Your Dreams
People do not seem to realize that their opinion of the world is also a confession of character. -Ralph Waldo Emerson
On the subject of governments, authority, and world affairs, I feel cynicism is appropriate and essential. Actually, more appropriate would be moral outrage and vigilant suspicion. In our personal lives however, in relationships and in love, I feel cynicism is a lie.
Like the raging authoritarian who is actually just a scared little boy on the inside, frightened and hurt because something isn’t going his way, cynicism masquerades as something it is not. The cynic pretends he or she doesn’t care, when in fact they secretly do. What the cynic is really saying is: I’m a hurt little boy or a hurt little girl, secretly wishing I could have the love I want, but rather than invest in hope I choose faux sophistication and negativity. Then, results justify that point of view. Sometimes I think pessimism in western culture is a kind of laziness. They remind me of the Chinese proverb:
He who says it cannot be done should take care not to interrupt the one doing it.
Since the future is not set, and since our expectations have real influence on the world, optimism takes real courage. Cynicism is the consolation prize; you get it for trading in your dreams. One of the most amazing and beautiful qualities we can have then, in my opinion, is vulnerability.
Music
Broken Arrow
25 Things or Less About Me
What Does God Sound Like? Part II
10. April, 2011 at 14:44
From a contemporary point of view, yeah, I see your point, but . . .
I don’t think the classic cynic pretends not to care from some lie that he/she hasn’t been hurt. I think the cynic is fully open about being hurt, whether as a political animal or a social one. And, ultimately, everything is political. Governments, authorities, are made up of people. If people in large groups are to be dealt with cynically, then are to throw out all cynicism when dealing with individuals? I am reminded of the ancient Greeks with two examples: At a gathering of (I think) a festival in Athens, a group of rich, powerful stoics came marching in. A cynic cried out, “Ostentation!” Then a group of ascetic Pythagoreans came next, heads bowed, in tattered clothes, bodies a mess, full of hymns to poverty. The same cynic cried out, “More ostentation!”
The other thing I’m reminded of is the ancient view of hope. A goddess she was. But a daemonic one, the mother of rumor and expectation and the last demon let out of Pandora’s Box. In the ancient world, anyway, the cynics (including Epicureans) were some of the most virtuous figures. And were open books when it came to their admission of pain and hurt. Like nihilism, Christianity, Buddhism, I think cynicism has become perverted in our day. So maybe cynics are liars but so are many christians, buddhists and so on.
10. April, 2011 at 23:03
Thanks so much Walter for stopping in. I agree that it appears our modern version of the term has veered a lot from the ancient group of philosophers you mention, and their ideas. It seems more like an embodiment of humility and sincerity that they were advocating; one I wholeheartedly agree with.
It takes real courage and strength to go out in your world expecting something good. In the realm of relationships, cynics are failures. Their outlook is negative, and they did not start out that way. They give up on what they’re really hoping for, and settle for the consolation prize of being “in the right.” In other words: leading with the ego, not the heart.
It’s not hard to find evidence of what they believe. For example, it’s easy to meet those who talk about “people” and the depths of what people do. If you tell them someone stole your parking place, for example, such a person will say “Doesn’t surprise me.” They give up being hopeful for being right. What if I give up my parking space for such a person. Will they be surprised? Such a person might view me with suspicion! I think this is a pathetic way to live. In the end, they always want the same thing the faithful want; they just fail to make the effort. The good and bad in people, all of these things exist at once, and it appears that if I expect good things to happen, they do. There’s another fascinating aspect of all this, which is that, in my opinion, those experiences do not happen outside of us; we’re a living, breathing, creating part of the universe. Therefore, expectation of something good does more than draw it to you, you’re a part of it, creating it. The cynic fails to recognize his own role in the events he helps create with his perspective. Again, I feel it takes real courage and sincerity to expect something good of people and to actively be a part of it.
Thanks again for chiming in.