Written by Antai 2022 Cohort
This is a personal answer to one of the New York Times Learning Network topics. For details, check https://www.nytimes.com/ca/section/learning
People I want to invite to my dinner party are John Lennon, Nicola Tesla, Hideo Kojima, Sun Tzu, Vincent van Gogh, and Isaac Asimov. Or maybe not even a dinner party, just sitting on my couch in my warm cozy living room and chatting.
First, let me tell you how I see these people. John Lennon is one of my favourite musicians, and he was also a peace activist. I like him not only for the great hits but also for the spirit in his lyrics.
Nicola Tesla, the man from the future, was an extraordinary scientist. Hideo Kojima, my favourite game designer, is talented and diligent. And also a pacifist; some of his games are about wars and destruction; however, if you dig deeper, the inner core of his game is against wars. Through his games, he gives us warnings and something to think about our world, society, and humanity.
My favourite author, Isaac Asimov wrote mind-blowing fiction novels; his imagination has no boundaries. As for Vincent van Gogh, I genuinely love his artwork, but I can not say I understand him. I am interested in how he saw our world; it must be different from my view.
Last but not least Sun Tzu, is my ancestor. He wrote the Art of War, but the book teaches us how to avoid wars. His philosophy is one of the great ancient Chinese teachings, such as turning your enemy into a friend without fighting; it’s a win-win scenario and an excellent way to eliminate an enemy.
If I can have this dinner party, we will discuss how we see our world and imagine what the future will be like. I feel they will like each other very much; almost all of them are pacifists, and it will be a peaceful and extraordinary meeting of minds.