“Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.” —The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
For some strange reason, I’m fond of Oscar Wilde. He goes against nearly everything I believe in, but I admire his intellect, his ability to write, his unabashed zest for life, and the beauty of his prostrate repentance birthed in the suffering of prison.
Though I am yanking this quote out from a very different context, I believe it reflects how the internet has affected popular thinking. We have filled our heads with so much fluff from Ted Talks, YouTube, news sites, podcasts, and random blogs. Some of it is intriguing and valuable, but we cannot process it. We gain a familiarity with what is being said, but not a firm grasp on why people think the way they think.
Does that make sense?
Last month I recommended delving into the works of Carl R. Trueman. Quite honestly, I’ve not gotten very far in my own reading of his book Strange New World: How Thinkers and Activists Redefined Identity and Sparked the Sexual Revolution. Nothing quite motivates like a deadline. So at the end of September, I will have a Zoom meeting with Tsunami Supporters (paid subscribers) to present some thoughts and, hopefully, have some meaningful interaction.
Some of the insights might eventually make it into a blog post.
And actually, Trueman cites the influence of Oscar Wilde on the mindset of his contemporaries. I’m quite interested in seeing what he has to say!
What about you? Binging too much on internet debris? Fluff and dust bunnies clouding your thinking? Join me in digging deeper so that we not only know the price this “strange new world” is exacting, but the value of a perspective which can save the lives of tsunami victims.
In a related "second cousin once removed" kind of way: https://scotmcknight.substack.com/p/on-reading-the-news?utm_source=email