On Fanaticism

According to Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M Prisig, fanaticism arises out of lack of faith in the object of fanaticism. He takes the example of the sun rising tomorrow, and says no one is going bananas over this fact. Applied to oneself, I can see where Prisig is coming from. I'm fanatical about jazz and postmodernist theorists. My fanaticism stems from a lack of faith in my understanding, and that's always been the case. There is a certain insecurity at play, and once the insecurity dies, so does my fanaticism. For example, I used to be hugely obsessed with a progressive metal band called Dream Theater. My obsession lasted three years, and now that I think about it, it was premised on a lack of faith in my understanding of the music that was being played. I have a clearer understanding now, the insecurities have gone, and with that, the fanaticism's also disappeared.

I'm hypothesizing here, though I do get the sense one could extend this fanaticism to the ambit of academia, as well. The good professors I've been taught by possess (if fanaticism is a thing that can be possessed) a certain degree of fanaticism. the arrived ones, I have noticed, needn't be fanatic at all. The fanatic ones are afflicted with a lack of faith in their own understanding, and so always keep reading the course, and everything that's related to it. The arrived ones are secure in their understanding and communication, and still read out of genuine interest. This piece isn't a value judgement about fanaticism. This is what it appears to be, according to me, and that is that.