A Philosophical Happy Hour on the struggle to study unfamiliar topics, subjects, texts, and skills—and the necessity of that discomfort
Atop my bookcases—visible just over my computer monitors, reminding me of its presence nearly every day—sits a nice four-volume hardcover set titled The World of Mathematics. This set intimidates me. Though I have a PhD in philosophy—though I can read Latin and German and a very small amount of Greek (just how little I can read is also an embarrassment to me); though I tread unconcerned upon the treacherous grounds of semiotics, the slippery slopes of metaphysics—the arts and sciences of quantity… frighten me.
Perhaps that’s an overstatement. But I do shy away from them.
Partly, this reticence follows from shame. My mathematical education was deficient through my own fault, for I gave it far too little attention in my teenage years and none at all in my early adulthood. Partly, when looking at that four-volume set (itself just a tiny fraction of what one ought to know about mathematics), I feel overwhelmed and uncertain: where do I start, and how? Do I have the time? Does the difficulty I encounter, flipping through those pages, stem not from the ideas but from my own shortcomings? Am I mathematically incompetent? Is it true to say something akin to, “my brain doesn’t work that way”?
Or… are we standing in our own way with these hesitations?
Principles of Unfamiliar Learning
Someone might struggle to begin a study, that is, in any topic. Pick up a book of grammar—real, serious grammar—and, if you have never studied it closely before, you might find yourself quickly in a tizzy. Similarly with logic, or language, or a specific subject in philosophy—a science like physics or chemistry, microbiology or human anatomy. The older we get, the harder it becomes to stray outside the familiar. We do not want to take up the books for children—nor do we have the patience to learn at the pace deemed suitable for children. But the materials made for adults often seem to be either dull, incorrect, and patronizing—the Dummies series, for instance—or for those already in the know.
Allow me to make a proposal for why this seems to be so: it is because we expect the study to be easier than it is. Hardly a breakthrough insight. But why do we expect it to be easier than it is? In short: we have gained confidence in our knowledge and ability to know through the successful application of the things we do know. But this confidence, rendered habitual, becomes an impediment to learning things unfamiliar.
We need instead other principles for such learning. A large part of our discussion will be to discern what those are and how they should be applied.
Studies in Humility
One of the most important principles, however, that I hope we can discuss—and perhaps the preeminent of all these principles—is contained in this: the habits by which we are able to learn anything will neither 1) guarantee a mastery of that learning nor 2) allow us to learn everything. I may, by reading The World of Mathematics, discover truths about quantity that I would not otherwise. I do not anticipate being a master of mathematics. I may learn Greek sufficiently well perhaps to read Plato, Aristotle, and the Gospel. I do not anticipate becoming a competent translator of the language.
But these interests—fruitful, genuine, suitable to my station in life—preclude other study. If I want true competence at Greek, I may never learn Portuguese. Mathematics might help a study of music or modern physics; but it will not unlock theology. This exclusivity follows not only the limits of time, that is, but even more fundamentally it speaks to the nature of human experience. Even a theoretical grasp of objects in the abstract requires a continuous presence in our lives if we are to truly know it.
No Conversational Discomfort
Join us this Wednesday (25 June 2025 from 5:45–7:15+ PM ET) to enjoy a thoroughly comfortable conversation about how we can step outside of our intellectual comfort zones—why we should, and what we benefit from it.
philosophical happy hour
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Come join us for drinks (adult or otherwise) and a meaningful conversation. Open to the public! Held every Wednesday from 5:45–7:15pm ET.
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