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A review by simoncolumbus
Trying Not to Try: The Art and Science of Spontaneity by Edward Slingerland
3.5
Trying not to Try centres on two axes of distinction. The first contrasts two ways of approaching ethics. On the one hand, there is a rationalist approach Slingerland identifies with contemporary utilitarian or consequentialist accounts (singling out Peter Singer) and its forerunner Mohism in warring states China. On the other hand, there are Chinese philosophies focused on wu-wei, 'the dynamic, effortless, and unselfconscious state of mind of a person who is optimally active and effective.' Each of these philosophies seeks to provide an answer to paradox of how to attain this state.
Slingerland links this contrast to the distinction between 'cold' and 'hot' cognition (of 'Thinking, Fast and Slow' fame). While this interdisciplinary approach is in many ways admirable, it is also the greatest weakness of the book. In 2014, when Trying not to Try was first published, the embodied social cognition approach with which Slingerland illustrates many of the links was already crumbling; by now, it has been all but devastated by social psychology's replication crisis. Although the links mostly seem illustrative, this does raise the question whether Slingerland would reappraise some of his interpretation of ancient philosophy in light of failed replications of modern psychology.
The second contrast is between four philosophical schools that each proposed a different way to attain wu-wei, helpfully summarised in a table in the back: "try hard not to try" (Confucius, Xunzi), "stop trying" (Laozi), "try, but don't force it" (Mencius), "let go" (Zhuangzi). Each of these four accounts is profound in its own right, but I have found that framing them as different answers to the paradox of wu-wei enlightening.
To Slingerland's great credit, this is not a self-help book, even though each of the philosophical schools lends itself to these aims. The last two chapters are specifically devoted to discussing why none of the four schools provides a straightforward answer to the paradox of wu-wei.
Slingerland links this contrast to the distinction between 'cold' and 'hot' cognition (of 'Thinking, Fast and Slow' fame). While this interdisciplinary approach is in many ways admirable, it is also the greatest weakness of the book. In 2014, when Trying not to Try was first published, the embodied social cognition approach with which Slingerland illustrates many of the links was already crumbling; by now, it has been all but devastated by social psychology's replication crisis. Although the links mostly seem illustrative, this does raise the question whether Slingerland would reappraise some of his interpretation of ancient philosophy in light of failed replications of modern psychology.
The second contrast is between four philosophical schools that each proposed a different way to attain wu-wei, helpfully summarised in a table in the back: "try hard not to try" (Confucius, Xunzi), "stop trying" (Laozi), "try, but don't force it" (Mencius), "let go" (Zhuangzi). Each of these four accounts is profound in its own right, but I have found that framing them as different answers to the paradox of wu-wei enlightening.
To Slingerland's great credit, this is not a self-help book, even though each of the philosophical schools lends itself to these aims. The last two chapters are specifically devoted to discussing why none of the four schools provides a straightforward answer to the paradox of wu-wei.