Author: admin

What are we primed for?

Youth, in so many ways, must provide us with this foundation of feeling, familiarity, values, skills and patterns of behaviour that we’ll later rely on or, perhaps, fall back on. These base notes of how we are and how we see life. The lessons that, effectively, carry us through our days.

It’s this time of preparation, of planting seeds and honing skills as we revisit, rework, reimagine and stretch out our capacities. The attitudes of mind fostered, modelled or encouraged through it all. So, by the time we’re entering adulthood, we’re hopefully ready to grasp life’s responsibilities, understand its risks, and make of it what we will.

Foundational experiences surely give us our footing for the world we’re to be part of: a sense of ourselves, of others, of how things work and what it all means. This fundamental understanding of the ways things are and where we stand within it all; what matters and doesn’t; how we might spend our time and energy; the things we might choose to invest ourselves in or happily walk away from.

How exactly we go about preparing the young psyche for life in this world is a fascinating question (Notes One). What should be placed there? Of all the timeless and contemporary pearls of wisdom on offer, which do we need? Can we throw in a little of everything, just to be safe, or might that drown out the essential and dilute the message?

In a way, we’re training people in how to see and how to act – how to interpret the world and respond to it. We’re told what things mean, the ideas with which to label everything; labels themselves directing us to see life a certain way. In youth, we’re learning how to engage with life – the thoughts and conclusions with which to think; the basic emotional tone of our existence.

Then things slip into the subconscious, serving us from there without the ongoing trouble of active awareness: times tables, grammar, movement, social ethics, self-esteem all becoming this underlying skeleton of knowledge we build upon and live our lives within. The deep sense of agency, certainty, confidence on which we stand – the mastery of self, surety of our wisdom and worth, and happy integration into social realities.

But it also seems entirely possible we could be primed with uncertainty, doubt and confusion – shaky foundations, mixed messages, an unclear sense of our own value and the importance of human existence. Questions can be buried under the veneer of admirable success, leaving fundamental insecurities within the inner structure of our being. Fear, sadness and anxiety could easily take the place of well-grounded strength.

Establishing a basic muscle-memory for living seems an intriguing idea: how balanced and realistic are we in understanding our place in life? Do we have solid emotional and practical foundations to lean on, later or whenever we need to? Is our imagination filled with helpful, hopeful thoughts about living or are we letting more fearful, powerless images take their place?

Notes and References:

Note 1: Learning to be human
Note 1: Knowledge, capacity & understanding
Note 1: Writings on Education
Note 1: Do we know what we’re doing?
Note 1: What it is to be human

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Attacks on our humanity

What exactly does it “mean” to be human? Individually as much as collectively, what do our lifetimes entail and create? What “makes” us who we are, and what’s the right way to be going about it all? Massive questions, clearly: we’re all unique, self-aware creatures charting our own individual paths through life, forging relationships and leaving countless impacts in our wakes.

It just seems that we are what we are – the human psyche poured into the world that’s surrounding us. And we “need” that relationship to sustain us emotionally, socially, intellectually, creatively, economically. Human communities must serve so many essential functions; at the core of which, hopefully, is the balanced and appreciative individual (Notes One).

How much is that now the case, though? And why is it so many “parts” of society now seem intent upon undermining, unsettling and criticising us all? It’s almost like we’re turning on ourselves, tearing each other down for commercial or psychological advantage. But maybe I’m wrong to characterise it that way. Maybe it’s all designed to help us be the best we can – by pointing out all our problems.

Modern society just seems this environment of critical hostility, judgement and pressure to conform – our “worth” closely aligned with our ability to keep up financially. It seems we’re all under such scrutiny now, every sign of weakness or imperfection being an opportunity to diminish our confidence, cast people aside or insist on yet another consumer need (Notes Two).

Does the marketplace “need” to undermine self-worth in order to function? Effectively, it must lead to a scenario where large chunks of social activity are directed toward picking away at us all in the name of manufacturing demand. What is it to live in a world that makes you feel bad about yourself so it can offer to make you feel better?

Have human societies ever been set up this way before? Undermining psychological, social and emotional security for commercial gain. Setting us against one another in a never-ending quest for the next essential, self-defining item. Chipping away at limited material resources in the pursuit of what, exactly? How much can a society place in the balance before the whole thing risks crumbling into a neurotic, self-induced heap?

We might hope that something’s there to protect us – that the law, the state, or some overarching moral code would prevent our lives and general peace of mind from being deconstructed that way – but it’s not seeming to be the case (Notes Three). In reality, it seems organisations or individuals are quite free to feed off our very natural uncertainties; perhaps, even, to encourage or fabricate them.

Making people feel incomplete and dependent might be a wonderful economic model, but where does it leave us in terms of individual psychology and social stability? It seems to be a picture of us against the world, of a community feeding off its members’ vulnerabilities and legitimate human needs then justifying it by having converted them to money. Why live that way?

Notes and References:

Note 1: Human nature and community life
Note 1: Economy & Humanity
Note 1: Plato & “The Republic”
Note 2: What it is to be human
Note 2: The insatiable desire for more
Note 2: What’s not essential
Note 3: What would life be if we could trust?
Note 3: Overwhelm and resignation
Note 3: Life’s never been simpler…

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Life’s never been simpler…

It can quite easily be argued that life’s never been simpler than now. That prolonged peace, relative prosperity and general well-being make the modern Western human more sheltered, safe and well-equipped than at any time in history. Yet it doesn’t seem we really feel that way.

Maybe it’s true, though, by many measures. Even compared with a generation or so back, the expectations we now have of life are surely luxurious? The ease and convenience of a consumer lifestyle – full of choice and good legal protection – seems worlds apart from any real concept of difficulty, danger or deprivation.

Is it, then, that problems are relative? That we “forget” what life used to be; taking our own experiences as the new norm? It must be hard to keep even recent historical comparisons actively in mind when we’re faced with so many overwhelming distractions, choices and pressures (Notes One).

It must be fairly “natural” we focus on our own surroundings and challenges, rather than constantly reminding ourselves how unprecedented these comfort levels actually are. We live in our environment as it is now; navigating it is perhaps more urgent than appreciating it. Taking it as a given is, in a way, an understandable starting point for moving forwards.

But, of course, we can’t quite cut ourselves off from history (Notes Two). We are where we are because of all that’s gone before: the innovations, freedoms and values we now enjoy very much stand on the shoulders of past battles and sacrifices. It’s arguably impertinent to take the fruits without appreciating those journeys and the responsibilities being handed over to us.

Maybe it’s simply that freedom, choice and relative ease are their own kind of burden? Alongside the weighty expectations placed on us by culture and advertising: ideas of what our life should be and all we should have to be considered successful or, even, enough by our peers and society’s general estimations.

Taking the evolutionary perspective, then, our task “must” be to engage with our environment as it is? Clinging to comparisons with the past can’t be a developmental advantage. But grasping where we’ve come from, the opportunities we’ve been given and responsibility of using that position carefully must also be part and parcel of living well.

Life now carries with it this immense burden of being woven into inscrutable global systems we’re needing to navigate wisely. All that’s falling on each person’s shoulders – without the reassurance of tradition, faith or time to think – isn’t easy to manage (Notes Three). Where’s the balance to be found between understanding our past and dealing purposefully with the present?

All this seems overwhelming in its own unprecedented ways, as life’s simultaneously never been easier or more difficult. All the information, awareness, choice and – with it – responsibility is surely asking something different from us? Perhaps, just as much as has ever been asked of humans: to rise to the challenge, understand the risks, fight the right battles, and not take our eye off what really matters.

Notes and References:

Note 1: Overwhelm and resignation
Note 1: Do we know what we’re doing?
Note 1: Effect, if everything’s a drama
Note 2: Caught in these thoughts
Note 2: Entertaining ideas & the matter of truth
Note 2: Social starting points for modern ways
Note 2: Able to see what matters?
Note 3: What’s not essential
Note 3: Complication of being human
Note 3: Freedom, what to lean on & who to believe
Note 3: What it is to be human

Similar themes are also, in part, the focus of “Small is Beautiful”, “Ecological Intelligence” and “Brave New World Revisited”.

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Overwhelm and resignation

What can we do when so many things, almost completely outside our control, keep assailing us? Situations, images, assertions, statements, facts, lies, retellings of things people have or haven’t really done. Perhaps, some version of the classic “fight, flight, avoidance” strategy? Deciding whether we can change things, accept them, or remove ourselves from the situation. But, does any of that truly solve anything?

If we were living in a world we could trust, maybe these things work (Notes One). If we could be sure our attempt to fight injustice would be met with a wisdom that acknowledged and stood alongside our indignation, restoring order and ensuring problems were rightfully dealt with. If we could feel that by walking away, keeping our head down or going with the flow others wouldn’t suffer from our lack of action.

Instead, it seems we’re living in a world that demands our engagement. The nature of modern systems makes almost everything we’re doing part of much larger global networks with tendencies toward greed, exploitation and various forms of destruction. Resting passively or turning our head away, we’re arguably still facilitating rather than challenging such realities.

If that’s the nature of life now, in all its relentless insistence, what “is” the right way of dealing with it? This unending flood of all that’s demanding our attention – things we should rightfully care deeply about – surely runs the risk of overwhelming our capacity for intelligent, balanced, reasonable responses (Notes Two).

Effectively, social infrastructure – the whole of “life” – is being dismantled and reworked around us while those responsible for doing so stand little chance of being affected by the fallout. We’re the ones bearing the stress and uncertainty of trying to safely navigate a shifting landscape. It seems we’re the guinea pigs, the canaries, testing out how viable all this is – the crumple zone of modern innovation (Notes Three).

It’s perhaps understandable that people rage, turn a blind eye, or suffer from the psychological pressures. Anxiety, depression, interpersonal tension, low tolerance levels and lack of consideration for others kind of make sense given everything we’re all under. Angry activism clearly has a context, as does careless social disengagement. But, potentially, these things compound rather than resolve our problems.

We all know what’s going on, and that it matters. If we’re to trust in the systems or companies governing our lives then they surely need to be trustworthy: acting out of concern for our reality as much as their own. There’s great responsibility to breaking society down and reconfiguring it around new ways of operating. Being sure those at the helm aren’t treating “our lives” as collateral damage seems so incredibly important.

Within all the awareness of and immersion in the troubled themes of modern living, where’s the answer? Can we do little but swing between idealism and despair (Notes Four), or is there a path of active engagement in constructing the solutions we all need? And, while we’re seeking that ground, what’s happening to our frayed nerves and relationships?

Notes and References:

Note 1: Trust within modern society
Note 1: What would life be if we could trust?
Note 1: Who should we trust?
Note 1: Trust in technology?
Note 2: Would we be right to insist?
Note 2: Freedom, what to lean on & who to believe
Note 2: Desensitised to all we’re told?
Note 2: Questions around choice
Note 3: All that’s going on around us
Note 3: Matt Haig’s “Notes on a Nervous Planet”
Note 3: Mental health as a truth to be heard?
Note 3: Concerns over how we’re living
Note 4: Effect, if everything’s a drama
Note 4: Do we know what we’re doing?
Note 4: Convergence and divergence
Note 4: Dystopia as a powerful ideal

Fully aware this is perhaps my bleakest post to date, these more optimistic ones may help serve to offset it: “Minding the Earth, Mending the World”, “Living Beautifully” by Pema Chödrön & This thing called love.

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The real value of creativity?

Creativity’s presumably this age-old human function of applying ingenuity to the resources we have in hand or problems we’re hoping to solve. All the ways we look at our world and add something to it, another layer of perception or meaning that we and others may find valuable. This bringing into being of what previously wasn’t there, something produced out of nothing but our capacity.

Looking to the past, it’s clearly been a longstanding part of human life: the making, mending, maintaining provision of various crafts; the joy of participating in the cultural life of community; the necessity of applying ourselves creatively to make the best of things (Notes One). We’ve perhaps “always” been creative beings, engaging constructively and imaginatively with our surroundings.

These days, though, crafts are more often a luxury: expensive, time-consuming and generally unable to compete with the savings offered by mass production. It’s effectively uneconomical to make things the way they would’ve once been made, and few seem to truly value the dedication, beauty and love of a handmade gesture that may not always fit in with a contemporary sense of style.

It seems creativity struggles to find a place within modern society; becoming a hobby or a personal statement rather than an essential part of how we’re living. The consumer mindset seems to have created a world of replacement rather than maintenance – wear and tear is just an opportunity to buy something new (Notes Two). It also can’t help that, generally, things aren’t made in such a way that we’re even able to mend them.

At the heart of it, though, creativity seems to be about the human relationship with our environment: needs and desires; style and substance; design and beauty; resources and commodities; wisdom, purpose and honesty. Perhaps, in a way, it’s also about balance? About making that relationship constructive rather than destructive. The idea of living in harmony within that environment.

Historically, the Arts and Crafts movement seemed to be grappling with that challenge of balancing form and function at the advent of the modern age – the utopian vision of finally being able to solve humanity’s needs in elegant, unique and lasting ways. Their idealistic striving for truth and harmony seems quite beautiful; much as it might’ve given way to the more materialistic solutions now surrounding us.

It’s just interesting the place creative instincts have been afforded in modern society (Notes Three). It’s become the gloss that makes products or ideas more appealing; a potentially rewarding career for those prepared to lend their skill to commercial interests. It’s often taken with little recognition of its true worth – works reused without credit or remuneration. Frequently, it’s all seeming somewhat superficial or meaningless.

Yet, if art’s this sense of perception, understanding, intention, imagination and skill in how we engage with life and respond to it, why don’t we value that more than we do? It’s always “added something” to human existence – something perhaps hard to quantify and put a price on, but something valuable nonetheless.

Notes and References:

Note 1: Culture, art & human activity
Note 1: The creativity of living
Note 2: Is sustainable design an impossibility?
Note 2: Meaning in a world of novelty
Note 2: What are the true costs?
Note 3: Art, collaboration & commodification
Note 3: Thoughts on art & on life

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Social starting points for modern ways

Everything we’re doing by way of modern technology has probably already been done another way. Technology, essentially, having picked up our time-worn social functions to execute them by other means, with new form, pace and energy.

The organisation of society, the infrastructure of business and services, the communication that builds and sustains relationships – all that must be almost timeless? Sharing our dreams and the realities of our lives; making plans or securing the logistics of everyday living; interacting with the provisions of state or private enterprise are the essence of life, perhaps.

It’s simply that, now, our lives are mediated by this new and ambitious tool with a strong inclination to take over. Tech wants to predict our words, our desires, our connections – to map our lives and know us better than we know ourselves. And maybe that’s helpful. Maybe it’s relieving us of tiresome burdens and enabling us to live those lives more fully than has ever previously been possible.

But it’s funny to think we might forget the purpose, value or substance of all we’re doing – by not actually thinking all these things through, might we become careless and unaware of the original social function of our activities? (Notes One)

What I find myself wondering sometimes, is whether we’re making those essential foundations stronger or weaker. Are we spreading ourselves thin and tending toward ever more transactional encounters? Are we causing strain, or acting to shore up our collective footing? Are we investing ourselves in reliable systems and relationships that will last and serve us all well long-term?

Frequently, it seems we might be taking things for granted – communicating less well, less thoroughly, less intentionally; more caught up in our own side of the story than the challenge of empathy and mutual understanding. That, by not quite seeing the full picture of what all our actions mean or create, we might, in reality, be storing up a lot of problems for ourselves.

Technology makes things seem so “easy” that it’s perhaps forgivable we end up thinking it’s all, in fact, easy (Notes Two). Life has become so user-friendly, so convenient, with all its inevitable intricacy hidden away behind a simple, colourful screen. “Others” take care of the details on our behalf; freeing us up to juggle as many balls as we care to imagine.

Beneath it all, though, the substance of life – the understanding and truth behind all our relationships – surely still needs to be there? Hasn’t that always been the most essential thing? All of the ties between us, things we’re engaged with, and values we’re bringing to bear through every single choice we’re making (Notes Three).

Isn’t technology, as much as life itself, simply these webs of meaning woven around our lives? This sense in which all our understanding, intention and decisions are now mapped out, simplified, analysed and rearranged (often, without our knowing). How much, then, do we truly understand the significance and value of all we’re effectively handing over to that way of being?

Notes and References:

Note 1: Tools
Note 1: Cutting corners
Note 1: “Response Ability” by Frank Fisher
Note 2: The potential of technology
Note 2: Technology & the lack of constraint
Note 2: How important is real life?
Note 3: Does anything exist in isolation?
Note 3: Invisible ties
Note 3: What we bring to life

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Humans, judgement & shutting down

When we feel evaluated by the world around us, how do we respond? What’s it like to exist within a social space of observation, criticism and opinion rather than one of acceptance? At times, it seems we feel that because something’s there we have the right to pass constant judgement over it. As if our very existence and capacity makes us all these centres of evaluation.

We’re clearly taught to do this, to critically scrutinise our environment and everything in it. Thought can do that: take itself as the starting point and quite gleefully deconstruct the world around it to emerge the uncontested victor within our own minds (Notes One). The sparring, combative, increasingly brutal nature of the Western mindset is a pretty fascinating phenomenon, really.

And I suppose we might say it’s only natural, that humans have a capacity for thought so we’re bound to apply it within our communities. Social by nature, we’re then using the critical mind as a tool or a weapon within that world: judging by our own sense of what’s best, feeding back praise or shame where we feel it’s deserved, in an attempt to influence others (Notes Two).

What’s it like, though, to live within a social environment of critique and condemnation? We might be cognitive creatures, but we’re perhaps equally capable of compassion; we could withhold judgement and allow others the grace to be human. Aren’t we all weird and imperfect? Don’t we all make our mistakes out of an incomplete understanding of life, self and society?

Can the work of education truly be said to be ‘done’ by the time we leave childhood? And, if the process of living is to be, in part, an ongoing process of re-education, does that really need to be a school of shame and angry frustration? Of course, flawed understanding is ultimately dangerous for society and the planet as much as the individual, but what tools are best for resolving it? (Notes Three)

We ‘can’ judge, but should we? Does it actually help achieve our aims? What are those aims? When we judge, it seems we’re holding reality up against our mental picture of how things should be – this idealistic indignation at reality’s imperfections. But reality isn’t perfect, and it seems far from likely our ideas are all that perfect either.

Perhaps we’re all just frustrated that the world’s not as we were told, as we thought or expected, and others don’t see things quite as we do in all these irritating ways. Life’s surely the accumulation of countless actions? Everything we do could arguably be done better and we all have different areas of focus, different aspects of life we see the importance of and wish others would too.

If that’s the reality, are we really choosing to constantly hold all others to account based on our own thinking? Won’t we all then feel attacked, underappreciated, labelled, but never quite given the information, respect or space to change out of our own free will?

Notes and References:

Note 1: Strange arrogance of thought
Note 1: Where do ideas of evolution leave us?
Note 1: Ways thought adds spin to life
Note 2: Absolute or relative value
Note 2: What are our moral judgements?
Note 2: All we want to do passes through community
Note 2: Attempts to influence
Note 2: Can others join you?
Note 3: Dealing with imperfection
Note 3: The power of understanding
Note 3: Conversation as revelation

Alongside all this there’s always the question of human worth, as explored in Do we know what stands before us?

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Oh, to be young again?

It’s interesting to think how much we’re valuing youth – the innocent potential, perhaps, of a fresh start and a future. How greatly we’re prizing those attributes when, really, it’s only a matter of time before youth becomes age and those qualities fade. As if life itself is a process of waiting for our value to lose currency, to trickle away or drop off a cliff to the point where society is no longer interested in our existence.

What is that? Because, surely, it doesn’t make much sense to not value human life in all its forms (Notes One). Why are we casting such a strong spotlight onto youth when, inevitably, it’ll then turn to those who follow shortly after, leaving everyone else in the dark?

It just seems a funny way to be living – valuing intrinsic, unearned qualities rather than the experience, effort and insight we all gain in life. Why are we tolerating a system that diminishes each person’s worth simply because of the time we’ve been alive? Value apparently being assigned to the fresh, new, untrammelled state of humanity rather than the difficult process of life itself (Notes Two).

Of course, there is great potential in youth: any direction can be chosen, any dream pursued, any mistake hopefully avoided. It is like a fresh chance to do differently, fix what we feel was mistaken and set others on better paths. At a time where Western society seems to be going off the rails – idealism falling by the wayside of sorely tested social values – it’s perhaps only natural we focus on setting things straight for those coming after.

But life’s surely a path of choices, limiting our options, pouring our energy into those things that matter to us and learning as we go. Is there no perceived value to that actual journey? Are we all living in shadows cast by the loss of youth? Having prepared ourselves and chosen our path, are we settling in to become increasingly irrelevant and devalued with each passing day? Is that what life is? Diminishing worth.

It’s bizarre to me that we would value the preparation stage over the life itself. Life makes us who we are with all we have to offer: the character we’ve developed, knowledge we’ve refined, relationships we’ve forged, things we’ve built, strength and perspective we’ve gained. Isn’t each stage of life something to be valued? Each person’s journey from dreams and potential through to the reality of bringing things to life (Notes Three).

I’m not sure what the myth of youth is trying to achieve, but it seems to be setting us all up for a strange sort of life. At what point is anyone going to be happy to be deemed irrelevant, worthless, a burden? It must all come down to the question of how much we value one another or the fact of life itself. Could it not be that a more inclusive, realistic attitude to human existence might serve us all a whole lot better?

Notes and References:

Note 1: Old meets new, sharing insight
Note 1: “Wisdom” by Andrew Zuckerman
Note 1: Age, image & self worth
Note 1: Worthless, or priceless?
Note 2: Culture as what we relate to
Note 2: Language and values
Note 2: What you’re left with
Note 3: What it is to be human
Note 3: The struggle with being alive
Note 3: Absolute or relative value
Note 3: The worth of each life

Related to all this, Plato & “The Republic” talked further about the importance of youth as a foundation for society.

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Meaning in a world of novelty

Can novelty, in itself, ever “be” meaningful? As in, the simple act of being new somehow being enough in terms of meaning. It’s a kind of creativity, I guess: this endless game of form, variety, imagination, relationship, commentary.

Sometimes, though, I wonder at how much of modern creativity and culture is generative or degenerative – are we engaged in bringing something new or perpetually revisiting the old? Sort of like magpies, pilfering the world around us for the next sparkly, remarkable thing. As if creativity were simply unearthing and reimagining what’s already here.

And that’s truly not meant critically as many beautiful and insightful combinations can come up that way, very much prompting us to look again at the world with fresh eyes. It’s almost like this ‘coming to awareness’ of the incredible treasure trove of pooled human skill and experience we’re now finding ourselves within (Notes One).

But is it all there is to creativity? To pull existing things into different relationships, creating new meaning through juxtaposition or the subversion of expectations. Isn’t it just a constant refreshing of form? A shoe, curtain or car forever reworked into slightly different but terribly significant new formats. This glitching, refreshing echo of the substance of the thing we’re always updating.

There’s clearly creativity there, but it seems more relative than absolute: that we’re pouring our ingenuity and attention into the pursuit of never-ending subtle or dramatic innovations. What does it mean to be forever churning out something new and, frequently, disposable? Gestures or trinkets that are over as soon as they’re current.

It’s surely so different from a world of valuing possessions, making things to last a lifetime and taking care of them so they do. Compared with that, the modern lifestyle seems an almost unnatural or self-indulgent way of operating: we have so many things but don’t care much for them, even if this game we’re caught up in comes at the cost of global environmental and social devastation (Notes Two).

The whole question of what we’re doing here can be such a fascinating but daunting question to ask: if we’re all here on Earth, why is “this” how we’re choosing to spend our time and resources? What does it all “say” about life and the value we’re assigning to things? As intelligent creatures, do we truly understand all we’re taking part in and what our motivations are?

Undeniably, though, we’re also social creatures and creative ones: we want to express ourselves, act on our values, be seen for the statement we’re making, and find our place through what we’re aligning ourselves with (Notes Three). Creativity’s a powerful force, wanting to take hold of the world and leave a mark. This act of bringing the unique self to life.

But isn’t this also a picture of exponential consumption, wastefulness and distraction from the ‘reality’ of seeking novelty for its own sake? There might be a degree of meaning within it all, but the wisdom of continuing this way seems increasingly questionable.

Notes and References:

Note 1: Do we need meaning?
Note 1: Culture as reflection
Note 1: Thoughts on art & on life
Note 2: Interdependency
Note 2: At what cost, for humans & for nature
Note 2: The insatiable desire for more
Note 3: Culture as what we relate to
Note 3: Definition, expression & interpretation
Note 3: The creativity of living

This very much picks up trains of thought started in Patience with the pace of change and Will novelty ever wear off?

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What’s not essential

Of everything that’s happening in life, what really matters? Which things could be very easily left undone and the world as a whole would be none the worse off? Because it’s often seeming that much of human activity could fairly safely be categorised as non-essential; as these essentially frivolous, luxurious or self-indulgent impulses. But does it even matter if what we’re filling our days with isn’t essential?

That’s not meaning things like fun and enjoyment. Cultural and social engagement clearly fulfil many essential functions as well as being valuable in and of themselves: companionship, belonging, the chance to reflect on our lives and the life of society, relief from the pressures and duties of living and all the masks we have to wear on a daily basis.

My point though, I suppose, is about balance. How many of the things we engage with are done purposefully, with an eye to how they enrich our lives, rather than out of addiction, compulsion or release? How much of the non-essential in life is fundamentally some form of self-management to offset the tensions and discomfort of modern life and, perhaps, life itself?

This has clearly taken a turn down a dark alley. Perhaps it’s not easy to ask what’s essential in life. It’s a philosophical question that touches on our belief in society, meaning and the purpose of human existence (Notes One). Does it matter what we do, or should we just enjoy ourselves as much as we can while we’re here? Is there any broader responsibility than simply looking out for ourselves?

It just seems such attitudes, adopted collectively, lead to systems that risk cannibalising the entire planet in pursuit of either greed or distraction. Isn’t our relentless desire for non-essential, disposable items creating mountains of waste and pollution for no good reason? How much of the world’s material and human resources are swallowed up by this kind of activity? (Notes Two)

Beyond that, what does this lead in terms of society? Does all this encourage us to interact wisely and responsibly with those around us and the infrastructures we’re all to some extent depending on? Are we being brought together, inspired to understand one another better, inclined toward healthy and inclusive attitudes? Or is all this making us less human, less caring in our pursuit of self-advancement? (Notes Three)

It just seems that ideas of what’s truly “essential” are shifting remarkably fast. In the past – or, other parts of the world – essential needs might be things like food, peace, shelter, safety, freedom. In the West, minimal standards seem to be creeping up and up; blurring quite profitably with modern commerce. How much of that’s simply “creep”? One thing leading to another until all this begins to seem normal.

Essentials are presumably the basic foundation of life: being healthy, cared for, and ready to engage with the world around us. How exactly that snowballed into what’s now surrounding us is strange to consider; as is the sense of where it’s all headed.

Notes and References:

Note 1: What it is to be human
Note 1: Does anything exist in isolation?
Note 1: What we bring to life
Note 1: The philosopher stance
Note 2: Will novelty ever wear off?
Note 2: Detaching from the world around us
Note 2: Interdependency
Note 2: The insatiable desire for more
Note 3: Do we need meaning?
Note 3: Stories that bind us
Note 3: Reading into social realities?
Note 3: This thing called love

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