What aspects of human life over the past several thousand years could be likened to a gorilla going from a forest to a zoo?
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Unknown to many of us, human life is bound by many limitations. Both limitations brought about by society and limitations that were brought about by ourselves. In this age, our minds and subsequently our speech and actions are controlled by factors unknown to us.
Before civilization came about, there was just man and nature. The man could live freely, as nature does not expect any favours from him, or any actions that he has to abide by. Man could do whatever he pleased for he has no need or desire to please others or nature. Man's mind was free to wander into the depths and realms that had yet to be discovered.
I am not critiquing religion or its principles but by putting our faith into God, or any other form of religious idol, we automatically snap ourselves into the grid of religious laws and principles. Unlike nature, religion has expectations of us. Using Christianity as an example, the first and foremost of these expectations is faith; we need to blindly put our faith into God and his existence. The other expectations then follow, such as the ten commandments, and following Jesus' teachings in the New Testament. We believe in God, therefore we must do what he expects of us. Religion constrains us, in order for us to live a life of good. Choosing to put our faith in God is like choosing to put ourselves into an invisible cage which limits what we do and think.
In the beginning, it was man and nature. Nowadays, it is society. Although it may seem so, we are never alone, and we are not entirely free. In accordance with Michael Foucalt's theory of Panopticism - the idea of behaviour control through constant surveillance, our behaviour will be influenced by the constant surveillance, much like in George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four. In this sense, our behaviour is influenced by society. Society, in this case, is the surveillance, exerting control over us. Society, like religion, expects many things from us. In our postmodern world, we are actually constantly controlled by the power of society. We are not free; in order to fit in, we have to 'please' society by following its laws and expectations. Man had created society in order to feel a sense of belonging and security, however, with its creation, we lost our free will and individualism.
Technology is also another aspect of human life that can be likened to a gorilla going from a forest to a zoo. In the past, we did not have technology, however, with the advancement of the human race, we created technology. Nowadays we are heavily reliant on technology, in fact, it would be extremely difficult for us to survive without it. Technology holds an extremely strong power over us and continues to do so. With this, the question of whether one day the costs of technology will outdo the benefits and lead to mankind's ultimate destruction has been raised.
Maybe it was time we took a break from these limitations. Maybe it was time we questioned whether we are truly free, and if we really want to be.
"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." - Henry David Thoreau
Labels: global ethics
