Silverfiddle's Canon

Blogger and teacher Ben Sutherland had a post a few weeks ago where he pondered new ways to make classical liberal thought (as opposed to modern liberal orthodoxy) accessible and cool to kids. We're just not teaching people how to think and analyze any more, we're teaching our kids what to think (indoctrination). Our ignorance of history and inability to put current events into historical perspective will lead us to ruin.

Here's what Ben said:

I've got some ideas. They're going to take work. A mix of Mark Twain and John Stuart Mill. With some Larry the Cable Guy, Mike Judge and Stephen Colbert thrown in for good measure.

I'm a little Mill-heavy and Twain-light, at this point. But I'll keep working on it.

Somehow we gotta make thinking fun, laid-back, and cool. They are, in the right hands. Now I just gotta translate that into something a bit more digestable for folks with less appreciation for classical liberal thought.

I'm curious to hear your own thoughts, Silverfiddle. Who are your favorite thinkers? Enquiring minds want to know.

Here's my answer:
I am not a philosopher, so I don't look to any one person or secular school of thought to guide my life. I am also not into hero worship; so I don't try to model my life after any human being. I think the Holy Bible is the greatest book in the history of the world and no greater guide to life can be found.

I'm also not a teacher, so it would be folly for me to give teaching ideas to Ben. Here's what I can recommend: Know how to think, know what you believe, know your history.

Know how to think
Logical, critical thinking is the most important skill. An easy way to introduce yourself to logic is to do a sudoku. A simple explanation of the syllogism is also a good start. Add to that some examples of logical fallacies and you now at least have a logical framework to analyze what someone is telling you. There are on-line resources that can get you started.

Know what you believe
A person with no moral code is a fire. Could do good, could do bad, depending on which way the wind blows. Any religious person should start with their religious text. For Christians, that's The Holy Bible, Old Testament and New Testament. The Bible contains every note in the key of life. It starts with God creating mankind and quickly goes downhill from there. The story of God leading the ungrateful Hebrews out of bondage is a story of each ungrateful person's struggle with obeying the creator. For those agnostics and atheists, there are many non-religious moral codes out there. Pick one.

Read history & the classics
I think history is the best teacher. Read enough and you will learn that there is indeed nothing new under the sun. You will also see that whatever you are going through is not the superlative event of its kind in the history of man. Things have been better, and things have been worse. We're living in higher luxury now, but the basic human condition has not changed over the millennia. The History of English Speaking Peoples, The Story of English, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, and America, the Last Best Hope are good starters. Be sure to read things you think you will disagree with; it will stretch your brain and maybe change your mind.

Finally, a healthy dose of skepticism never hurt anyone.

See Silverfiddle's List of Great Books Here