Recently, I stumbled into the new world of online discussion or group chat, which seems to have been shaped by Twitter/X. I’m inclined to see it as a commodified version of the Renaissance and Enlightenment-era tradition once known as the “Republic of Letters.” Before European countries achieved a measure of egalitarian and democratic polity, thinkers, poets, and authors, from Erasmus to Goethe, engaged in an egalitarian exchange of opinions, knowledge, and ideas by correspondence and, not rarely, by house visits. We no longer knock on the door of an admired writer; but well into this century, my wife and I wrote thoughtful letters to authors we admired; and we often received thoughtful and appreciative replies. This was an extension of the egalitarian “Republic of Letters.” Now you go online and are invited to “follow” the author. You pay upfront and add your voice to the chorus of “followers” whose chances of getting heard depend on their commenting in a louder or perhaps more outraged manner. You are in competition with all those other faceless voices vying for attention. In short, the exchange of opinions has been commodified, structured hierarchically, and subjected to the rule of competition that governs capitalism in its entirety. How could this not have an impact on the content and effects of discussion?
Nonetheless, it was good that among the links I discovered a text by Jake Seliger called “On Being Ready to Die.” Jake is afflicted by a cancer of the mouth that attacked the base of his tongue, making amputation necessary, with awful consequences for breathing and swallowing. Jake is younger than me and enjoys strong emotional support. I’m glad for him that he is now receiving an experimental treatment that offers some hope. Seven years ago, I too was treated, successfully it seems, for an “occult tumor” in the mouth and throat area. The treatment was harsh but nothing like what Jake is going through. My thoughts are with him. It’s good that he can document an experience that others have wordlessly suffered. Jake can no longer speak, yet his voice carries farther than ever.
My personal sense is that we can relieve a great deal of suffering by demythologizing death. It’s of course inevitable for everyone. Here I am, reluctantly composing a lengthy swan song and making a big deal of dying. People rooted in certain religious traditions also enact a big drama around death and dying. Did the ancient Stoics do the same? Isn’t it possible that we only make dying that much more fearful and arduous? Each to their own, but when each of us readies ourself for the end, one option to consider is embracing the banality of death. Nothing could be more natural. We should shift our horror from our natural death to the unnatural event of killing, the true horror. We should think, not so much about ourselves, but rather about the conditions of the world shared by us which make so many others vulnerable to suffering. Better to die than to kill or make the world unlivable for others.
You disagree? You want to reclaim every possible resource for yourself? Fine. It’s your decision. But the result will be just the same whatever you choose.
Here is a link to Jake Seliger’s deeply moving texts. Some are not for the faint-hearted.
Signed,
Andrew (Weeks)
Normal Thoughts 