Read the full article which is published on Philosophy Bits (external link)Everything is finally going right and you’re feeling much better than usual. Far from pain and suffering, you’re experiencing delight. A powerful feeling of pleasure, clarity, and peace has developed in you. You cannot ignore this feeling, which you realize must be joy.
But then you start to reflect on your experience. You compare your present experience to your past experiences and possible experiences yet to come. You want this moment of joy to last, but you know it’s only temporary. You know that your situation will soon change and you will return to the pattern of ordinary life. You know that when this happens, joy will also leave you.
Before you get to experience it fully, your joy is being crowded out by the suffering of dread. You’ve become attached to a new desire to preserve joy, and this has immediately produced anxiety over its imminent departure. If you continue to think about this, your joy will be completely diluted by suffering, and you will suffer further from despair over your loss.
Poststructuralism as a Regime of Truth: Foucault and the Paradox of Philosophical Authority
Foucault’s critique of power and knowledge shaped poststructuralism, yet its rejection of truth risks becoming its own orthodoxy. To remain...
