The question, what is dominant, human ‘nature’, or ‘nurture’ (culture), has been the motivating force in a debate that has waged since at least the 18th and 19th centuries — for instance in the work of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (see his prize-winning Academy of Dijon essay on the question, whether human morals had improved by, or […]
Shakespeare
Posted inGeneral, News/Politics
‘House of Cards’: Machiavelli and Shakespeare all in one
In this South African season of political ambitions, would you like to know what principles the Florentine philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli advised aspiring political leaders — specifically “princes” — to adhere to ruthlessly in the 16th century in his famous (or is it notorious) treatise, The Prince (1515)? Or what Shakespeare, holding up the mirror to […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Is Oscar’s attorney really a star?
Why is the defence advocate, Barry Roux, considered a star by the faceless social media when a defenceless woman was killed? One realises there are sub-editors, and part of their jobs is just to make a sensational headline. But the story in reports like these celebrate Roux as if he were a chess grandmaster. The […]