#175- Taylor's Poetic Knowledge: The Recovery of Education

Online Great Books Podcast

Scott and Karl read and discuss James S. Taylor's 1998 book, Poetic Knowledge: The Recovery of Education.

Taylor describes his work as an “attempt to resuscitate a nearly forgotten mode of knowledge.” This "poetic knowledge" is not the knowledge of poetry. Rather, it is an intuitive, obscure, mysterious way of knowing reality. As Karl points out, "Poētēs in Greek means making... you're a maker of things. I think that's a reasonable way to think about it."

The author traces the history of poetic knowledge through Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Benedict, and the beginning of its demise with Descartes. Tune in for a fascinating look at what has been and what might be again when we turn theoretical into practical knowledge.

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