On Detachment or Why the Shopkeeper Does Not Investigate His Apples

Abstract

What do we do when we do philosophy or think about the meaning of life? Some philosophers say we detach ourselves from the contingencies of our lives and view the world from a broader perspective. In our everyday lives we are engaged with, and committed to, countless things, but we also have a ‘special capacity to step back and survey’ life from above (Nagel 1971: 146). Detachment from life is seen as the key factor in contemplating the meaning of life. Implicit in such a view is the idea that some level of distance, or separation, from life is required in order to contemplate it. The assumption here is that the very act of doing philosophy as a second-order enquiry requires stepping back and distancing oneself from that which is being enquired. As Alasdair Macintyre writes, ‘philosophy inescapably involves some measure of self-alienation’ (2006: 127). In particular, the notion of detachment is of high significance among sceptics and nihilists in the literature. They claim that the only way to arrive at the truthfulness of nihilism is through detaching ourselves from our individual concerns and viewing life as a whole.

Sax player: What are you thinking about?

Ida: I’m not thinking.

Sax player: We are off to Gdansk to do some gigs. Want to

come?… Ever been to the seaside?

Ida: I haven’t been anywhere.

Sax player: Come along then. You’ll listen to us play, we’ll

walk on the beach.

Ida: And then?

Sax player: Then we’ll buy a dog, get married, have children,

get a house.

Ida: And then?

Sax player: The usual. Life.

— Ida (2013), Directed by pawel Pawlikowski