“A motorcycle functions entirely in accordance with the laws
of reason, and a study of the art of motorcycle maintenance is really a
miniature study of the art of rationality itself.” (98)
I found this quote particularly interesting as I can relate
to what is being said here. Throughout life I have encountered multiple
instances where studying something or learning something has helped me gain a
deeper connection to what I conceive as reality. I think this quote shows what
“Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” is really pushing i.e., without
this forged connection between the world and us humans we really wouldn’t
amount to much.
As a kid, I can remember different camping trips with my
parents where I “forged” new connections with the world. I experienced building
and starting a fire, cooking food over said fire, fighting off mosquitos,
hiding food from bears and staying warm on cool summer nights. All these
experiences helped me better understand the world around us. I realize this is
not nearly the same as motorcycle maintenance in terms of a logical system, but
the same connections seemed to be built in my experiences as in the book.
On the other side of the spectrum, I worked for a “high-end”
landscaping company where I learned different. In terms of the actual
landscaping I learned the “philosophy” of landscaping is not so cheerful as it
sounds after the first month or so of working. The concept of spending all day
to make one house look nice to only come back next week to do the exact same
thing slowly beat my enthusiasm for the job into the pavement. This deep
connection to the earth that I had been forging for the past month made me hate
my life. On top of that, I had a horrible boss who had the good intentions of
making us all work like grunts. I watched his entire workforce grind to a halt
as his inability to run a smooth operation became embarrassingly apparent. This,
while being a “system of rational”, shows how although a system may “function
entirely in accordance with the laws of reason” it does not have to be entirely
productive or “rational”.
There are multiple cases in everyone’s life where they
interact or observe a system, such as mentioned in the novel “Zen and the Art
of Motorcycle Maintenance” working within their reality. These systems combine
into our universal realty; I think this is a fascinating notion brought up in
this novel.
Your quote seems so different than everything we learn in writing. To me writing is free and full of life; a blank page is like a playground waiting to be transformed in the outer space or the ship of treasure hungry pirates. But this quote just seems sterile, rational.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read the quote again I thought of my roommate who’s a civil engineer. Everything he does is rational, calculated within the laws of reason. He could look at a motorcycle engine and begin to work on it, methodically piece by piece until he found the problem. I’m completely opposite. I don’t see things mechanically or orderly, however I do rationalize things, or try to put them in perspective. Studying the art of motorcycle maintenance seems so orderly, like there is no room for invention or personal touch.
I appreciate how you brought this quote back to your own life. Personally, your quote represents everything that I find annoying about this book. The entire concept originates within the laws of "reason" but the focus of this novel pivots on the notion of where is the rationality within life. In all honesty, what the hell? I agree with what Alyssa said above because there is a difference between rationality and reason. Motorcycle maintenance is a concise methodology set in reason, but the way the narrator sets about it, appears almost irrational to someone who reads this from the outside.
ReplyDeleteI can relate to both of your examples. I lived in the mountains on weekends as a kid, and I worked landscaping too.The earth is beautiful, lovable... until you have to dig into with a shovel and cheap shoes. Directly beneath the surface of it lies a chaos of rock, root and any manner of debris bound and determined to bruise the tenderest part of the sole of your foot. I like the metaphor immensely. We can't easily graft our concept of beauty onto to the earth in the same way that we can't easily create order by simply thinking about it. My rational mind wants to relegate that connection to a compromise between me and the natural order. Things work a certain way and I can come in and reorganize them to meet my needs, thus, I can build a motorcycle. The romantic mind interprets it completely different. Things work a certain way and I adapt my way of thinking to survive within it. My rational mind wants to adjust the land so it holds more rational beauty (organized, based on design theory, etc.) but my romantic mind sees the beauty already there and desires only to go camping in it. The two are constantly at odds, and it is because of this that I seek to understand. If they ever agree, I think I would stop looking for answers. That notion is a little frightening to me.
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