On “the all denying spirit”
Seriousness is the shape in which often comes out in the world a reduced intelligence. From this point of view, Socrates is far from being a serious guy. His seriousness is ironic, his irony is always serious. Eros himself is not serious and his irony is involuntary. Satan, well, Mephistopheles, is serious, but not without irony. Irony, unlike seriousness, implies the second one, the same way the lie, which is “state of war”, while irony is “state of peace”. The liar cheats, the ironist delays. Both seem to be under the condition of a bet with Platonic premises: “you must not fall asleep in the middle of the day” (Phaidros, 259d). Seriousness may end up in platitude, it takes a nap, but not irony as well, irony is not apathetic. The serious man does not obey to a school of women as Socrates obeys to Diotima. Seriousness begins when the Devil interferes, irony begins afterwards. And all this take place at the border between wager, agreement, bet and argument.
1.[1] Vladimir Jankélévitch, Ironia, p. 56.
2.[1] Septuaginta, Tomul 4/II, Iov, Editura Polirom, Iaşi, 2007, nota 1, 6, p. 33.
3.[1] Ibidem, nota 1, 7, pp. 33-34.
4.[1] Nae Ionescu, Problema mântuirii în Faust al lui Goethe, Editura Anastasia, Bucureşti, 1996, p. 80.
5.[1] Mihai Moroianu, Marii damnaţi, Editura Muzicală, Bucureşti, 1983, p. 175.
6.[1] Nae Ionescu, op. cit., p. 87.
7.[1] Mihai Moroianu, op. cit., p. 190.
8.[1] Pascal, Cugetări, Editura Ştiinţifică, Bucureşti, 1992, pp. 326-333.
