Returning once again to the theme of duality Watts states that opposition to prudery goes overboard. Where do you draw the line? The battle of morals represents the same complementary aspects that are part of everything. Moralists mustn't be obliterated or the resulting total hedonism would become bland and plastic. Libertines and prudes need each other. The tension that exists between them is what helps makes the world go round.
The problem with trying to relay the gist of a lecture by Watts is the same as trying to retell a good joke from a master comedian. It falls a bit flat in the translation. Also, unlike in print, a lecture will rely on simpler language and the skill of the speaker to pass on not only ideas but an overall feeling. Like a good novelist or filmmaker who takes a simple almost clichéd idea and makes it work, the cumulative and combined effects of an Alan Watts lecture are what makes it enjoyable.
Cross-posted at: Pistonhips: misanthropic ravings from an expat in Bangkok
Article comments
1 - Eric Olsen
fascinating material presented very well - thanks Finkleman! I think the duality notion can be taken to absurd cnclusions but I agree the tension between opposities is much of what makes the world go round