Dear Editor,
Martin Heidegger, in trying to uncover the ground for the possibilities of everyday human existence, said there are two ways in which humans can take up existence in the world: authentic (their own; someone choosing their lifestyle) and inauthentic (not their own; someone fulfilling pre-designed roles in society). Expounding further, Heidegger espoused that both authentic and inauthentic ways of existence exist and both have existence of their own but the former involves an element of choice.
When we survey the landscape of human beings, which of the two ways of existence observed ostensibly forms the general structure in which humans exist? During our wanderings and periods of psycho-geographic drift, frantically searching for ourselves, how often do we encounter a pocket of individual consciousness that has been separated and remains uncontaminated from the ways and banalities of the herd and collective? What does the ratio of authenticity to inauthenticity computed from our survey tell us about our enduring struggles and pain to be unique? Evidentially, we seem to have and often display an aversion to having our spirit’s malleability remain independent and free from the influence of others.
To be an individual, to go out on a limb, requires courage, a fearlessness to confront its biggest and only rival, that of the original life movement of social and political power (State, bureaucratic, business, technological). The prevalence of inauthenticity is an instrument of social control that commands a sort of statis often accompanied by boredom and perpetual repetitions, which fiercely resist the presence of anything original, new or fresh. But how can we live an authentic life while we are still in ignorance and pursuit of who we are? How do we spot or discover the uniqueness of our individual selves in the absence of meaningful tools such as Foucault's archaeological shovel with which we can unearth all the layers of morals, values and psychological burdens that have been weighing upon our actual self?
Maybe we ought to transcend all the values and interests that have been imposed and bequeathed to us thus far. We probably need to explore the transvaluation of the very values that has hitherto stripped us of our individuality, ejecting from us the creative artistic brilliance that nourishes our “I” and keeps at bay that dreaded state of inertia and recurrence that characterises inauthenticity. Our authenticness ought to have the visceral sensations of bravery devoid of timidness. The strength to be an individual and to feign and scoff at the disinterested nature of conformity should be such that it hastens our creativity to invoke its powers of self-formation, self-realisation and autonomy.
As individuals we become masters of our journey having removed ourselves from the flock, becoming our own shepherds, mastering the whole spectrum of human potential both good and evil. Our talents and powers are no longer in the employ and furtherance of the dreams and pursuits of others; we now choose what form we are going to assume independent of external influences. This newfound state of self-mastery and self-discovery together with our heightened sense of self-consciousness enables us to shift our gaze and recuse ourselves from the illusory comfort and security of the crowd. Our spirit now rejoices more than ever in its once dormant inner strength and creativity, so much so, that it welcomes life in its entirety on earth.
In us no longer exists the life diminishing need to be members of the herd, as individuals our awakened originality revels in the defiance and non-conformity to the laws of collective motion. We now ascribe greater value to the particular and private instead of the communal. Our spiritual muscles are now enviably toned and fortified bursting with infinite joules of latent energy enhancing our intestinal fortitude to the point where we can willingly will the whole gamut of our past suffering all over again; this is how strong we have become as individuals. Our self-reliance is so vibrant and alive now that our spiritual sustenance is no longer at the mercy and discretion of the whole.
The huge returns on the mental and spiritual labours we have invested to acquire our distinctive selves is so pleasurable and blissful that it overwhelms and ousts the presence of the imitative, dull and monotonous nature of inauthenticity. As victor the individual is now equipped to embark on an odyssey fully aware of the freedom to leave original footprints along the way.
Orlando Patterson
