(please disregard any spelling erorrs, it is not one of my strong points)
Many children growing up in the inner cities are rarely alone. Solitude is esential in finding our true character and discovery how we can use this character to furthure humanity(the goal of any decent human being). These children who never seise the chance to reflect alone become unsure of them selves. They have before them a personality quiz but find the selves incompetent of filling the blanks, yet have the deep natural desire to fill these blanks. From this point solem contemplation is so forgien and often times frowened upon by society this does not even apeat to be an option; leaving the one option, cheating. They will look over their shoulder to see what others have writen and copy that, or listen tentavley to the opion of other and harbor it regarless of the truthfullness of the statement. At this point their opion is irrelevant. An identity is force fed to this victims. If we wish to find peace. We must know ourselves, we must reject comercialistic identities. That clothing, pair of sunglasses, car are not capable of describing a human beings personality. I would like to think i am more intracate that any personal possession i may obtian.
I have found this thought in a lot of the philosophers like Nietzsche, and Ayn Rand’s ‘second-hander’. People who need others just to survive. I have reflected on this a lot. Nietzsche said, “You good love of you neighbor stinks of your bad love of yourselves.” But it is true, vampires are all around us. People indirectly take credit for the accomplishments of important family members, people live their life, vicariously, through others, by identifying with sports stars, movie stars, etc. (note that i am not saying admiration- but identification). People gossip and put down others to give themselves a cheap sugar high. “where 5 or 6 are gathered together, another always has to die on a cross.” Nietzsche. Parents try to re-live their life though their children and children try to imitate their parents. I am afraid that the individual is one of the latest and greatest inventions of mankind and yet destined for extinction. When these creatures of the shadows are asked who they are, they must point to the outside World instead of their own soul (they can’t even see themselves in a mirror) , after all, vampires need victims from that World, and without fresh blood they would cease to exist.
I’m not sure if anyone got it, but i call it the vampire disease because when they look in the miror, when most people see themselves, they see nothing.
Yes, i used that in my post but they do tend to live from others (thus giving rise to the blood-sucking metaphor) as all men must do to some extent. The crime is never wanting to see yourself, never wanting to be better, to just stagnate, accept what is given.
all this is the natural end-result (or to eschew the word ‘natural’ with its connotations) the inevitable result of the social-contract we know as society. when the interdependence of people is stressed and a few individuals distinguish themselves in commonly-pursued fields of endeavour, the desire to mimic is naturally stronger. this has been aided by the advertising culture which posits ideal ways of living through commercialism. the need for identification of the ego through external sources is the disease of the society. it goes hand in hand with the mechanisation of people (the reprioritisation of recently-invented individuality to be subsumed in a ‘Gestalt’ or heirarchy of a larger construct).
I recently said in another thread (or perhaps this one) that the individual is the latest and greatest invention of society but destined for extinction. People naturally try to attach themselves to something more powerful. Your post reminds me of the studies of Michel Foucault (how power relationships define the subject) and Marx.
Technology has made our World more interdependent and capitalism/commercialism almost forces the individual to be ‘subsumed’ or left behind as you say. Although the individual has more tools at his disposal, the hierarchy is more congealed, interdependent, and monolithic. World Trade will do little for the individual.
thanks Marshall, that guest’s post was in fact mine. i haven’t been posting much as i am studying for my exams. i think that your argument that the individual is a recent invention, yet one which people have recently been striving against is a valid one. i have often wanted to read focault, and was wondering if you could recommend an introductory text. i’m not so sure about the value or relevancy of Marxist thought in the current society. traditionally, as you say, there has always been the idea of individuals relinquishing their autonomy to a larger purpose (Plato’s Republic is of course the classic text). this yearning for a greater purpose can be found in religion, in philosophical systems (for example Kant or Utilitarianism - kind of ironic, eh), in social/political theory (communism/ the welfare state) and most recently in the corporate culture. the advertising industry i believe is a poisonous industry. it seeks to make people feel that the void within themselves can be filled by a new pair of shoes, or that a watch (a WATCH! have you seen those ads?) proclaims their identity.
It is ironic that marxism, being anti-capitalist, primarily exists in non-capitalist countries. Anti-anything always needs it’s antithesis in order to proliferate. A good overview of Michel Foucault’s work is the three volume set essential works of Foucault put out by New press, the first volume is ISBN#1-56584-434-3. A cheaper alternative that is more focused would be one of the Vintage books: The birth of the clinic, an archaeology of medical perception ISBN#0-679-75334-6 or Discipline and punish&The birth of the prison ISBN#0-679-75255-2. or Madness and civilization ISBN#0-679-72110-X. More difficult reads are The order of things(vintage) #0-679-75335-4 (Although i don’t believe there is a complete English translation of this book) and perhaps the archaeology of knowledge, I have the one by Pantheon books ISBN#0-394-71106-8. I think it was Orson Wells who said, “Advertising is legalized lying.”
you call this the “vampire” when someone crosses themselfs in a differnt dimension where lives are completly differnt that they see nothing crossing there path maybe that path could be a way to heaven(not using beliefs) a utopia world. People see vampires as a hateful creature that feed on others but as tyler describes it is not what they see making them pure not evil?
