Life: A Serious Affair
The Frivolous Generation
I am a part of a generation that is often considered frivolous, living in a society that has been constructed over the past forty years to foster this frivolity. We were the recipients of an incredibly generous social inheritance, possibly the most bountiful in human history. However, we squandered it on futile wars and fleeting products, and then proceeded to systematically exploit the institutions that had given us so much.
American Frivolity Spreads
Being the generous people we are, we Americans have enthusiastically shared our trivial ways of thinking and behaving with our European counterparts. These are people who had long resisted our materialistic spectacle, but have gradually succumbed to its inherent logic over time.
The Misunderstood Seriousness
When we talk about frivolity, we are indirectly referring to its antithesis: seriousness. This is a trait that is often mistaken for sadness in today's world and is increasingly seen as a social flaw. In the United States, there are few things that provoke more allergic reactions in elite social circles, including academia, than openly discussing topics that were once considered key elements of a serious approach to life. These topics include death, loneliness, love, beauty, friendship, decadence, and the unfathomable mysteries of human cruelty.
The Serious and the Frivolous
In an ironic role reversal, those who wish to incorporate these topics into their daily conversations are now seen as frivolous. On the other hand, those who avoid these topics and focus on so-called practical matters, such as amassing wealth or manipulatively controlling the destinies of others, are deemed serious.
The Powerful and their Frivolity
It's worth noting that the powerful have always been frivolous, with an uncanny ability to present their systematic plundering in solemn and transcendent tones. However, I believe there's a significant difference today. The economic elites' near-total control of the media has enabled them to convince many of us that their selfishness, disguised as benevolence, is not a unique characteristic of their class. Instead, they argue that it's an inherent and dominant trait of all humans, suggesting that we are all fundamentally as cynical as they are.
The Moral Imagination
In doing so, they have deprived us of our most potent weapons in the fight for justice: sincerity, empathy, compassion, and indignation. In essence, they have stolen the key elements of our moral imagination.
The Language Problem
This is fundamentally a language issue. People can only express thoughts and feelings for which they have readily available words and phrases. If people have been conditioned to believe that the ruthless are serious and the empathetic are frivolous, it becomes difficult for them to conceive of any other reality.
Rejecting Frivolity
Now that death and its many manifestations—seriousness in its most profound form—have ridiculed our scholarly attempts to deny its primary role in our daily moral reasoning, it may be time to emphatically reject the absurdity of those who claim that life is a frivolous game. We must remind them, and everyone else, that life gains lasting value when it focuses on the art of unity in the face of our individual and collective fears.
Bottom Line
Life is not a frivolous game. It's a serious affair that requires sincerity, empathy, compassion, and indignation. It's about coming together despite our fears and differences. What are your thoughts on this perspective? Do you agree that life is more than a frivolous game? Share this article with your friends and let's start a conversation. Don't forget to sign up for the Daily Briefing, which arrives in your inbox every day at 6pm.
