On Habit

169 Pages·2014·1.231 MB·English

by  Clare Carlisle

On
Habit
For Aristotle, excellence is not an act but a habit, and Hume
regards habit as ‘the great guide of life’. However, for Proust
habit is problematic: ‘if habit is a second nature, it prevents
us from knowing our first.’
What is habit? Do habits turn us into machines or free us
to do more creative things? Should religious faith be habitual?
Does habit help or hinder the practice of philosophy? Why do
Luther, Spinoza, Kant, Kierkegaard and Bergson all criticize
habit? If habit is both a blessing and a curse, how can we live
well in our habits?
In this thought-provoking book Clare Carlisle examines
habit from a philosophical standpoint. Beginning with a lucid
appraisal of habit’s philosophical history she suggests that
both receptivity and resistance to change are basic principles
of habit formation. Carlisle shows how the philosophy of habit
not only anticipates the discoveries of recent neuroscience but
illuminates their ethical significance. She asks whether habit
is a reliable form of knowledge by examining the contrasting
interpretations of habitual thinking offered by Spinoza and
Hume. She then turns to the role of habit in the good life,
tracing Aristotle’s legacy through the ideas of Joseph Butler,
Hegel, and Félix Ravaisson, and assessing the ambivalent
attitudes to habit expressed by Nietzsche and Proust.
She argues that a distinction between habit and practice
helps to clarify this ambivalence, particularly in the context of
habit and religion, where she examines both the theology
of habit and the repetitions of religious life. She concludes by
considering how philosophy itself is a practice of learning to
live well with habit.
Clare Carlisle is Lecturer in Philosophy of Religion at
King’s College London. She is the author of three books on
Kierkegaard, including Kierkegaard’s Philosophy of Becoming: Movements
and Positions(2005) and Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling(2010). In
2008 she published the first English translation of Félix
Ravaisson’s seminal essay De l’habitude.
Thinking in Action
Series editors: Simon Critchley, The New School University, USA, and
Richard Kearney, Boston College, USA, and University College Dublin,
Ireland
Thinking in Actionis a major new series that takes philosophy
to its public. Each book in the series is written by a major
international philosopher or thinker, engages with an
important contemporary topic, and is clearly and accessibly
written. The series informs and sharpens debate on issues as
wide ranging as the Internet, religion, the problem of
immigration and refugees, criticism, architecture, and the way
we think about science. Punchy, short and stimulating,
Thinking in Action is an indispensable starting point for
anyone who wants to think seriously about major issues
confronting us today.
Praise for the series
‘. . . allows a space for distinguished thinkers to write about
their passions.’
The Philosophers’ Magazine
‘. . . deserve high praise.’
Boyd Tonkin, The Independent (UK)
‘This is clearly an important series. I look forward to receiving
future volumes.’
Frank Kermode, author of Shakespeare’s Language
‘both rigorous and accessible.’
Humanist News
‘the series looks superb.’
Quentin Skinner
‘. . . an excellent and beautiful series.’
Ben Rogers, author of A.J. Ayer: A Life
‘Routledge’s Thinking in Action series is the theory junkie’s
bit answer to the eminently pocketable Penguin 60s series.’
Ha Mute Magazine (UK)
n
O
‘Routledge’s new series, Thinking in Action, brings philosophers
iv to our aid. . . .’
The Evening Standard (UK)
‘. . . a welcome series by Routledge.’
Bulletin of Science, Technology and Society (Can)
‘Routledge’s innovative new “Thinking in Action” series takes
the concept of philosophy a step further.’
The Bookwatch
CLARE CARLISLE
On
Habit
First published 2014
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
And published by Routledge
711 Third Ave., New York City, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group,
an informa business
© 2014 Clare Carlisle
The right of Clare Carlisle to be identified as the author of this work
has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying
and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification
and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Carlisle, Clare, 1977–
On habit/Clare Carlisle. –1 [edition].
pages cm. –(Thinking in action)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Habit (Philosophy) I. Title.
B105.H32C37 2014
128′.4 –dc23 2013037770
ISBN: 978-0-415-61913-4 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-415-61914-1 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-0-203-81694-3 (ebk)
Typeset in Joanna and DIN
by Florence Production Ltd, Stoodleigh, Devon, UK
For John
my brother in habit
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Acknowledgementsxi
The concept of habit One 1
Blessing or curse? 1
Defining habit 6
The form of nature 13
Constancy and change 17
Pathways 23
The double law of habit 27
Notes 31
Habit and knowledge Two 37
God or dog? 37
Spinoza: habitual thinking 41
Hume: the great guide of life 46
Rational habituation 52
Nature’s habits 58
Notes 66
Habit and the good life Three 71
Life or death? 71
The pursuit of pleasure 73