Maps of Meaning: Cynicism is Not Wisdom
Maps of Meaning. Cynicism. Pessimism. Wisdom. Revolutionary Adaptation. Hero.
Photo by Garrett Sears on Unsplash
Cynicism
For as long as I can recall, there have been a lot of individuals–usually elders around me–who have adopted cynicism toward life. These individuals are bound to make comments along the lines of, “It’s really sad that () has happened, but that’s just how it’s like”, or the more reprehensible, “When you get to my age, you will ()”, or the most contemptible, “You are optimistic only because of your age.” These remarks are often infused with pessimism, with the message (sometimes implication) that there is nothing we can or should do to improve the circumstances we are in; and are accompanied by a perceptible sense of resentment, nihilism and jealousy. The aspect of jealousy is much more evident and detectable in the face of their more successful counterparts. Meeting their peers who are more well off leads these cynical individuals to denigrate, express hatred toward and shake their fists–sometimes literally, really–at the sky and moan very pathetically about their extant state.
To illustrate this more vividly, I will relate some recent incidents during which I heard the following:
“You are still exercising and physically fit only because you are young. When you get to my age, you won’t want to do it anymore because life gets in the way.”
“You are only hopeful about the future because you are too naive. The world is dark–stop dreaming!”
“You are still meal-prepping only because you are young and have too much extra time. Wait another two more years.”
“You are still reading only because you have too much free time. Wait till you get to my age.”
“You are motivated only because you lack life experience. Wait till you turn 30.”
And in this postmodern era I have even been hearing”:
“The only reason you are hopeful about your relationship is because you are naive.”
Having read the above, I am sure the skeptical–or empathetic–reader would be inclined to give these speakers the benefit of the doubt, especially when their remarks are said on the spur of the moment: perhaps it is the author, who is too naive, ignorant, momentarily enthusiastic? In my defense, I have intentionally selected the specific comments above as these are activities and mindsets–exercising, meal-prepping, reading and remaining optimistic about the future–which I have been engaging in and possessing respectively for a long enough amount of time, to verify that they are not a whim. Almost all of these I have been practicing and adopting since middle school. Throughout these years, I have been through a few transitional, life stages–-middle school, high school, college, university and now, work life–each of which comes with its challenges and barriers that serve to potentially impede my continuation in the aforementioned activities and mindsets. Perhaps the speakers are correct–that I may one day stop all of these activities–but I foresee that I never will, and I believe my record suffices to fortify my stance. Notably, the only reason I have only one decade of “evidence” is because I really only have lived two. And I anticipate that I will become stronger–not weaker or stagnate–as I navigate life and encounter more incoming impediments that will attempt to hinder my ongoing streak.
With regards to my relationship, I have made it clear previously that I view my romantic relationship as permanent, an avenue where I grow with my partner, as a responsibility, as a place and time where I learn more about being a husband and father before I eventually become one. I will be quick to admit that my relationship is still at its infancy, and that my partner and I are still rough at the edges, green, naive, ignorant and stupid at many levels of analysis. But, I am hopeful, not because I am naive, but because I am committed. And I wholeheartedly believe that trust, genuine love and the willingness to negotiate and face the unknowns in the relationship and in life, with my partner will bring out the best of myself; and the best of her.
A Closer Look at These Cynics
Taking a much closer look at these cynics, one would not fail to sense that these individuals have unknowingly–or, consciously–confused the adoption of an overly pessimistic outlook with possessing wisdom. To them, they have “eaten enough salt” to be hopeless about the future; have experienced sufficient life stages and events to make hatred, resentment and negativity central in their daily life; have qualified, by their own metrics, to stop improving themselves and their present state; have enough wisdom to impart only discouraging messages to those around them.
I have never enjoyed the company of these individuals, for they drain me (a reminder for us to be careful about who we surround ourselves with, as I believe we are the product of the five people we spend the most time with). From a subjective and personal point of view, I believe it is important for us to recognize that everybody is flawed; and while it is easy to identify and recognize these flaws, mending one’s flaws on an everyday, habitual basis is difficult. Such an action requires great self-consciousness, -awareness and tenacity. Hence, I would like to mention that I do not harbor any hatred toward these individuals; I dislike them, but I would like to remain hopeful that they will by and by learn to change.
Nevertheless, from an objective point of view, I think it is important for us to analyze the qualities that these cynics possess. The sole purpose of such scrutiny is to better understand them, so that we are able to learn from them, and in this context, avoid them; as I believe that the decision to become cynical is not ideal. In fact, it is evil.
Cynicism is Evil
Evil? Is that not too loaded an adjective to describe these cynics, who are merely pessimistic individuals in the world? What is the worst that could happen?
A lot.
To think and act in the aforementioned cynical manner is to reject the normal life as well as the life of revolutionary adaptation. This is a representation and a result of arrogance, of the Luciferian Pride, that “All I know is all there is to know”.
Fortunately or not, it is the way of life that the unknown eternally pervades and exists. Every passing second is the potential for an unfamiliar event to occur; a stranger to emerge; a strange idea to appear; for anomalous information to infiltrate our current state of being and cycle of life. The shifts in emotionality and physiology, including our physiological reactions–like a change in heart rate, a sudden feeling of weight in our heart, a tendency to even breathe a trifle more quickly or slowly–that we encounter so very often, represent the emergence, or our anticipation of the emergence, of an unknown. This necessarily means that change is omnipresent, and that change is required of us, in order to adapt to the world optimally; ultimately, our decision to change could manifest in the form of psychological or behavioral adjustments, or both. Given this, is there anyone, who is really sufficiently confident to believe that he knows everything? That nothing could and should be changed, since he knows that everything has been done and hence, the situation can never be rectified? Hence, should this form of cynicism–of presumed omniscience–not be regarded as arrogance in the most precise sense?
The Destiny of a Cynic: Rejection of the Exploratory Hero
To embody the hero is to voluntarily accept that life is suffering and that unknowns are omnipresent; to subsequently put one foot in the known and the other in the unknown; to then grapple with the two, with the purpose of improving our unbearable state. On the contrary, adopting the mindset of a pessimistic cynic is the opposite of the hero: it is the mindset of “I know everything” and that “There is nothing I can do to make things better, so why try?”
It should be further noted that unknowns are not statically present, for they multiply as well. Not only that, they amplify and magnify. Ignoring or disregarding the unknowns in our lives is likely to breed more unknowns–in the form of quantity, size and intensity. In Dr Peterson’s words, “...failure to voluntarily update means the generation of a morass around the individual”. As time elapses, the individual who refuses and subsequently fails to better himself so that he may better navigate the unknowns and challenges of life will be overwhelmed. Unfortunately, many are blind to this eventual possibility, as unknowns usually do not serve to haunt us from the get-go; rather they gradually compound, accumulate and then overthrow our current state of living. In other words, one’s presumed omniscience will endure only until a big enough challenge suffocates him agonizingly.
As the cynic becomes encircled by unknowns, chaos and disorder, there grows the rationale that he now is on ‘“justifiable” grounds for the development of a philosophy based on resentment and antipathy”, and that “the desire for revenge on life itself may become paramount above all else”. This somewhat justifies why these pessimistic and cynical individuals I have come across in my life are, as mentioned, accompanied by a perceptible sense of resentment, nihilism and jealousy:
They are unhappy about their lives, yet they do not wish to act, to make a positive change.
They are arrogant and believe blindly that they have expended all of their resources (hence the unwillingness to continue trying).
They are hopeless about the future.
They are jealous. Jealous of anyone who has it better than them.
One can only imagine how these qualities may influence the future actions of these cynics. Perhaps it is only a matter of time before they explode (not implode), as they manifest their hatred in the form of attack onto others.
Embodying the Hero
Embody the hero. Be ever-humble to acknowledge that all you know is not even a fraction of all there is to know. Be ever-courageous and explore unfamiliar territories and learn from these terrifying domains. These actions will not alter the truth that life remains rife unknowns, some of which may easily be perceived to be the “injustices” of life–painful treatments that we do not deserve, that we still experience despite our hardest efforts. Nevertheless, to embody the hero decreases the probability that we lose sight of the meaning of our lives, and increases the probability that we are able to bring about good to ourselves as well as those around us.
As I will discuss in a later piece, our potential to develop more knowledge is contingent upon our extant knowledge. The more we actively seek to embody the hero, the more knowledgeable we will become; which means the more complex unknowns that we will be able to solve, for we are more competent and more able to detect the utility of the subjects and objects in our vicinity. And we are more able to be of utility to those around us.
Pessimistic cynicism is not wisdom. It is a facade that pretends to be wisdom. It is evil.