Route 66 to Vagabondia
Ozarkian Pragmatism
The Grinder
My "Route 66" series presents holistically -- in words and pictures -- the story of a journey. It is autobiographical in order to exemplify a bigger story from Plato: the flight of a fugitive from humanity's cave-dungeon; in which we are portrayed (Book 7 of THE REPUBLIC) as preoccupied with language. (We "captives" are so busy with words, conjecturing about reality, that we don't much use our higher faculties ((reason and understanding)) in order to look right-at reality and catch its drift accordingly. ((With common animal savvy.))
Diagram of Plato's scenario
My own story tells of learning to think from vanished oldtimers of the hills -- comprising a backwoods remnant of frontier Pragmatism -- and polishing up their tough-minded realism in great universities. Notably, I soon ran into the yankee Pragmatism of William James and John Dewey.
The Old School
(Off old 66 toward Pleasant Hope, MO)
In fact, I devoted the rest of my life to Dewey's project of reconstructing human philosophy in light of the American experience in learning this frontier of civilization. His yankee mentality generated about the same suspicion as mine: some glitch in traditional philosophy is keeping humans confused enough to stay confined in a dungeon, swimming in their own bullshit.
Waiting...
My contribution is the discovery -- from experience with vagabondage -- that the big glitch lies in a human failure to master language (and a natural logic to guide its usage) sufficiently to unleash the higher (nonverbal) faculties latent in our own native brains; and turn on those "computers" to fuller capacity. Only then can we really start thinkin' -- with a whole deck.
Tramps Along Tracks
(Southeast toward Springfield square)
We student captives are ready to emerge from the cave woven by our verbal suppositions (as though from a formative "cocoon") into the bigger reality accessible to adults of this species. Obviously we humans have long been babies basking in a sort of womb.
Ballet and Audience
(Big John's Garden on west 66 bypass)
Inexorably though, a biological metamorphosis approaches. One that will transform us into the integrated individuals it will take to activate Plato's big Republic. And head for the stars.
Jim McCord
Stone County, MO
September 30, 2000
Infinity
(Pioneer farm east of town)
(Nearby oak)
Phenix Bridge
(Across Sac river northwest)
The "Route 66" Series will be developed in stages as follows