[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:11.58,0:00:14.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When it comes to saving life,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:14.08,0:00:18.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,my guess is that you think\Nof things like chemotherapy or CPR,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:18.27,0:00:21.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,things far removed from philosophy.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:21.28,0:00:24.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But the title of my talk today,\N"How Philosophy Can Save Your Life,"
Dialogue: 0,0:00:24.60,0:00:25.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is in earnest.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:25.63,0:00:28.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I actually think that when\Nit comes to saving your life,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:28.26,0:00:30.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you need something like philosophy.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:30.67,0:00:31.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Think about it.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:33.04,0:00:37.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,CPR, chemotherapy and all the other\Nmarvelous medical techniques,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:37.32,0:00:40.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as wonderful and precious as they can be,\Ndon't actually save your life.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:40.80,0:00:43.03,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They really just put off your death.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:43.37,0:00:47.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's said that when Socrates,\Nthe great hero of Western philosophy,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:48.04,0:00:50.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was sentenced to death\Nby the Athenian court,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:50.45,0:00:54.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he replied, "Technically you do not have\Nthe power to sentence me to death.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:54.59,0:00:59.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Life has sentenced me to death.\NAll you can do is give me a date."
Dialogue: 0,0:00:59.10,0:01:03.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Handing down a death sentence\Nor successfully administering chemotherapy
Dialogue: 0,0:01:03.60,0:01:07.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is really just making an adjustment\Non the date of our inevitable death.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:07.54,0:01:11.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If you want to save your life,\Nyou need to turn it from a humdrum thing
Dialogue: 0,0:01:11.33,0:01:13.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,into the precious thing\Nthat it's meant to be.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:14.15,0:01:17.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I don't think chemotherapy\Nhas a whole lot to offer on that score.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:17.60,0:01:20.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, when I am talking about philosophy,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:20.34,0:01:22.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I mean it in the ancient\NGreek sense of that word:
Dialogue: 0,0:01:22.83,0:01:26.61,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The love of wisdom. The pursuit of wisdom.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:26.61,0:01:31.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Sometimes, I worry that some\Nof our contemporary practitioners
Dialogue: 0,0:01:31.26,0:01:35.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,can give you the sense that philosophy\Nis really just for some big brain
Dialogue: 0,0:01:35.34,0:01:38.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that's going to construct\Na perfect theory of the whole universe,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:38.62,0:01:40.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or maybe even more likely,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:40.08,0:01:43.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a big brain that's going to criticize\Nwhat everyone else has to say.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:43.43,0:01:46.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And while criticism and theorizing
Dialogue: 0,0:01:46.30,0:01:48.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are important and even joyful\Nparts of philosophy -
Dialogue: 0,0:01:48.68,0:01:50.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I don't want to diminish them -
Dialogue: 0,0:01:50.17,0:01:52.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,really, philosophy is something\Nmuch more than that.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:52.59,0:01:55.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I guess I worry that people often feel\Nlike they don't have permission
Dialogue: 0,0:01:55.89,0:01:57.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to study philosophy,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:57.59,0:01:59.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that they feel intimidated by it,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:59.47,0:02:03.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or they feel social pressures\Nthat steer them away from studying it.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:03.34,0:02:07.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's too bad because I think philosophy\Nis something that we can all engage in,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:07.60,0:02:10.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I think it's something\Nthat we often should engage in.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:11.16,0:02:14.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Philosophy begins\Nin the wonder that we all feel
Dialogue: 0,0:02:14.02,0:02:17.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about what's true and really valuable.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:17.31,0:02:22.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It takes us on a fascinating, sometimes\Nperilous journey of speculation and doubt.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:22.88,0:02:25.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it ends by returning us to our lives
Dialogue: 0,0:02:25.78,0:02:28.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and helping to know them\Nfor the first time.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:28.66,0:02:31.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,To explain what I am talking about,\Nlet me tell a few stories.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:32.58,0:02:35.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Sometime toward the end\Nof the fifth century B.C.,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:35.70,0:02:40.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a man by the name of Chaerephon\Nwent into the Delphi Oracle and asked,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:40.23,0:02:44.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Is my friend Socrates\Nthe wisest person around?"
Dialogue: 0,0:02:44.77,0:02:49.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The Oracle came back:\N"No one is wiser than Socrates."
Dialogue: 0,0:02:49.100,0:02:53.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, when Socrates himself\Ngot wind of this pronouncement,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:53.81,0:02:54.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he was puzzled.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:54.99,0:02:57.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He thought, "I can't be the wisest person.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:57.41,0:02:59.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I actually have no wisdom at all."
Dialogue: 0,0:02:59.64,0:03:03.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So he set out to disprove the Oracle\Nwith a very simple strategy:
Dialogue: 0,0:03:03.59,0:03:07.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Just find one person\Nwith a little bit of wisdom,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:07.01,0:03:10.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which would clearly beat him,\Nwhose wisdom level was at zero.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:10.93,0:03:12.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So he wandered around Athens,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:12.80,0:03:15.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,critically interviewing\Nthe religious authorities,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:15.87,0:03:17.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the political authorities,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:17.47,0:03:19.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the workers, the entertainers.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:20.11,0:03:22.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And what he found was \Nthat the Oracle had spoken the truth:
Dialogue: 0,0:03:22.93,0:03:24.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he was the wisest.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:24.37,0:03:26.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Not because he possessed any great wisdom,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:26.37,0:03:29.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but he possessed one little piece\Nof priceless wisdom.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:29.90,0:03:31.100,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Namely, he knew he knew nothing.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.100,0:03:35.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Everyone else claimed to have special\Nknowledge about their various pursuits
Dialogue: 0,0:03:35.92,0:03:37.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when in fact they did not,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:37.24,0:03:40.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,putting them in the hole, wisdom-wise.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:40.74,0:03:43.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, I've always been fascinated\Nby that story of Socrates,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:43.78,0:03:46.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but I've also always been\Na little puzzled by it.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:46.29,0:03:50.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What does it mean to have wisdom\Nwhen you don't possess wisdom?
Dialogue: 0,0:03:50.37,0:03:54.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,How can searching after answers\Nbe a form of wisdom?
Dialogue: 0,0:03:54.99,0:03:58.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What good is it not to have the answers\Nbut to be looking for them?
Dialogue: 0,0:03:58.79,0:04:00.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It took a student of mine, actually,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:00.94,0:04:05.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to really help me understand that story\Nin a much deeper way.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:05.62,0:04:10.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She reenacted, unaware\Nof Plato's writings about Socrates,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:10.33,0:04:12.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that very story.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:12.51,0:04:16.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And, I think, she shows both how\Nphilosophy can help save your life,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:16.03,0:04:19.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but also how we can all move\Nin the greatness of philosophy.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:20.64,0:04:22.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Her name was Jillian,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:22.71,0:04:26.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and she was a nurse's aide\Nwhen she took my ethics class,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:26.45,0:04:29.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I think because it probably helped\Nto fulfill some requirement.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:29.42,0:04:32.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She was studying to eventually\Nbecome a full-fledged nurse.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:32.84,0:04:38.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One of the most interesting\Nconversations was sparked
Dialogue: 0,0:04:38.64,0:04:41.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when I casually asked the drooping class,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:41.95,0:04:44.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"What's a hospital for, anyway?"
Dialogue: 0,0:04:45.10,0:04:48.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I challenged the expected answers\Nas they came out.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:48.66,0:04:50.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"To fix people."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:50.29,0:04:52.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"What about those with a terminal case?"
Dialogue: 0,0:04:53.60,0:04:55.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"To ease people's pain?"
Dialogue: 0,0:04:55.61,0:04:58.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"What about those people\Nwhose pain cannot be eased?"
Dialogue: 0,0:04:58.85,0:05:01.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"To ease people's pain\Nwhose pain can be eased?"
Dialogue: 0,0:05:01.25,0:05:03.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Is there no obligation\Nto healthy people?"
Dialogue: 0,0:05:03.87,0:05:06.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I was trying to open up\Ntheir minds a little bit
Dialogue: 0,0:05:06.14,0:05:09.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for some articles I was assigning\Non the purpose of a hospital.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:09.48,0:05:11.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well, the conversation\Nsparked something in Jillian,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:11.94,0:05:16.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and she asked my permission if she could\Nwrite on this for her next paper.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:16.73,0:05:18.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well, a couple of weeks later,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:18.51,0:05:21.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as students were filing out,\Nturning in their papers,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:21.69,0:05:24.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I called her aside\Nto ask how the project had gone.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:25.25,0:05:27.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well, our conversation\Nin class, she told me,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:27.76,0:05:30.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,had really perplexed her,\Neven kind of disturbed her.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:30.39,0:05:33.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She worked in a hospital,\Nshe felt she had a good sense of things,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:33.48,0:05:35.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but after our conversation, she realized
Dialogue: 0,0:05:35.76,0:05:39.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that she didn't really have any great\Nwisdom about the point of a hospital.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:39.58,0:05:43.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,To help her formulate\Na thesis for her paper,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:43.18,0:05:47.03,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,she lit on the idea\Nof going around the hospital
Dialogue: 0,0:05:47.15,0:05:49.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and questioning various people there -
Dialogue: 0,0:05:49.33,0:05:52.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the doctors, the administrators,\Nthe nurses, the nurse's' aides.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:52.80,0:05:55.100,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She said, "I figured someone\Nthere surely had to have some wisdom
Dialogue: 0,0:05:55.100,0:05:58.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about what the point of a hospital was."
Dialogue: 0,0:05:58.58,0:06:02.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But what she found was\Nthat when she critically interviewed them,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:02.38,0:06:06.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that they often gave the same pat answers\Nas the students did in class,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:06.97,0:06:09.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which, with a little criticism,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:09.67,0:06:13.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,she was able to show\Nto be not really totally adequate.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:14.85,0:06:18.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She said that the best answer she got\Nwas from some doctor who said to her -
Dialogue: 0,0:06:18.89,0:06:22.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,after having had his first couple\Nof attempts shot down by a nurse's aide -
Dialogue: 0,0:06:23.08,0:06:25.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Well, maybe you're\Nsupposed to do all of the above."
Dialogue: 0,0:06:25.97,0:06:28.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But she realized that\Nthat too was kind of inadequate.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:28.85,0:06:31.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Should they always\Ngive people what they want?
Dialogue: 0,0:06:31.04,0:06:33.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Should they always\Ngive people what they need?
Dialogue: 0,0:06:33.28,0:06:36.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What should govern the variety\Nof services that they provide?
Dialogue: 0,0:06:36.14,0:06:37.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And why were they there?
Dialogue: 0,0:06:38.11,0:06:41.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The problem, Jillian said to me,\Nwas she thought that too often,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:41.24,0:06:46.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the hospital subordinated\Nits whole purpose to fixing broken bodies.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:46.86,0:06:50.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She said, "Too often pregnant women\Nare treated like they are sick,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:50.47,0:06:53.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,mourners are dealt with\Nlike psychological cases.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:54.14,0:06:57.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Folks clearly dying are pointlessly fixed.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:57.65,0:07:01.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If the hospital is no more\Nthan a mechanical body shop,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:01.35,0:07:04.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we live in a less than fully human world."
Dialogue: 0,0:07:05.60,0:07:07.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Imagine," she said, "Doctors, nurses,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:07.81,0:07:10.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,people who have devoted decades\Nto studying and practicing medicine\N
Dialogue: 0,0:07:10.96,0:07:14.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who've never given really serious thought\Nto why they were doing it."
Dialogue: 0,0:07:14.60,0:07:16.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Imagine, I thought,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:16.24,0:07:20.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the people of Athens being unable\Nto answer Socrates' question successfully.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:20.57,0:07:24.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Imagine, I also thought, people,\Nmaybe especially people in a hospital,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:24.14,0:07:26.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,forgetting to save their own lives.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:26.53,0:07:30.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, she also said she figured that many\Nof her coworkers did pretty decent jobs
Dialogue: 0,0:07:30.60,0:07:33.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,going on their feel\Nfor what they ought to be doing,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:33.26,0:07:36.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but she wondered if they wouldn't be\Nbetter off opening their minds
Dialogue: 0,0:07:36.83,0:07:38.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to the full truth of it.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:38.92,0:07:42.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She was echoing\Na famous claim of Socrates:
Dialogue: 0,0:07:42.01,0:07:45.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"The unexamined life is not worth living."
Dialogue: 0,0:07:46.55,0:07:50.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In her paper, Jillian explained\Nthat the philosophers I had assigned
Dialogue: 0,0:07:50.19,0:07:52.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,helped her to see matters\Na little more clearly.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:52.63,0:07:56.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That sickness, pain, can alienate us\Nfrom those around us,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:56.70,0:07:59.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that they threaten to exile us\Nfrom the human community.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:00.20,0:08:03.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The closest she could come\Nto formulating the purpose of the hospital
Dialogue: 0,0:08:03.85,0:08:06.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was, "To be there for people."
Dialogue: 0,0:08:07.42,0:08:10.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"To be there when they're sick,\Nto be there when they're dying,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:10.80,0:08:12.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to be there when they're mourning."
Dialogue: 0,0:08:12.83,0:08:16.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"To help people when you could,\Nand to aid people when they wanted,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:16.02,0:08:17.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of course,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:17.08,0:08:20.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but most of all, to be there\Nfor them, human to human."
Dialogue: 0,0:08:21.00,0:08:25.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The point of medicine, she said, was care.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:25.34,0:08:27.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Doctors are there,"\Nshe marvelously concluded,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:28.18,0:08:29.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"to help the nurses."
Dialogue: 0,0:08:29.99,0:08:32.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But doctors, she feared, sometimes\Noverrate their wisdom
Dialogue: 0,0:08:32.86,0:08:36.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on the basis of their technical\Nproficiency and science.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:37.10,0:08:40.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She also admitted that she\Ndidn't necessarily have all the answers
Dialogue: 0,0:08:40.47,0:08:43.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and that even what she was saying\Nshe had some doubts about,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:43.48,0:08:48.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but she said that her pursuit of wisdom\Nabout what she was doing
Dialogue: 0,0:08:48.70,0:08:50.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,had helped her to really understand
Dialogue: 0,0:08:50.40,0:08:53.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the full meaning and significance\Nof what she was training to do,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:53.69,0:08:58.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that philosophy had helped\Nplug her into her vocation.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:59.48,0:09:03.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Jillian has been a full-fledged nurse\Nnow for over a decade,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:03.22,0:09:07.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I contacted her recently,\Nand she said to me,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:07.66,0:09:09.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"You know, I kept\Nthat paper I wrote for you,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:09.76,0:09:13.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I still define my goals\Nand my purposes in those terms."
Dialogue: 0,0:09:13.79,0:09:18.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In being there for people,\Nshe's been saving her own life.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:19.35,0:09:21.61,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In the wake of Socrates,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:21.61,0:09:23.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,philosophy in the ancient world
Dialogue: 0,0:09:23.71,0:09:28.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,really became focused on the question\Nof how to live a good life.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:28.51,0:09:32.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was all about the pursuit\Nof what they called "eudaimonia,"
Dialogue: 0,0:09:32.52,0:09:33.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in ancient Greek,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:33.65,0:09:36.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which we often translate\Nas happiness, the pursuit of happiness.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:37.29,0:09:39.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And happiness is\Na pretty good translation,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:39.32,0:09:41.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but really, eudaimonia\Nmeans something more like
Dialogue: 0,0:09:41.67,0:09:43.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Flourishing over the course\Nof your whole life"
Dialogue: 0,0:09:43.95,0:09:47.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or "Living up to the full\Npotential of being human."
Dialogue: 0,0:09:47.47,0:09:50.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Philosophy was not just\Nsome intellectual game,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:50.77,0:09:53.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it was very much about trying\Nto understand those principles
Dialogue: 0,0:09:53.71,0:09:57.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that are going to bring happiness\Nand practice them in our lives.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:58.52,0:10:03.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I have to admit that I am guilty\Nof sometimes asking my students in class,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:03.35,0:10:05.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"If the doctor gave you\Nonly one year to live,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:05.67,0:10:08.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,how would you spend your remaining days?"
Dialogue: 0,0:10:08.89,0:10:14.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Generally, I get kind of cliched,\Nbucket-list sort of answers,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:14.58,0:10:17.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which show how unexamined\Nour lives often are.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:17.83,0:10:21.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For bucket lists make\Na really bad assumption
Dialogue: 0,0:10:21.88,0:10:27.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that the good life is just a parade\Nof splashy, disconnected experiences.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:28.40,0:10:31.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One time, as I was fielding answers
Dialogue: 0,0:10:31.50,0:10:35.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about skydiving and visiting the Pyramids,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:35.97,0:10:39.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I noticed a twinkle\Nin the eye of Kimberly,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:39.23,0:10:42.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,one of my great nontraditional students.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:42.23,0:10:44.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,After class, I called her up and I said,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:44.58,0:10:47.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"I noticed you were\Nkind of smiling when we were talking
Dialogue: 0,0:10:47.21,0:10:50.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about how people would spend\Ntheir last year of life.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:50.04,0:10:51.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What was on your mind?"
Dialogue: 0,0:10:52.38,0:10:53.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She explained to me
Dialogue: 0,0:10:53.46,0:10:58.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that fairly recently\Nshe'd been in exactly that situation.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:58.83,0:11:03.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She had been diagnosed\Nwith a rare neuromuscular disorder,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:03.72,0:11:06.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"The most aggressive case seen,"\Nthe doctor said,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:06.66,0:11:10.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they told her that she\Ndid not have long to live.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:12.38,0:11:14.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well, after some dark nights of the soul,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:14.50,0:11:17.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Kimberly made up her mind\Nto take matters into her own hands,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:17.70,0:11:22.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,seeking out some additional therapies\Nto the ones the doctors prescribed.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:22.42,0:11:26.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But she realized she did not have\Nall the time in the world,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:26.36,0:11:28.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and so, she said to me,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:28.10,0:11:32.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,she decided to engage in philosophy\Nin that ancient sense.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:32.49,0:11:34.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She was going to try to figure out
Dialogue: 0,0:11:34.45,0:11:38.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what, really, happiness was\Nand how to practice it.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:39.93,0:11:41.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She loved wine,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:41.40,0:11:45.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,so she got in the habit of really savoring\Na couple of glasses every night.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:45.62,0:11:47.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She loved bicycling,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:47.72,0:11:51.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,so she threw herself\Ninto the world of cycling.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:51.59,0:11:54.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She loved learning more,\Nand she never finished college,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:54.99,0:11:56.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,so she went back to school
Dialogue: 0,0:11:56.48,0:11:59.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to study the kinds of subjects\Nshe was most interested in,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:59.88,0:12:02.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,including philosophy,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:02.12,0:12:07.100,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where she studied, with me, thinkers\Nlike Plato and Epicurus and Epictetus.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:07.100,0:12:13.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She said these thinkers helped to sharpen\Nher sense of the logic of living.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:14.01,0:12:16.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You come to terms with your death.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:16.43,0:12:20.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You confront the limitations\Nof bodily existence.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:20.50,0:12:22.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You pursue virtue.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:22.37,0:12:25.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You try to figure out\Nwhat's really pleasurable.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:25.68,0:12:28.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You pursue knowledge to deepen yourself
Dialogue: 0,0:12:28.20,0:12:31.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and to use this unique\Nhuman brain of ours.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:31.82,0:12:37.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I find a life like Kimberly's utterly\Nmarvelous and also utterly philosophical.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:38.64,0:12:44.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Students that I have had,\Nlike Kimberly and Jillian and many others,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:44.04,0:12:45.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,have shown me that,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:45.40,0:12:49.100,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the words of one of my heroes,\NWilliam James, an American philosopher,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:50.36,0:12:54.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"The deepest human life is everywhere."
Dialogue: 0,0:12:55.06,0:12:58.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The philosophical odyssey\Nis open to all of us;
Dialogue: 0,0:12:58.44,0:13:02.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the books of the great philosophers\Nare there to help us,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:02.49,0:13:06.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but of course, ultimately it's a journey\Nthat we have to go on for ourselves.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:07.47,0:13:09.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, maybe you happen to be living
Dialogue: 0,0:13:09.94,0:13:15.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,according to absolutely brilliant,\Nbeautiful principles and ideals.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:16.02,0:13:18.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If that's true, philosophy\Ncan still be a help;
Dialogue: 0,0:13:18.98,0:13:20.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it can help take you off autopilot
Dialogue: 0,0:13:20.87,0:13:24.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and put your hands on the wheel\Nof your beautiful life.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:25.26,0:13:31.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But what if some of the ideas\Nstructuring your life are less than ideal?
Dialogue: 0,0:13:32.12,0:13:36.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What if some of the ideas\Nyou have about how to be a nurse,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:36.40,0:13:37.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or a doctor,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:37.62,0:13:39.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or a teacher, or a student,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:39.47,0:13:41.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or a citizen, or a parent,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:41.33,0:13:44.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or a man, or a woman, or a human being
Dialogue: 0,0:13:44.97,0:13:47.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are a little out of whack?
Dialogue: 0,0:13:48.45,0:13:52.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well then, philosophy has the power\Nto cut through the crap
Dialogue: 0,0:13:52.28,0:13:57.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and help bring us closer to what really\Nis meaningful and valuable.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:57.49,0:13:59.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I hate to break it to you today,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:59.17,0:14:01.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but you are going to die.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:01.94,0:14:04.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We all have a death sentence,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:04.17,0:14:09.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and there is no cosmic contract that says\Nit can't happen in the upcoming year.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:09.51,0:14:11.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So why not make up your mind
Dialogue: 0,0:14:11.67,0:14:16.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to devote yourself to philosophy\Nin that ancient sense?
Dialogue: 0,0:14:16.31,0:14:20.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Like Kimberly, like Jillian,\Nlike all the other great philosophers.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:21.31,0:14:24.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The books of the great philosophers\Nare there to help us,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:24.39,0:14:28.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you don't need my permission\Nfor you to study them.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:29.01,0:14:30.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In fact, I would say,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:30.10,0:14:34.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,freedom is the one thing\Nyou should never ask permission for.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:35.92,0:14:40.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,About a year ago, I contacted Kimberly\Nto see how she was doing,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:40.97,0:14:44.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and she explained to me\Nthat she had to take a break
Dialogue: 0,0:14:44.86,0:14:49.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from her dream job with the women's\Ncycling developing program.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:50.50,0:14:53.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She was having to undergo chemotherapy.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:54.15,0:14:55.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"But," she said, "don't worry.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:55.60,0:14:58.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Things are looking up.\NNot that they ever looked down.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:58.19,0:14:59.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm still pursuing happiness.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:59.58,0:15:02.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm still pursuing philosophy," she said.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:02.36,0:15:05.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"And it's better than last summer;\NI was on hospice care for a while.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:05.65,0:15:09.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I think I'm on the fast track\Nto racing my bike again."
Dialogue: 0,0:15:09.92,0:15:12.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She was still saving her own life.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:13.68,0:15:15.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I haven't heard from her since.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:15.99,0:15:17.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you very much.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:17.60,0:15:20.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)