Reflecting on Literature and Languages #2
June 2024 Newsletter
Welcome to the second newsletter of Reflecting on Literature and Languages! Thank you for subscribing :)
June has been a very busy month for me. And it looks like July will be too. However, I still managed to get some reading done (mostly for my thesis and internship) and do a bit of Japanese language learning.
Reading
Eating in Theory by Annemarie Mol 3.5/5
During my philosophy and bioethics internship, I participated in an ethics book club. The assigned reading was Eating in Theory by Annemarie Mol (1958- present). This book states that eating has been considered as a lower bodily function in many philosophical ideas throughout history. It was not regarded as a conscious process and not something worth writing about, for example, in comparison to the mind. But Annemarie Mol argues the difference! Eating is a way of interacting with the world and making the world a part of ourselves; discovering the world even. It is indeed a conscious and complex process. The network of how we get to our food is complex and food is often intertwined with culture. Sometimes it is unclear which eating preferences and food items are ethical and which are not. For this reason, moral righteousness about our food choices is often an illusion. Products that are labelled as ‘’fair trade’’ may still contain some unethical practices somewhere in the network of production, distribution, etc.
‘‘For if cynicism is dangerous, moral righteousness is delusional’’.
Moral Repair by Margaret Urban Walker 3/5
This is the second book that I had to read for my internship but I will be using this one for my thesis as well. Moral Repair, written by Margaret Urban Walker (1948- present), takes the reader through various examples of wrongdoing in our society and history. It explores the implications of wrongdoing, for example, the loss of trust, feelings of anger and resentment and the difficult situation of moral harm. Regaining trust and restoring moral relationships are important aspects of moral repair. Walker explains why even in the most horrible acts of humankind, it is important to try to achieve moral repair. Even when it is deemed impossible or undesirable; one should at least try! The wrongdoer could be an individual person, but also the government or society. When victims are ignored or not taken seriously, it creates additional harm that piles up on the already existing harm. It causes even more resentment, not only for the wrongdoer but also for society in general.
‘’Victims must be able to tell, or have someone else tell in ways basically faithful to their own experience, the truth about what they have endured’’.
Autonomy and Trust in Bioethics by Onora O’Neill 3.5/5
My thesis supervisor recommended this book for writing the chapter on trust. Onora O’Neill (1941- present) has written multiple works touching on political philosophy and ethics, in particular bioethics. Interesting fact: she is also a crossbench member of the House of Lords; one of the oldest institutions in the world. In this book, she describes a different form of autonomy than the traditionally used in bioethics. Bioethics focuses mostly on individual autonomy; it is one of the major pillars of biomedical ethical principles. Yet, O’Neill argues that this form of autonomy is not always the best fit for science, biotechnology and medicine.
‘’…increasing individual autonomy may increase the autonomy of those in positions of power, so adding to their opportunities for untrustworthy action and to others’ reasons for mistrusting them’’.
A more fitting form of autonomy is derived from Immanuel Kant’s interpretation of autonomy and is called by O’Neill the principled autonomy.
‘’Kantian autonomy is manifested in a life in which duties are met, in which there is respect for others and their rights, rather than in a life liberated from all bonds’’.
The issue of trust is often discussed in scientific literature about AI and other forms of (bio)technology. New concepts in biomedicine require trust from the public. But the more we focus on trust and try to improve it, the more distrust there is in society. Refinement of the trustworthiness of certain individuals (doctors, scientists, journalists) and institutions by regulations is necessary but not enough to regain public trust.
Hell House by Richard Matheson 3.5/5
I was excited to read this horror classic and to explore yet another infamous haunted house. This is the second book that I have read from Richard Matheson (1926- 2013), the first one was I Am Legend. I think that I Am Legend has a deeper meaning as a novel and discusses some interesting philosophical themes. But Hell House is nice for pure entertainment.
If you would like to read better novels about haunted houses or houses that haunt, then I would suggest picking-up The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson or House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. Both are far better at creating a believable psychological horror atmosphere and exploring deeper themes than just mere ghost haunting. While Hill House lets the reader decide about the question if the house is haunted or not and creates a horror environment throughout the book through subtle scary events and descriptions of the house, Hell House only uses graphic and vulgar scares. But the vulgarity of certain scenes does not create fear, it just makes you wonder about the necessity of that specific scene.
Currently Reading & Goals
For now I’m primarily focused on reading The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostojevski. And the only reading goal I want to set for July is finishing this Russian classic. Then I hope to start on Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien; the final part of the Lord of the Rings series.
I also need to read one more book for my thesis: Technology and the Virtues: A Philosophical Guide to a Future Worth Wanting by Shannon Vallor. I hope that this book will give me some insights on how to deal with the ethical issues around AI, Big Data and secondary use of health data.
Language Learning
June was a terrible month for learning Japanese. I did not have the time to work on my goals because I spent most of my time working on the thesis and finishing up my internship. But I tried to focus a bit on kanji learning. For this I mainly used three apps: Anki, Clozemaster and Mochi Kanji.
I think most of you are familiar with Anki. This flashcard app is popular among many language learners but also students of other subjects. See my first newsletter on how I use Anki and which pre-made decks I like.
Clozemaster and Mochi Kanji may be less widely known, however, are also very effective in teaching you new vocabulary in context. Learning in context is an important part for me; just random word memorisation does not do the trick. Clozemaster provides you with interesting sentences for every vocabulary word. It gives language learning a 90’s game-like atmosphere and it consists of multiple tracks that one could choose. There is the fast fluency track or more JLPT-focused tracks, etc. Clozemaster also contains other languages besides Japanese; I also like to use it for Spanish.
Mochi Kanji is focused only on the Japanese language. You can learn there new kanji through following JLPT-focused lessons (JLPT N5 until N2) or lessons for specific professions and themes (like nursing or IT). They have their own space repetition system, which is quite effective, and a built-in dictionary to look up words.
In July, I plan to continue using these apps and maybe pick up some reading in Japanese.
Thank you for reading and until next month!
Check out my website for more information about the language learning resources I use. And follow me on Medium for articles about reading, writing and language learning.
This newsletter is part of the Reflecting on Literature and Languages publication on Medium.
