Classics can be read without having to

「983」

Classics can be read without having to.

For example, in the matter of reading, the predecessors always encouraged young people to read the classics of a hundred years or even a thousand years ago, and even some people claimed not to read the author's still living works, so groups of young people threw good time into the classic tomes of those crooked teeth.

It's not that the classics are bad, it's just – not that good.

If you are interested in art history, you will often face the question: a certain historical work is ordinary from today's point of view, why can it enjoy such a lofty position in art history?

This is because the work opened up a new situation in a certain creative way at that time. It can be some kind of brush stroke technique in oil painting, it can be a stream-of-consciousness writing method in literature, it can be a dome construction method in architecture.

Today, there are more comprehensive painting techniques, more dazzling writing styles, architectural and engineering craftsmanship is no longer the same, in modern times, you can feel that a historical work is unremarkable, but you can't deny its mileage card meaning in history.

The question is here, of course, they can and deserve to enjoy the status of milestones in history, but if I am not a professional scholar or "archaeologist" in a certain field, why do I have to kneel down to them? Why can't I say how I really feel?

I can take a moment to understand the development of this field, roughly know at which stage there are some major innovations, as a background to understand, this is enough, I have more time and energy, should not be at the forefront of the field of new works and new ideas?

Often in some of the information of film reviews, I see some people laughing at some of the current film and television works, and heser advocates that the classics of the black-and-white film era are insurmountable peaks, in my opinion, this is mostly a "classic deception". The top works of today's film industry have an overwhelming advantage over the classics of more than half a century ago, whether it is the script, the performance, the concept (stunts, post-production, costumes, not to mention).

Of course, there are also some areas where the predecessors climbed to the top of the field in a short period of time, and it is still difficult for posterity to surpass, sculpture, music, thought... All have such manifestations.

So in summary, first examine whether the classics in your field of interest are so indispensable, if you are not writing papers or "archaeology" is forced, you can not read the classics, but instead spend time and energy on the most cutting-edge content.

For example, if you want to say that "Sun Tzu's Art of War" is useful, I believe it. But if you want to say that all the war strategies of mankind, even the wisdom of competition, have been exhausted by sun tzu's art of war, so that as small as opening a company and as large as managing the country, you can use a copy of "Sun Tzu's art of war" to eat everything, then I am when you fart.

Of course, Sun Wu is a mess, but he is not a ghost god, he has not seen modern technology, he does not understand statistics and probability, he has no opportunity to do large-scale behavioral analysis experiments, he cannot predict the evolution of human society, the strategies he thinks and summarizes, or the possible optimal solutions for the social and technological conditions at that time, but time is easy, if we all hold a few ancient classics, we think we can cope with today's world, then how can human society move forward.

From another perspective, if the classics of the past can deal with the problems of the future, then what uncertainty do we worry about today, and what great unknowns of the future are we anxious about? (Is "West Point" necessary?) If Sun Bin crossed over to modern times, assuming that he could understand modern society, assuming that he was still willing to write about the "Art of War", I think he would also adopt a very pragmatic attitude, learning modern political rules, learning the latest military technology, learning statistics, probability theory, evolution... And on these basis, rethinking and re-understanding the world – if he is strong enough – perhaps he can come up with a new "classic". And isn't this kind of attitude and hard work exactly what we should uphold or pursue in our respective fields?

It doesn't matter if you agree with the above - the text leaves some bugs that are not handled and are easy to be criticized - but at least listen to my advice: in the future, you will meet people sitting in a huge and ugly office and telling you what "the mall is like a battlefield, read through the "Art of War of Sun Tzu", you can be invincible..."

This man is 50% a liar and 50% a fool. Also, 100% do not read.

(Beeple works)