Making Honey

Written by Paul Donovan

I love teaching Philosophy!  It has been almost five years since I last taught in the senior school so when the opportunity to teach the second section of Philosophy arose, I jumped at it.  Part of my enjoyment is working with the seniors again, part of it is the particular group of students in the class and a big part of it is the subject matter itself.  I can’t express how wonderful it is to spend time with a great group of students stretching our minds as we consider all sorts of practical topics like whether physical things or ideas are more real. It strikes me that it is classes like this that are so needed in our educational system and discussions like this that are a distinguishing feature of a Loyola education.

Don’t misunderstand me; despite the overwhelming demand, I don’t expect to see a significant increase in the number of professional philosophers who claim Loyola as their Alma Mater.  But if utility does not explain its value, what does?  After the first day of class and our discussions on the great questions of philosophy, one of the students asked if aspirin was included in the course materials or if students needed to provide their own.  Philosophy makes your brain hurt!  It is a particular type of brain pain, it is not the type that one feels when struggling with an economics problem or when memorizing dates in history; it’s the type that occurs when we ask big questions about life.  Philosophy causes one to “reflect” on the bigger picture.