruffmcgruff wrote: how did you learn so much about it, Aphroditea? Grad school?
Here's a Rimmer quote from Red Dwarf which I think fits perfectly....
"Well, Sartre! We don't like existentialists around here. And we certainly don't like French philosophers poncing around in their black polo-necks filling everyone's heads with their theories about the bleakness of existence and the absurdity of the cosmos! Clear?"
And so we look as if we are still on topic.....What do you think Sartre would see if he looked into a cup of tea?
Scruff: I learned about him first in undergrad - but, yes, I am a grad student!
Oh what a fabulous little diddy! I ran across this; a writeup by the owner of a teashop in Matlock Bath who apparently had met Sartre:chamekke wrote:Moreover:Aphroditea wrote:What do you think Sartre would see if he looked into a cup of tea?
If Jean-P
Were a tea
Which tea
Would he be?
The History and Philosophy of The Victorian Teashop
The Victorian Teashop in Matlock Bath was the concept of existence and necessity – we needed a cup of tea while doing the renovation work upstairs for the Life in a Lens museum and got the idea for our own teashop, a place where not only we could drink tea, but visitors to the museum and the general public could drink it too.
We instantly realised this was a good idea because the famous French existentialist philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre had once said to me: "Hell is other people – unless you make them tea!" Good advice indeed, but it took thirty years and Matlock Bath to sort it out. Existentialism works in mysterious ways.
Serving tea, amongst other things, now also serves as a 'meaning of life'. It also includes the all essential 'freedom of choice' for ourselves and our customers – we can choose to serve them or not – they can have milk and sugar, or not – or even go wild and choose a flavoured tea, such as Earl Grey or Camomile.
Existentialist philosphy is all about the 'meaning of life' over 'mere existence' – making choices, choosing paths – so we're not only in harmony with our own existence (so far as one can be) we have also given that choice to others.
I thought this was great! I think Sartre would be that tea which has yet to be removed from its tin, that tea which exists before the moment the choice of WHICH tea to have is finallymade.
This was part of a bio I found on Sartre:
From his nestled corner of the Café Flore, where, when not teaching, he could usually be found drinking tea and scribbling furiously...
Oh I could also answer that he'd be any tea which helped relieve his Nausea!
So, what tea would YOU be?! I think I would be something like Foxtrot - complex, but playful. But, I will have to ponder what kind of tea I am!
Last edited by Aphroditea on Apr 23rd, '08, 18:22, edited 1 time in total.
Apr 23rd, '08, 20:06
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Poll idea noted...look for it in a TeaDay very soon! 
Apr 23rd, '08, 21:54
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Haha, nice. This reminds me of a silly BBC documentary in which a. they used the analogy of a soccer game to describe different philosophers (Sartre, Heidegger, Kirkegaard, etc.) and b. twisted the video footage of a guy on a park bench with some hippie-esque swirly computer animation when Sartre's nausea came up. Oh, those Brits.Aphroditea wrote:Oh I could also answer that he'd be any tea which helped relieve his Nausea!
Tea Nerd - www.teanerd.com
Apr 23rd, '08, 22:17
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Poststructuralism? **shudder** Don't even get me started on Foucault and Edward Said...
Your tea has no meaning other than that of the socio-historical context in which your tea exists.... In fact, you have no meaning either, you are simply a manifestation of Western Imperialism...
Your tea has no meaning other than that of the socio-historical context in which your tea exists.... In fact, you have no meaning either, you are simply a manifestation of Western Imperialism...
Apr 24th, '08, 03:27
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Orientalist scholarship hasn't exactly been flawless, either. It only takes a little digging before you find major, major errors. Of course, I'm not saying that all Orientalist works should be thrown on the pyre, but that stuff really needs to be read with a critical eye.
I am officially drowning in all this literary theory; I really don't know what I'm talking about. Someone throw me a metaphorical life-saving device appropriate for my particular cultural background, quick!
I am officially drowning in all this literary theory; I really don't know what I'm talking about. Someone throw me a metaphorical life-saving device appropriate for my particular cultural background, quick!
Appropriate for your cultural background, eh? How about Amazon? Jonathan Culler's Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction is surprisingly good. Its permanent residence isn't on my bookshelf, but rather my purse.
Or I can e-mail you the theory set of flashcards I made when I was studying for the GRE. Whatev.
Or I can e-mail you the theory set of flashcards I made when I was studying for the GRE. Whatev.