The Plato Thread

[emjay]

My favorite literature professor had a poster than hung over his door:

"The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be ignited." --Plotinus

That's pretty much the only Plotinus that I know. I've never read any of his works. But that quote is fucking awesome.

I definitely get the vessel part... cos our capacity to learn or absorb seems to be pretty much limitless... but much less clear on what the fire might be referring to, unless it's perhaps something like the flux we've been talking about before... but sounds like probably not since the flux of sensation etc is not really something we ignite ourselves (ie it's already lit ). Obviously that's just my first impression/interpretation of it, but yeah, I agree it sounds a pretty cool quote and I'm curious to see how you and Neo interpret it. I guess it just means curiosity?