On this blog, and in other places, one can encounter the word "truth" quite often. As I am fond of saying, the truth is a slippery thing. On the one hand, one may believe with all their heart that a thing is true, only to find that it is not. Then there are those who question whether or not any truth actually exists. I'm not of that mind, but I do think that the perception of truth varies from person to person, and within any person over the course of time. Whatever one may think of as truth, one cannot get around the fact that truth is often disputed and not always agreed upon. You can think of it as a duality---the truth as the individual sees it, and the truth as the collective sees it.
Human beings aren't ants on an anthill as Ronald Reagan once noted, but we are social beings. We are individuals yet part of a group. This creates something of a conflict between the two, and oftentimes, the truth as defined by the collective will supersede that of any individual, or any small group of individuals. Inasmuch as that can happen, there can be no doubt that this fact that this is also the truth, never mind the controversy that may underlie the conflict between the individual and the collective.
I hate that. I hate it when something false is presented to me and I am told I must accept it because the powers-that-be say so. In that way, I am struck by how often it seems that I am at odds with the group. I am like the Savage in Brave New World. I don't fit in anywhere, really. At the same time, I am a war with whatever society I find myself in at the time.
When I was young, people were much more religious than now. The society has moved towards secularism, while I have moved off toward the opposite direction. Sometimes I wonder if that is just my nature to be at odds with the group.
But I'd rather not be. I'd rather find myself at peace with the larger group, but that seems to be out of my reach. Rather than the Savage, I think maybe I am a bit more like Marx, or Helmholz. Marx was the misfit who wanted to fit in desperately, but couldn't. Helmholz was the one who discovered that he wanted something more than just the conventional ways of seeing things.
Savage couldn't find peace with himself or his community, so he killed himself. I can assure you that I am not of such a mind.
I hate to mention the following because it disturbs me a bit. Certain people strike me of being of the type that will not fit in and adjust, so that they will never want to fit in on any level. Such people are going to live a shorter life than what might be otherwise possible. Perhaps it cannot be avoided.
As usual, I look for solutions, but I know from experience that sometimes a solution is out of reach.
One impression I get from Brave New World is that it seems to deny that men have a free will. It is always being determined for them by someone or something above. If so, then there can be no morality as we know it. The animals are no different. If we are no more than smart beasts, then what does the truth matter, regardless of what it is?
No comments:
Post a Comment