An interesting essay from 1910 about making the best use of one's time on earth. Taking from it a single self-referential idea:
"I know people who read and read, and for all the good it does them they might just as well cut bread-and-butter. They take to reading as better men take to drink. They fly through the shires of literature on a motor-car, their sole object being motion. They will tell you how many books they have read in a year.
Unless you give at least forty-five minutes to careful, fatiguing reflection (it is an awful bore at first) upon what you are reading, your ninety minutes of a night are chiefly wasted. This means that your pace will be slow."
"While Qoheleth clearly endorses wisdom as a means for a well-lived earthly life, he is unable to ascribe eternal meaning to it. In light of this perceived senselessness, he suggests that one should enjoy the simple pleasures of daily life, such as eating, drinking, and taking enjoyment in one's work, which are gifts from the hand of God."
It doesn't say that, though -- he perceives "wisdom" as senselessness and something with no "eternal meaning", in contrast to the simple pleasures of daily life, which (apparently unlike wisdom) have supernatural approval and eternal value.
That's not helpful. True wisdom doesn't ignore physical reality. It doesn't deny basic pleasures; it illuminates them. And it's the only way to find sense in the world -- directly, not just mouthing the words provided by a human authority.
I was confused, the header says "Release Date: August, 2000" but it definitely sounded like 1910 English (also, seemed weird to talk about people living on 1£ a day). Thanks for clearing that up.
Maybe another way to phrase it a century later, is the purpose of an education is to give you interesting things to think about (as opposed to the purpose of training). Therefore if you choose not to think, you're kinda wasting your time getting educated.
Or if the purpose of literature is to make you think about interesting things, yet you absolutely insist on not thinking, save your time and don't read it.
"I know people who read and read, and for all the good it does them they might just as well cut bread-and-butter. They take to reading as better men take to drink. They fly through the shires of literature on a motor-car, their sole object being motion. They will tell you how many books they have read in a year.
Unless you give at least forty-five minutes to careful, fatiguing reflection (it is an awful bore at first) upon what you are reading, your ninety minutes of a night are chiefly wasted. This means that your pace will be slow."