So, I’ve been wrestling with this whole Romantics versus Plato thing for a good while now. It’s not like I was sitting in a library with dusty books all day, nah, it was more about how I was trying to, you know, live and make sense of stuff.
I remember when I first really got into Plato’s ideas. Everything had to be about reason, order, finding that perfect ‘form’ of things. Sounded pretty smart, right? So, I tried to apply it. My tiny apartment, I tried to make it super organized, everything in its place. When I was working on little projects, I’d make these incredibly detailed plans. I figured if I could just map it all out perfectly, like Plato would, then execution would be a breeze. It worked, sometimes. But man, it felt stiff. Like I was trying to fit my messy life into these neat little boxes.
Then the Romantics Crashed the Party
Then, somehow, I stumbled into the world of the Romantics. You know, all that stuff about big emotions, nature being wild and amazing, and your gut feelings being super important. It was like a complete flip. Suddenly, the super-ordered, reason-first approach felt… well, a bit cold. I started thinking, maybe all those feelings I was trying to suppress or organize were actually the main event!
I tried leaning into that. If I felt like doing something creative, I’d just dive in, no plan, just pure emotion and whatever came out, came out. If I wanted to understand something, I’d try to feel it rather than just think it through. It was liberating, for sure. But also, kinda chaotic. Sometimes, nothing got finished, or what I made was a bit of a jumble.
My practical “experiments” with this were, let’s say, interesting. I remember trying to plan a simple weekend trip.
- Plato attempt: Every hour scheduled, routes optimized, backup plans for everything. It felt more like a military operation than a vacation. I spent more time on the spreadsheet than enjoying the actual prep.
- Romantic attempt: Just picked a general direction and drove. Ended up in some cool spots, yeah, but also spent a night in a pretty sketchy motel because I hadn’t booked anything and everything decent was full. Not ideal.
It was like I was swinging from one extreme to the other. One week, I’d be all about strict discipline and logic – my diet, my work, everything. The next, I’d be like, “Nah, just go with the flow, feel the universe!” It was pretty exhausting, actually, trying to be one or the other 100%.
The real turning point for me was when I was trying to get a small community garden plot going with a few neighbors. Initially, my Platonic brain kicked in. I drew up diagrams, soil testing schedules, companion planting charts that were super precise. Some folks were on board, others looked at my charts like they were alien hieroglyphics.
Then, one of the older guys, he just started chucking seeds around, saying things like, “This fella likes the sun here,” or “These two plants are old friends, they’ll get along.” It was all intuition and experience. Pure Romantic, in a way. His stuff grew like crazy. My perfectly planned sections? Some did okay, some just… didn’t. It was a bit humbling, you know?
So, where am I now with Romantics vs Plato? Honestly, it’s not really a “versus” for me anymore. It’s more like realizing they’re both pointing at different, important parts of being alive. You need some structure, some reason – Plato’s good for that. But if you kill off all the passion, the intuition, the wonder – the Romantic stuff – then what’s the point? Life gets pretty dull and mechanical.
I guess my “practice” taught me that it’s about finding a kind of dance between them. Sometimes you lead with your head, sometimes with your heart. And most of the time, they both need to be in the room, talking to each other, even if they bicker a bit. It’s messy, yeah, but I think that’s just how it is. Way more interesting than trying to be a perfect robot or a chaotic whirlwind all the time.
