Philosophy discussion

Greetings. Being new to the group I offer the following as an introduction to my recent thoughts and ,I guess, general personality.
Schopenhauer's contention that life is know and will continue to be essentially miserable and painful and that the only way we might obtain a bit of peace and happiness in this world is to avoid as often as possible, contact with the majority (5/6's he says)of the population. These are the people without sufficient intellect to know where painlessness might lie. You know these folks; the excessive consumers, reality TV fans, those who take solace in religion.

We, of course, you and I, are of the 1/6th. We know the pursuit of great ideas has a greater potential to lead us to peace than more material goods, losing ourselves in the ersatz existence of media personalities or the superstition of religion.

But, is this an overly simplistic assessment? Are people, in general, more complex than Schopenhauer would have us believe?

Often I contend with the very same question. In my correspondences with my peers and others, I do find that they live lives that are more dimensional than I thought, but, to my disappointment, they are unwilling to invest as much time as I do to the said, 'big questions'. I find that they have some awareness of the inevitability of misery in this life and that perhaps as a calculus, pain v. happiness, the overwhelming degree of pain justifies suicide (in my view) - regardless, they are unwilling to delve into these questions any further, to ingress into the very structures that perpetuate and live on their toil and misery. Increasingly, it is also the case that some are blind to the realities of this world.

Kierkegaard to feels the same, but with more religiosity :D, http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Arti...

Thanks, Cody for your thoughtful comments. Allow me to offer the following in clarification of my initial post.
It's not that the masses (as I see Schopenhauer's opinion) are detestable. I believe he sees a tendency in the average man toward mindlessness-a blind adherence to religious doctrines and dogmas in some instances and an overall lack of intellectual curiosity.
And, it's not that philosophers or those who struggle with the big questions are superior individuals but rather seeking understanding is the way through the trappings of material, hedonistic desires that won't lead to the happiness sought.

I find myself agreeing with Schopenhauer's opinion, to a degree. As Sibusiso has pointed out, while many of the people we come in contact with appear to have flat motives and lower dimensional lives, the actuality of the situation proves to be much more complex.

Should you subscribe to the Tabula Rasa school of thought then it is indeed possible for the entire 6/6 population to compete intellectually. The 'blank slate' hypothesis however, is now debated on it's accuracy. Notably, Steven Pinker's book The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature speaks of the folly of complete acceptance of the idea.

If we assume that individuals are able to compete at similar levels, even if not exact, an argument could be presented with the idea that people merely choose not to indulge in the field of 'greater thought'. Or that their interest and drive has not been piqued.

I believe, on a personal level, that ignorance is bliss. I could see where people may believe that it's better to remain in the dark about things beyond their control. I'm in constant debate with myself to not condemn that approach to inferiority. Is it a respectable life choice of others to purposefully remain ignorant in an attempt to have life remain pleasurable? Only dealing with trivial problems in their life? Or is it a bane on the society when so many people remain focused in unproductive thought? Is it selfish or do we have the right to deny assisting scholars?

I have only begun to read philosophy. I apologize if my ideas sound foolish. If any books cover something similar to the last paragraph, please, let me know.

Great discussion. Ignorance may be bliss up to a point but unless one can get past the trappings of the material world meaningful happiness will probably elude him/her. (So I think Schopenhauer would suggest)
Finding values of substance requires energy. I think (me now) most of mankind has the capacity to think deeply but as you say the will and energy may not be there. I think to some extent allowing material interests to dictate one's desires is an overall problem-one that's leading to the degradation of the health of the earth not to mention the dumbing down of religion that mainstream Christianity is practicing. OK, maybe that last statement's a little harsh. I think your average non-thinker, in need of SOMETHING of significance in his/her life will often seek it in church and being non-thinkers will blindly grasp the doctrinal trappings. Truly unfortunate.

I find the act of seeking significance in religion to be an easy solution to the problem. By accepting fully a predetermined history and dogma, you can free yourself of the complicated process of understanding philosophy. It's the idea that the work is already done, you can have a false sense of understanding leading to artificial happiness.