Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Throughout the book, the narrator compares rational, objective thought with more artistic, subjective ways of thinking. This contrast is highlighted in the difference between John’s and the narrator’s views on motorcycle maintenance. The narrator, who maintains his own motorcycle, calls his own methodical approach a “classic” mindset, while the hands-off, artistic approach of both John and Sylvia is a “romantic” mindset. Each approach sees the other in a negative light. The romantic view, for instance, is a reaction to the classical view’s inability to encompass certain aspects of human experience. However, as the book explains, neither approach is solely sufficient.

As the novel also explains, the inadequacy of classic reason hindered Phaedrus in his pursuit of knowledge. Phaedrus himself concluded that there is no explanation for the fact that there is an infinite number of hypotheses, the very same fact that caused him to abandon science for philosophy in search for answers. He wanted to find an explanation or way to evaluate this infinite number of possibilities based on merit. By examining philosophy, Phaedrus soon discovered his concept of Quality. Instead of residing on only one side of the

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