"Community is the mental and spiritual condition of knowing that the place is shared, and that the people who share the place define and limit the possibilities of each other's lives. It is the knowledge that people have of each other, their concern for each other, their trust in each other, the freedom with which they come and go among themselves."
-Wendell Berry
I have begun to see what individualism will do to community. Working with students makes this painfully clear. Without a second though a student will put everyone in the school/community in danger, and when they say they never thought of anyone else, they mean it. I have seen this same attitude in myself . We have turned self-reliance into a life-style and now our interactions with each other are devoid of meaning and depth. People don't ask for help, they keep their 'issues' private (even at church), we all demand certain behavior from others but excuse ourselves from that same standard. I think this is what made Berry observe,
"Novelty is a new kind of loneliness."
3 comments:
Did something happen at your school?
A kid put baby oil all over a busy hallway and watched as the kids ran and slid and fell. Three girls were banged up pretty good. When he was asked why he did it, he said it was funny. It never crossed his mind that others might get hurt.
Wow, that's awful. I really hope the girls are ok and this punk suffers some serious consequences. That's just ridiculous.
I do have to ask, do you really think this is representative of "individualism"? It sounds more like an adolescent jerk who never thought about the consequences of his actions. Lately I've had the urge to read a couple parenting books, and it seems to be a fairly common theme when discussing teenagers that the part of the brain controlling thoughtful consideration of consequences isn't really fully developed until the early to mid-20's. Doesn't excuse anything, but that probably is more to blame than the concept of individualism.
Take care buddy.
Post a Comment