Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with ideal

Undeserved nostalgia?

Monochrome — Tue, 06 May 2008 01:06:15 -0800

When was the past better than the present? I'd like to know the word or phrase that describes the romanticism people have of the past, e.g. "In those days, children respected their elders!". I was watching the documentary Born Rich and Cody Franchetti mentions that the encyclopedia was better in the early 20th century. Why? This feeling that "old ways are better" is not exactly nostalgia, because often people expressing this sentiment didn't actually grow up in this utopian past. But their feelings toward this time are exactly like nostalgia. My memory may be failing me, but I recall learning in history class that people during the Renaissance had this love of all things ancient. Where did they get such an idea? It seems the opposite of the idea of "progress", which I associate with the Victorians, yet also associate with Enlightenment ideals which were born out of the Renaissance. Via searching Wikipedia, I find that this is the antithesis of "chronological snobbery". So what is it called?

Also, why is it prevalent? It's easier for me to understand the assumption inherent in Victorian's progressive ideas: we learn from the past's mistakes, so we don't make the same mistakes. But how does one intuitively decide that the present is decaying?

Can ideological differences make or break a relationship?

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 12:09:04 -0800

Increasingly, my fiancee and I have become distant in our ideological views. I realize that this is likely to happen in any relationship as people age but I still feel rather strongly about some of these issues (as she did early on in our relationship) and I don't appreciate the increasing pressure from her and her family to "grow-up". How common is this situation? And, if so, is there any advice you can offer to work through the problems? I apologize for the length, but here's more background on the situation:

We've been together for over 4 years. We live together and plan on getting married next year. We were both initially against the idea of marriage but she relented and basically told me that if we weren't getting married then the relationship was over. I love her dearly and not wanting to lose her I agreed to the marriage thinking that it would be far worse to lose her then stick to a silly ideal.

That's one down, but not nearly as important to me as the next. We never wanted children and recently she confided that she has changed her mind and now would like children once we're married. She initially mentioned this to her family (who absolutely love the idea of us having kids) who, once I was informed and upset by the decision, decided to step in and deride my opinions on the subject as childish.

I did not appreciate that at all. We have discussed the subject at some length since then, but I'm fairly sure that it is something I am not willing to change my mind about.

Fast forward to recently: We are both vegetarians (me being an extremely strict vegetarian) and she has decided to start eating meat again. While this is definitely a personal decision on her part, I see it as just one more example of another area in which we are growing apart. I made the mistake of once telling her (at the beginning of our relationship) that I would never date a non-vegetarian and her family have now latched on to this latest debacle to weigh in against me.

I'm seeing warning signs all over the place and we have attempted to discuss these issues but with her family weighing in and her resilience it has become increasingly apparent that my opinions or ideals no longer matter and I'm not sure what to do.

Describe ideal grad student

Eiwalker — Wed, 28 Jun 2006 21:39:51 -0800

What is a typical excellent grad student like as a person? I'm not interested in grades/GRE scores. My concern is with character, personality, work ethic. I just finished my first year as a grad student in philosophy. I'd like to better understand my role.

I have also been asked by one of my undergraduate professors to write a paper for his students, giving tips for applying to grad school in philosophy.

There are almost certainly different types of successful grad student: different people succeed in different ways. If you know of unusual but highly successful types, feel free to mention those; but I expect that the rare types might tend to look riskier on paper (esp. applications).

What is Your Dream Job? Are You Doing It?

NotMyselfRightNow — Mon, 20 Dec 2004 04:42:26 -0800

What's your dream job? [+]

Significance of the number 36 in porn

Tryptophan-5ht — Tue, 24 Aug 2004 17:01:41 -0800

I recently watched a home movie of this girlie being all naked and stuff but i was utterly perplexed by the number "36" written in large letters across her ass. I assumed it was just some personal kinky/weirdness till i happened upon a vintage BDSM photo of a young girl with 36 'spanked' onto her ass. Can any one explain the significance of '36'?