Whenever possible, one should think like a great genius and speak like an ordinary person. --Schopenhauer
Recently, the translation of the philosophical work "Introduction to Heidegger" by migrant worker Chen Zhi has caused quite a stir. When I first heard about the successful translation of Heidegger's philosophical works by migrant workers under the pseudonym Chen Zhi, I believe that everyone's first reaction was shock. As a 31-year-old migrant worker, Chen Completed a translation of Richard Poulter's Introduction to Heidegger in August.
Because of the identity of migrant workers, this matter has added a lot of legend. It seems that there is naturally no connection between "migrant workers" and "Heidegger". A migrant worker who does not even have to worry about survival, in his spare time to teach himself English, read Western philosophy, and translate philosophical works that many experts cannot fully understand on his own, which many people are greatly shocked.
Like many ordinary factory workers, he often works more than 12 hours, and has to extend his working hours in order to earn more overtime pay, but he can only get four or five thousand fast wages every month to meet the basic survival. Since 2010, he has been to Guangdong, Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Beijing and other five places to work, without exception, he will read a large number of philosophy books in the library of each city, and enter his own philosophical world on quiet and deserted street corners.
Some people regard Chen Zhi's experience as a clear stream in the impetuous society, and some people regard it as inspirational chicken soup for sticking to their love; some people think that it is not important to read Heidegger in real life, and some people think that it is rare to be able to find their love and have an exclusive spiritual world. Regarding Chen Zhi's lifestyle, viewers judge differently.
And the Chen Zhi incident left us with far more thinking.
According to relevant interviews, Chen Zhi was originally a college student majoring in mathematics at the second college, but in order to find the most essential thing, Chen Zhi began to be so addicted to philosophy that he completely forgot his major. Until he was persuaded to withdraw from school, he gladly accepted. At that time, he thought that withdrawing from school would allow him to better study philosophy, but what he did not expect was that the pressure of society and survival was also coming.
On the road to work for more than 10 years, he used the bed as a chair to study philosophy and translate in a simple rental house. This incident seems to bring some different colors to his life that he can't find meaning, and it also allows him to be so persistent. Even in order to go to the National Library to study, he deliberately ran from the south to Beijing to work and live in the basement of the tide.
He once hoped that he could transcend secular society, and according to him, his obsession with philosophy would put his malice against the outside world, but life always reminded him of his social identity as a "migrant worker". Therefore, he often felt pain, and although he was reluctant, he still accepted marriage, had children, and became an ordinary person.
Chen Zhi felt that philosophy could change human existence, at least his understanding of the world. Not a general change, but a fundamental change. Because of philosophy he is no longer lonely, because of philosophy he can find the meaning of life, so that he becomes a different version of himself.
But the harsh reality is that the deep obsession and love of philosophy has not allowed Chen Zhi to achieve great achievements, and even he laughed at himself and said that "he has changed from the person who can read the most to the most useless person." He found that whether studying mathematics or philosophy, he still had to face some of the most basic problems of survival.
The repression of not being able to make money, not being able to read philosophy, and not being able to make friends has always been accompanied by Chen Zhi. In him, we seem to see the epitome of the whole society. People who don't make money are looked down upon, who love philosophy but can't get the support of their families, who are discriminated against as migrant workers, and even if we don't want to admit these seemingly not-so-good aspects, they do exist and affect everyone.
Philosophy allows Chen Zhi to see something more profound, find the meaning of life, and make him not feel lonely. But Chen Zhi also stressed that he still needs to work endlessly like those machines. In Chen Zhi's experience, we feel a deep sense of helplessness.
Chen Zhi bluntly said that he was once heartbroken by philosophy, and compared with his friends who made money around him, he changed from "the person who can read the most" to the "least profitable person". Perhaps this in itself is the contradiction. Chen Zhi's anxiety is also the anxiety of the general public, including not making much money, family guilt, difficulty in understanding philosophy, and the isolation and ridicule of those around him... If the knowledge we love doesn't have the ability to monetize it, how do we seek that balance?
Like Chen Zhi, he read ordinary second books, did not like the major, studied hard, and there were many people who were confused after graduation. But more people will rationally bow to reality, and even if they can't really like it, they will do their work as required. Find a job to survive to solve the problem of food and clothing, and then use your spare time to do some extra things to stick to your passion.
What's more, in the complexity and hardship of society, there is no time to think about the meaning of life. Many people need to face the pressure of supporting their families, taking care of their parents, raising children, etc., and many people are only concerned with making money and improving their lives, and being able to make life better and happier is the whole goal.
Chen Zhizhi is a different kind of existence for most people. Perhaps many people will say that Chen Zhi is free and can let go of being his own. However, from Chen Zhi's remarks that he "still hopes to return to school", it is obvious that he must also have some regrets about the withdrawal from school, because the society we live in is already like this, more often academic qualifications are regarded as a stepping stone, and with the progress of the times, this phenomenon may intensify.
In Chen Zhi, we see both the strength of persistence and the heartache of survival. We cannot escape the pursuit of success in the worldly sense, and we also want to create our own achievements with what we love. But more often than not, such a double is never possible.
Dreams can not consider money, but people as a carrier, is the need to survive, may not be everyone understands Heidegger, but everyone knows that the problem of food and clothing must be solved first and foremost. In such an era of emphasis on capital and efficiency, all disciplines that are difficult to realize seem to be saddled with the label of "useless", such as philosophy, art and literature.
As a result, in recent years, a variety of business education and training that have changed their lives against the sky have been raging wildly, as if they have grasped the psychology of parenthood from the beginning of prenatal education, creating one anxiety after another at every stage of children's growth, so that the state has to restore the educational order with the thunderous means of "double reduction".
However, the changes in the large-scale education industry do not seem to reduce the anxiety of parents, how to return education to the essence, how to make children's growth take into account both happiness and learning, whether learning should start from scores or from love... These are all topics that require continuous thinking and optimization.
For every ordinary low-level people, if they want to aspire to engage in literary or academic work, they are full of great challenges, which require not only a high degree of spiritual persistence, but also the support of material significance. I only hope that countless people like Chen Zhi, while adhering to their inner love and persistence, can be more flexible in handling the relationship between "moon" and "sixpence". As Schopenhauer said, "Whenever possible, one should think like a great genius and speak like an ordinary man." ”
Because Chen Zhi posted on the Internet to ask whether philosophical works could be published, coupled with the identity of migrant workers, he was discovered by the media and paid attention to the Internet. Not only that, after being concerned, some editors of publishing houses also took the initiative to contact Chen Zhi and expressed their hope to try to publish his translated works. In addition, Chen Zhi has also begun to translate another philosophical work. According to his own account, he also hopes to return to the university in the future to continue his education and continue to delve into philosophy.
We can't know whether Chen Zhi's life will really change substantially in the future, but now it seems that sticking to what he loves will still get a better outcome. We also hope that Chen Zhi can balance life and love in the future, end his so-called trough period, and usher in his peak period. And as viewers, you and I may also have a lot of love outside of survival, if you can stick to it, maybe one day you can shine. Even if you don't create great achievements that attract worldwide attention, this will become a little light in the dim life, always illuminating yourself.
In the face of such a great and profound philosophical problem as life, we should not be affected by the traffickers of anxiety, and it is not a popular profession and a so-called high-paying industry that can bring excitement and achievements to life. We should still have the courage to discover the love of our hearts and find our own direction in life. After all, success is not portrayed in a mold, it should really need to be considered and considered in combination with each person's specific situation. #Avenue Philosophy (■ Wen | Xiao Xiao)