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Step 4 of 7~8 min read~29 min left
Pascal, Arendt, and the Inner Citadel
Examine the core philosophical texts on solitude, distraction, and the thinking self.
“Pascal: 'All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone. [...] Distraction is not a minor vice, it is the systematic avoidance of what is most important.' [...] Arendt on thinking as the two-in-one: 'Thinking, existentially speaking, is a solitary but not a lonely business. Solitude is that human situation in which I keep myself company. Loneliness comes about when I am alone without being able to split up into the two-in-one, without being able to keep myself company.' [...] Winnicott: 'The capacity to be alone is among the most important signs of maturity in emotional development. [...] It is only when alone that the individual is able to do the equivalent of what in music is called improvisation.' — Pascal, Pensées (1669); Arendt, The Life of the Mind (1978); Winnicott, 'The Capacity to Be Alone' (1958)”