“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.”
~Albert Camus
The trouble with statements like this is that we use the word "freedom" in a most willy-nilly fashion these days. It's used so often in political campaigns and arguments that I'm almost to the point where I hate it. It also seem that whenever people say something like this, they mean "be free only like I envision freedom to be" or "be whimsical on demand but not in a way that challenges me or makes me uncomfortable." I'm not saying that Camus is necessarily of this ilk, but a lot of people who repeat him secretly may be.
Including me, probably.
I also think part of the problem with "freedom" is that 1) no one actually has a concept of true, unqualified freedom (the same way one can't quite imagine what "infinity" looks like), and 2) placing the limitations on freedom necessary for its conceptualization are naturally perspectival and thus unavoidably arbitrary to a certain extent. I'll limit some things, others will limit others .... and who has the right limitations? Well, none of us really.
ReplyDeleteS'part of why Zhuangzi says that "wisdom comes out of wrangling."
Good lord, I sound like a nerd. This is what happens when I read too much Ziporyn.
http://xkcd.com/122/
ReplyDeletereminded me of this too!