Pyrrho's Pig



5th c. BCE Greek Figurine of a Pig

Here is another extract from Montaigne's Essais. This is from Book 1, ch. 14, The taste of good & evil things depends upon our opinion . Before this quote he has been discussing constancy in the face of death:


"One case only: the philosopher Pyrrho* happened to be aboard ship during a mighty storm; to those about him whom he saw most terrified he pointed out an exemplary pig, quite unconcerned with the storm; he encouraged them to imitate it. Dare we conclude that the benefit of reason (which we praise so highly & on account of which we esteem ourselves to be lords & masters of all creation) was placed in us for our torment ? What use is knowledge if, for its sake, we lose the calm & repose which we would enjoy without it  & if it makes our condition worse than that of Pyrrho's pig ? Intelligence was given us for our greater good: shall we use it to bring about our downfall by fighting against the design of Nature & the order of the Universe, which require each creature to use its faculties & resources for its advantage ?

Fair enough, you may say: your rule applies to death, but what about want ? And what have you to say about pain which . . . the majority of sages judge to be the ultimate evil ? Even those who denied this in words accepted it in practice: Possidonius was tormented in the extreme by an acutely painful illness; Pompey came to see him & apologised for having picked on so inappropriate a time for hearing him discourse on philosophy: 'God forbid,' said Possidonius, 'that pain should gain such a hold over me as to hinder me from expounding philosophy or talking about it.' & he threw himself into the theme of contempt for pain. Meanwhile pain played her part & pressed hard upon him. At which he cried, 'Pain, do your worst ! I will never say you are an evil !' A great fuss is made about this story, but what does it imply about his contempt for pain ? He is arguing about words: if those stabbing pangs do not trouble him, why does he break off what he was saying ? Why does he think it so important not to call pain an evil ?

All is not in the mind in his case. We can hold opinions about other things: here the role is played by definite knowledge. Our very senses are judges of that  . . . Are we to make our flesh believe that lashes from leather thongs merely tickle it, or to make our palate believe that bitter aloes is vin de Graves ? In this matter, Pyrrho's pig is one of us: it may not fear death, but beat it & it squeals & cries."

Coin from Eleusis, Circa 340-335 BCE., depicting Triptolemos, holding grain ear, seated right in winged chariot being drawn by two serpents / Pig standing right on mystic staff; bucranium below. Pigs were sacrificed during the Eleusinian Mysteries.

Sacrifice of a young boar in ancient Greece, Attic red-figure cup, 510–500 BCE

 

 



*Pyrrho of Elis (c.360-c.270 BCE) was a Greek philosopher who is credited as being the founder of Skepticism. For a view on Pyrrho by Byron, see Byron, West, Macaulay & 'Correctness', 22.9.12. Click on the label 'Byron' below.

Translation by M. A. Screech from his Michel de Montaigne: the Complete Essays (ISBN 0140446044), p.57-8.

How a Song Evolves

Charles I in 3 Positions by Van Dyck, c.1635

The anniversary of the execution of Charles I on January 30th, 1649, has just passed. The mention of that year immediately makes me think of Billy Bragg's version of the song The World Turned Upside Down from 1985, which begins


"In 1649, to St. George's Hill - a ragged band they called The Diggers came to show the people's will . . ."


If you don't know it, or to have the pleasure of refreshing your memory, you can listen to that song here:

Billy states on his Facebook page (1 Dec 2013) that he first heard the song played by the folk singer Roy Bailey at Sheffield City Hall during the Miners' Strike.


As I researched a little in to the history of the song, it struck me that it stands as a very good example of how a song evolves - its origin is known & the steps of its evolution easily traced. It was written by Leon Rosselson & released in 1975. Leon & Roy Bailey were musical partners at the time:

 

 

 

Then there is the absolutely beautiful version by the folk singer Dick Gaughan, released in 1981:

 

 

 

 

 

Now you can see what Billy Bragg did to the song. He simplified the chords of the guitar accompaniment to the most basic necessary - to what the chords are fundamentally - & speeded it up to make it more aggressive & more rousing. This version therefore stands as a testament to the virtues - sometimes - of simplicity. Observe that Billy's version makes it most obvious that the song has no chorus and no middle 8. It consists of the verse again & again, & nothing else. This makes the song insistent, & also free of unnecessary elements or distracting clutter.

 

 

Another thing this song demonstrates is the power of words & music together as a mnemonic. If you know the song, it is very easy to remember where - at St. George's Hill - & when - in 1649 - that The Diggers tried to set up their commune. You have learned this in a very permanent way almost without effort because of taking pleasure in the song.

 

Ewan MacColl

 

Martin Carthy

 

I am not personally in full agreement with the politics of this song. For instance I do not believe in common ownership to the extent The Diggers did, even as an ideal or aspiration. The song shows very fully the kind of radical left politics one associates with folk musicians of Leon Rosselson's generation; think of Ewan MacColl or Martin Carthy. However, although I know I don't entirely agree with the song, I still find it rousing.  I love the lines

 

 

"We will not worship the God they serve - the God of greed who feeds the rich while poor men starve"

 

 

Isn't that  an accurate description of the world today ?

 

 

I haven't heard of a name for this phenomenon, for at the same time assenting to a position in a song or other work of fiction for the sake of enjoyment while also being aware of one's dissent from it. Perhaps we could call it temporary or provisional assent. Perhaps also it is a subset or aspect of suspension of disbelief. Another example of a song which requires this is John Lennon's Imagine. Another is George Harrison's My Sweet Lord ; I find it rousing, & I love singing along with it, but in fact I have no desire at all either to seek or to praise God or Krishna. Think of the audience at Glastonbury singing delightedly along with Tom Jones belting out Delilah :

 

 

"She stood there laughing - I felt the knife in my hand & she laughed no more."

 

 

It's high camp, everyone knows it, everyone is in on the joke. Not one of that audience has any intention of committing murder in a fit of jealous rage, nor would they approve of such a thing in real life.

 

To conclude, here is Billy again doing The World Turned Upside Down at Wembley Arena, 13th April 2012:

 

 

 

Doctor Brown's Image of the Future

My father, Dr P.T. Brown, recently told me a very striking image he had had of a possible future for us all. He was extrapolating from the fact that so many of us are communicating less & less face to face, & more & more via screens & icons: via laptops, tablets, mobiles or cells. He speculated that in future, each of us might carry masks like Venetian carnival masks which folded up like fans. We would each carry say seven of these, one depicting happiness, one sadness, one anger, one grief & so on: & whichever emotion we wished to display, we would unfold the relevant mask & put it to our face. I find this possibility convincing, compelling & chilling.

I would like to add an image I thought of for Life itself:

You are walking down a long back street in a Northern town on an unseasonably cold late March afternoon. The street is a terrace of houses on one side & on the other is a railway line. Despite the houses, the street is almost deserted, & there is no sign of life apart from the back of a huddled figure walking far in front of you & in the same direction. An icy east Wind blows pieces of rubbish round & round in small eddies. At the top of the street, the figure in front of you turns the corner & disappears, never to be seen again.