The Curious Enlightenment Of Professor Caritat Analysis

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The Curious Enlightenment of Professor Caritat, written by Steven Lukes. Towards the ending of the novel, Lukes introduces a new collective set of characters to his audience. These new characters are environmentalists. Lukes did not simply add these characters to fill up empty space in his story plot. However, he did this intentionally to have the environmentalists to be the symbolic embodiment of enlightenment ideas. In addition, he also wanted to install a stark contrast between the enlightenment, and the other philosophies discussed in the novel. The environmentalists are a reflection of enlightenment ideas. Here is a quote from the text, to further enforce my prior claim. (pg. 13, Kant) “Enlightenment is thinking for oneself.” This quote refers to that the enlightenment fundamentally empathizes, that every individual has the responsibility, for thinking for themselves. This core idea is represented in the behavior of the environmentalists. Each one of them were not involuntarily pressed by a third party, to position themselves in the path of the bulldozer. However, each of them individually thought for themselves. All of them came to the conclusion, that the forest is worthy of salvaging. In spite of the menacing threat posed by the bulldozers to their …show more content…

Then you are making the perfect environment, for the ambition of men to thrive. In addition, this will encourage the strong to infringe on the freedoms of the weak. Furthermore, this will create a vicious cycle of predator, and prey among men. Lastly, individuals will less freedom compared to others. They will not consider themselves as individuals, however as serfs of the elitist. Those will more freedom compared to others, won’t considers themselves as individuals. They will depict themselves as elitists, above everyone else. Which defeats the purpose of unlimited freedom, in its every