The Virtual Coffeehouse

I found this assignment to be complicated and a bit heavy. Once I adjusted to Carlyle's writing style and read at a VERY (lol) slow pace I began to really enjoy the reading. I think what I found most prevalent was the returning theme of eyesight, vision and having his eyes 'sealed' or 'unsealed' (1019). I think in some way this theme ties into the posed question for today because I think the narrator is attempting to say that perception, vision, lightness v. darkness, etc. are all implicit in how we are able to answer the questions he poses. In regards to the questions themselves I think his discussion about Cities, Fields and Books. He argues that they are the only ‘visible’ and ‘tangible’ things in the world (1012). I think he uses these three solid ‘products’ as a means then to question (and ultimately find answers) about other not so concrete ideas such as government, laws, and religion.