75. Pop philosophy bro bullshit
I had beef with a former flame. My issue (and probably very unpopular opinion): I don't like people who only subscribe to philosophers such as Alan Watts. (I'll just use this philosopher as an example because he's the most familiar one to me). These are my thoughts from listening to hundred of hours of Alan Watts. There is nothing inherently evil about listening to this man, but only listening to his talks and rattling off his lines like a broken record is just ridiculous. Listening to any pop philosopher and just parroting their thoughts is absolutely ridiculous.
Alan Watts was a renowned philosopher whose interpretations of Eastern thought for Western audiences garnered significant attention. His insights into Zen Buddhism, Taoism, and the nature of reality have resonated with many people, sparking journeys of self-discovery and enlightenment. He's a very common reference in how people get introduced to philosophy in general, but honestly he's not really a philosopher in the sense of engaging with and contributing to philosophy in the way that would entail. Watts is more like a 'philosophical entertainer' (according to Wikipedia) in sharing insights he found in Eastern philosophy with Western popular audiences.
However, my issue lies not with Watts himself but rather with the way people, like my ex, seem to cherry-pick and oversimplify his teachings to fit their personal narratives and also use it to think of themselves as "better" or more "informed" of things. I think that Watts says some cool things actually: “The meaning of life is just to be alive. It is so plain and so obvious and so simple. And yet, everybody rushes around in a great panic as if it were necessary to achieve something beyond themselves.”
...I just don't think he's someone to look up to and only listen to. This caused me to have some beef with this particular philosopher in my life. With that, I feel a little uncomfortable when people say that they enjoy listening to Alan Watts and only him? It's probably a personal issue of mine, but I don't think it's wise to just subscribe to one school of thought.
(There were some issues I had with Watts' speeches- e.g., some of his thoughts towards race are painfully a product of his culture from 1920-1960, so of course he said some unhelpful things. He makes some "of the time" comments towards women and poc's, which is something to keep and mind and recognize.)
"Philosophy bros" have a bad rap. It's unfortunate that there's an over-saturation of icky people compared to people who appreciate the literature and are open to different kinds of discussion. Many of these kind of people have this sort of "philosophy bro" reputation for an inflated sense of intellectual superiority. They usually dismiss alternative viewpoints or practically engage in intellectual one-upmanship. By sheer superficiality and misinformation, these kind of people undermine the serious study of philosophy. Their antics may discourage newbies from actually engaging in philosophical inquiry or create a perception that philosophy is all about empty rhetoric and posturing. There's a level of pretentiousness that one must reach to in order to have a discussion with them, but I think that's the same for a lot of things, but I think this one is more closed-off and exclusive.
Alan Watts is just a guy sharing his understanding and if it makes sense to you, if it helps you, you can use his words with care. But you don't have to 100% align yourself ideologically with him. I remember when I was with that particular ex of mine, he would insist on falling asleep to The Dream Of Life by Alan Watts YouTube video. I tried it a couple of nights whenever I came over to his place, but it didn't work out for me. I honestly couldn't stand it. I also really felt bothered by this fanatic behavior exhibited by my partner at the time and tried to talk about it.
Honestly, I just advise others to express your own thoughts with your own words, not to rely on old dead guys and their philosophical thoughts.
~ a hater,
<3 K