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Think of the many millions of years that thousands of species (having brains that consisted of little more than mere tangles of ganglia on one end of a spinal cord or, even, no spinal cord and no ganglia) have survived on this planet. Think of our own precarious situation after only a few hundred thousand years. Mr. Clarke could well have a point. What to do? What to do?
But we have already contradicted ourselves—lack of knowledge seems to be a problem in understanding our sociocultural situation, but rationality or intelligence may not provide answers. But rationality and intelligence are the means by which we gain knowledge, are they not?
The discussions that constitute the rest of this introduction will seek to provide the reader (by means of brief descriptions of a variety personal experiences and the laying out of a couple of metaphors and thought problems) with some of the perspectives, insights, and conceptual tools that will be useful in the discussions that follow. Throughout this book, there are serious philosophical questions that underlie all of the considerations we discuss. The aim here is to present musical and philosophical questions in a clear, jargonless language that meets, without flinching, complexities pervading both fields in an attempt to construct meaningful and useful linkages between the two. Our path is eased somewhat by the happy fact that aesthetics and ethics are activities that are both, as we have just mentioned, committed to the examination of values.
This effort is made out of profound respect for my colleagues—voice teachers and philosophers alike. It is both an honor and a privilege to work with so many wonderful people in both fields.
Contradictions Within
The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. The opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth.
—Niels Bohr2
The first part of the tragedy Faust, by Goethe, opens with our protagonist absorbed in thought: