Spring has arrived, and the unique gray and white tones of northern winter have also been washed away by the scent of lilac flowers on the street, and the surrounding colors have suddenly become brighter. April 23, World Book Day, for Chen Zhi, no different from usual, he walked out of the library on campus, still thinking of a sentence he had just seen from a philosophy book, and the young people who passed by and chattered as if they had nothing to do with him.
It is difficult for people to associate Chen Zhi, who is drowning in the crowd, with the people who are on the fire. Five months ago, "Migrant Worker Translation Heidegger" attracted social attention, and the media called him "Heidegger in the factory" to discuss the connection between the identity of migrant workers and the reading of philosophy. Later, there were questions about his family life, and in the scolding, Chen Zhi tried to explain and apologized. With the passage of time, the enthusiasm for attention dissipated, and Chen Zhi faded out of people's vision. So much so that now, when Chen Zhi received an interview request, he expressed surprise, "I don't know what to say." ”
The book that Chen Zhi is reading. Courtesy of respondents
"There will be a conscious demand for yourself to read more"
Chen Zhi no longer needs to work part-time.
At the beginning of December last year, he received an interview invitation from a university in Hebei, came to Shijiazhuang from Xiamen, and passed the entry interview, and Chen Zhi stayed in the north. A university in Shijiazhuang provided Chen Zhi with a job in the newsroom, usually responsible for participating in the production of the school's internal magazine. Chen Zhi did not need to work odd jobs in many places, and he left the factory.
Chen Zhi said that he came to Shijiazhuang almost with a gray face, and there seemed to be a roar behind his ears when the machine was running. The conditions given by the school are not bad, a month's salary is enough to live, and provide off-campus accommodation, although the canteen meals cost themselves, but they are not expensive, "you can spend 7 yuan a day."
Chen Zhi did not have the habit of walking, he had no time to take care of the spring light of the campus, and spent all the time he spent working and studying in the library. Everyone else said that he finally had the conditions to read his favorite books and do what he liked. When he finished the work at hand, Chen Zhi would continue to stay in the library and not leave until nine o'clock in the evening.
"It's like every day." Chen Zhi has been away from the factory for four or five months, escaping boredom, but he can't escape repetition, but he has more time to read philosophy, "I will not deliberately stipulate the reading time, but I will consciously ask myself to read more, and find a way to let myself read it." ”
"Philosophically, feel accepted"
In early March this year, due to the impact of the epidemic, Chen Zhi and another colleague chose to spend the night in the on-campus office to reduce mobility. Colleagues get along well with each other, and the academic circles do not reject him. Chen Zhi said: "Philosophy professors see my article, and if they find some mistakes, they will mention it to me to help me." Academically, I don't know anything, and philosophically, I feel accepted. ”
Sometimes, the spring light of the campus reminds Chen Zhi of his hometown, who was born in a small village in Ganzhou, Jiangxi Province, and as a southerner, he has long been accustomed to the appearance of spring in all seasons. He likes to have colors as far as he can see, and he prefers the view outside the window to staying indoors. Chen Zhi said that his ideal reading environment is to be quiet, "it is better to read outdoors, there is sunshine, there is wind." ”
Chen Zhi's reading habits are similar to many people, he likes to hold a color marker pen, write and draw in the blank place of the page, but there are not many such opportunities, he rarely has paper books, and can only use e-books to read. For Chen Zhi, paper books are very precious, even with a new job, because of the large number of reading needs, he still can't buy a paper version of every book he wants to read.
Chen Zhi, 32 years old, recorded his 13 years of reading experience in his self-report. He said these experiences are all due to the changing environment around him. "But I just want to read philosophy now, and Heidegger has a lot of things to understand, which is a very large content system." In Chen Zhi's book list, there are no novel masterpieces, and the most frequent word is Heidegger.
Chen Zhi read Heidegger's book. Courtesy of respondents
"I've been thinking lately about the phrase 'existence is the deconstruction of self-obscuration.'" Chen Zhi said that these things are very obscure, and he can't explain them at once. Chen Zhi acted a little embarrassed: "Maybe I read books more out of an individualism." ”
"Reading is not a means, but an end in itself"
"If you stand in front of me and see me, you will know at once that I am a complete loser."
"I am a very humble person," was a phrase that Mr. Chen repeated three times during the interview. He did not take off the cloak of inferiority just because he walked into the campus. In Chen Zhi's world, reading is not the ascending passage of life, he believes that reading is an important way to understand the self-world, the social world, and the natural world, but if the answer to the pursuit of "who am I" is pinned on reading, it is mediocre and superficial.
For about a decade before, Chen Zhi worked and lived in society with a severe stutter, during which time he suffered from various troubles from society, making him more introverted, withdrawn, and unsociable... So he chose to seek a way out in the book world. "Reading is a last resort for me, and I have wondered if I can become a successful person in the social sense, whether I will still read books, to read philosophy." 」
"I don't think that our 'everyday' itself is 'our self,' and that apart from the 'everyday, shallow, unreal, unreal self,' we have a deeper 'self.'" This is the reason why Chen Zhi opposes the phrase "reading changes fate", and it is also his thinking on heidegger's concept of "authenticity".
"Reading is not a means, but an end in itself." Chen Zhi said that reading books and the so-called change of fate and the realization of class rise have nothing to do with each other in essence, and the problem of class rise is a social problem, and it should not be "solved by individuals" through "individual reading", "This is the inversion of the end, if we advocate the purpose of reading more is utilitarian, it is better not to read." ”
Until now, Chen Zhi still often dreamed, and when he woke up, the dream disappeared. The philosopher Freud once proposed that dreams are a reflection of real life. But in Chen Zhi's dream, he couldn't find an outlet for reality. Chen Zhi said that he often wandered in the world of reality and self, "When facing reality, I sometimes have self-doubt, but when I read philosophy, I don't." So I've been reading philosophy, and philosophy has taken me beyond that. ”
"Logos" is not limited to philosophy
Chen Zhi is not a person who rejects reality, he said: "I also have a simple wish to buy a house for my parents and make my family happy and complete." At the same time, Chen Zhi also needs a "non-realistic" space. He set up a group on the social platform, and the group of people from all walks of life, the common interest is to read. The group name is Logos, which translates to "Logos". This is a commonly used philosophical concept in ancient and medieval Europe, and at the end of March, Chen Zhiqun wrote an introduction to "Logos = Speech, Gathering, Reason, Reason, Foundation, Openness, and Lightness" in the announcement. Chen Zhi said that in the group, you can talk about anything, and "Logos" is not limited to philosophy.
The reason for starting a group is simple, and expression is the only requirement for everyone in the group. Chen Zhi did not spend a lot of effort to operate, more than 170 like-minded people, will express their views or feelings here, fair discussion, refuse to quarrel, he in the online world, for himself to create a "Greek square", here, Chen Zhi is Chen Zhi. On April 23, coinciding with World Book Day, the "Logos" group chat was more lively than usual, and a group friend forwarded a data link about the public's reading habits, and Chen Zhi discussed the topic of reading with everyone.
The four seasons are reincarnated, and the cold winter will eventually pass, Chen Zhi continues to translate his Heidegger works, and the shadow of spring in his heart becomes clearer.
Beijing News reporter Chen Lu
Edited by Zhang Shujing Proofreader Zhao Lin