19th century philosophy

Author: SAMARA D

Schopenhauer’s Concept of Coming to Know “The Idea” in Interstellar

In Schopenhauer’s “The World As Will and Representation”, he discusses how a transition is needed for a person to achieve a “pure will-less subject of knowledge” which is important reaching knowledge of “the idea”. The will is impacted by one’s desires and therefore one must negate the will to gain objective knowledge about the world as an idea.

Clip From Interstellar:

The film “Interstellar” represents Schopenhauer’s concept of coming to know “The Idea” through it’s examination of the universe and deeper truths, the protagonist’s self sacrifice of giving up his ability to raise his daughter to save humanity, the transcendence of space and time, and the stunning visuals alongside the film’s musical composition that assists in conveying the film’s message to the audience. The protagonist’s pursuit of higher truths relates to Schopenhauer’s concept of the “transition” where they maintain a “fixed contemplation” on the object which in this case is the Universe. Additionally, the protagonist’s willingness to sacrifice his personal desires is an important part of coming to know “the idea”. Schopenhauer believes that “genius is the power of leaving one’s own interests, wishes, and aims entirely out of sight, thus of entirely renouncing one’s own personality for a time, so as to remain pure knowing subject, clear vision of the world” (The World As Idea, §§36). This is what the protagonists must do to obtain higher truths. He essentially must give up his desire to raise his daughter to embark on this journey. This also relates to Schopenhauer’s idea of “negating” the will. This makes sacrifice of personal desires a central part of coming to know “the idea”.

Furthermore, Schopenhauer states that a man “gives the whole power of his mind to perception, sinks himself entirely in this, and lets his whole consciousness be filled with the quiet contemplation of the natural object actually present” (The World As Idea, §§34). This is what happens when we as audience members are “absorbed” by a film. Many people have those moments where they get so into a show or a movie that they lose track of time and become immersed in the world of the characters. People let go of their personalities and their own interest to “experience” a character’s world. This is why binging shows on Netflix has become such a popular hobby.  Every time we interact with something that removes us momentarily from our minds, where we are so consumed by the “perception”of an object, we are coming to know “The Idea”.

Hegel’s Ideas in Optical Illusions

In Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit, he discusses how the senses do not provide the most reliable truth about reality. Our senses feel, to us, as though they are providing the most accurate view of the world, but in actuality, they limit our ability to accurately perceive the world. Our senses can tell us one thing, while reality can tell us another. The distinctions between senses and the truth of reality can be found in the ways that our brain gets tricked by optical illusions.

Hegel states “The concrete content of sensuous-certainty permits itself to appear immediately as the richest cognition, indeed, as a knowing of an infinite wealth for which no limit is to be found, whether we venture out into the reaches of space and time as the place where that wealth extends itself, or when we take a piece out of this plenitude, divide it, and thereby delve into it. In addition, it appears as the most veritable, for it has not omitted anything from its object, but rather, has its object in its complete entirety before itself. However, this certainty in fact yields the most abstract and the very poorest truth.”

This means that sense-certainty seems to appear to us as the highest cognition but it is actually untruthful.

In the optical illusion created by Mario Ponzo titled “Ponzo Illusion”, there are two horizontal lines drawn at different points in two converging lines. It appears as though the line that sits closer to the top of the converging lines is larger than the line father down below. In reality, both of these lines are the exact same length. This illusion highlight the differences in our perception of something versus the reality of that thing. Our senses cannot be trusted to provide the most accurate truth.