I'm a naive cynic
Aug. 22nd, 2004 03:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
greybetaI helped Mike and Jameson move some more stuff into their apartment. I actually helped them move in some stuff yesterday, but then they stopped to go play in a D&D campaign. They're good people, but their priorities are a bit messed up. How do I know this? Mike moved in his "essential stuff" today, which were his animes and games. I don't think they have any food in the apartment yet, or an alarm clock for that matter. Sure, they've unpacked, but it's going to take them months to actually organize everything.
Enough with the present and on to introspection. If I had to describe myself, I would say that I am a naïve cynic. You might think that naïveté and cynicism are mutually exclusive, but I don’t think that is the case. If you have ever read Plato’s Republic, the character Thrasymachus is an example of a naïve cynic. To put it into my words, I believe in the greater good in people but I often expect their worst.
It’s difficult to believe in the greater good in people. That takes trust in what some have called the noble human spirit. The reason humans have progressed so far is that they possess an altruistic nature not found often in nature. After all, you won’t live a long life if you suspect everybody you meet of betrayal.
Then again, you won’t live long if you place too much faith in the kindness of others. Humans can be very weak, very susceptible to the most inhuman of desires. Or is it that the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak? Perhaps as long as you don’t tempt the darker side of humanity you won’t have to see it.
I suppose all of us balance these two ideas in our mind. Sometimes, it doesn’t matter if we lock all of our doors. Other times, we can drop our wallet into a crowd and have it returned without anything missing. I definitely can’t say how anyone acts at a given moment. So I thank the Lord for his wisdom in creating our world.
Enough with the present and on to introspection. If I had to describe myself, I would say that I am a naïve cynic. You might think that naïveté and cynicism are mutually exclusive, but I don’t think that is the case. If you have ever read Plato’s Republic, the character Thrasymachus is an example of a naïve cynic. To put it into my words, I believe in the greater good in people but I often expect their worst.
It’s difficult to believe in the greater good in people. That takes trust in what some have called the noble human spirit. The reason humans have progressed so far is that they possess an altruistic nature not found often in nature. After all, you won’t live a long life if you suspect everybody you meet of betrayal.
Then again, you won’t live long if you place too much faith in the kindness of others. Humans can be very weak, very susceptible to the most inhuman of desires. Or is it that the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak? Perhaps as long as you don’t tempt the darker side of humanity you won’t have to see it.
I suppose all of us balance these two ideas in our mind. Sometimes, it doesn’t matter if we lock all of our doors. Other times, we can drop our wallet into a crowd and have it returned without anything missing. I definitely can’t say how anyone acts at a given moment. So I thank the Lord for his wisdom in creating our world.
