tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30289778.post6866779781792204819..comments2023-12-01T00:34:23.424-05:00Comments on Knowledge and Experience: A fun questionEvelyn Bristerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17016286150526911445noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30289778.post-45387656856428772042008-11-02T01:52:00.000-04:002008-11-02T01:52:00.000-04:00I think reading a lot of (old) science fiction at ...I think reading a lot of (old) science fiction at that age was one of the factors that led me to develop an interest in philosophy. (Maybe it's also why I took such a liking to Berkeley...)<BR/><BR/>Heinlein was mentioned by an earlier commenter. He makes some explicit references to philosophy here and there, and is even cited by David Lewis in 'The Paradoxes of Time Travel.' I don't think very much recent science fiction is very good in this (or any) respect.<BR/><BR/>Additionally, I don't see any reason why a bright 13 year old shouldn't be able to read some of the early dialogues of Plato (Apology, Euthyphro, and Crito at least are fairly accessible and entertaining; you mention Symposium, which I think is probably a bit much). Of course she might learn to prove that children ought to beat their parents...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30289778.post-36854487740826005322008-10-31T08:42:00.000-04:002008-10-31T08:42:00.000-04:00I remember reading and loving Douglas Hofstadter's...I remember reading and loving Douglas Hofstadter's Gödel, Esher, Bach as a teen.Ponder Stibbonshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18387561315863534902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30289778.post-44221654186966203642008-10-30T12:39:00.000-04:002008-10-30T12:39:00.000-04:00In hindsight, the following suggestions are better...In hindsight, the following suggestions are better for a 17+ age group except the Asimov.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Heinlin, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress for politics (anarchic communitarian) and sociality (social organization, marriage, law/justice).<BR/><BR/>Asimov's robot short stories that explore questions of humanity, embodiment, identity, etc.<BR/><BR/>the recent movie "The Fountain" for a graphic explication of Buddist enlightenment and the re-living of past lives that occurs in that moment.khadimirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12960757465883819380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30289778.post-25547412182881997712008-10-29T14:54:00.000-04:002008-10-29T14:54:00.000-04:00I remember reading Dostoevskii's The Idiot when I ...I remember reading Dostoevskii's <EM>The Idiot</EM> when I was 13, and not getting anything out of it. I did appreciate Hermann Hesse's novels, though.<BR/><BR/>Personally, I would recommend reading science fiction and fantasy, especially for topics like ethics and anti-utopian social philosophy. Ursula LeGuin is always worthwhile. Orson Scott Card can be thought-provoking.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30289778.post-10158196892230288952008-10-29T14:04:00.000-04:002008-10-29T14:04:00.000-04:00The Westing Game was an awesome book! I think I st...The Westing Game was an awesome book! I think I still have it somewhere. <BR/><BR/>Sideways Arithmetic from Wayside School (by Louis Sachar) is a collection of logic puzzles and games. When I'm feeling mischievous I sometimes give my philosophy students true/false tests like those in that book -- weird ones, where there are statements that, if true, make themselves true, and, if false, make themselves false, or ones that are complicated Liar paradoxes. <BR/><BR/>Anna Sewell's Black Beauty is a good one: it is a book that was written to make a specific philosophical point for adults, namely, that it was immoral for people who work with horses to treat them badly, but also fits comfortably in the 'animal story' genre that is often popular at much younger agesBrandonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06698839146562734910noreply@blogger.com