The thinkers have an enlightened view on the world. They want people to think critically and rationally, and to leave behind their primitive prejudices towards the world. For example, Immanuel Kant discusses that humans are held back by their primitive sense of security. We are cowards and lazy by nature, therefore we fear and set ourselves up as minors to guardians. We can never truly be free if we restrict ourselves to other people’s unquestioned beliefs. By being more conscious and rational human beings we can only then achieve true freedom. Rene Descartes also makes an interesting point that it is not possible for us to truly know anything at all. We often times think we know something, but in reality our conclusions are derived from primitive, irrational prejudice. We would have to observe the world from all humanly possible perspectives to only then make a credible conclusion.

My gut reaction to these texts is that they may contain a lot of truth to them. The authors have dissociated themselves from society’s view of the world, and put together a different perspective towards the world as we know it. I find these perspective very interesting and uncommon. I agree with the authors for the most part because there is a lot of human suffering and unanswered questions that come from irrational and primitive ideas. By removing these ideas, we open ourselves for progress and possibilities to end human suffering. But I also believe that some people are better off holding onto their “irrational” ideas because that’s the only feeling of freedom they could ever have.

-Ethan Pavlov