To Have or To Be by Erich Fromm Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

To Have or To Be by Erich Fromm - Essay Example The problem with the â€Å"having† mode is that the greed for money and possession can never be satisfied no matter how much has acquired. People will always use dubious means to get more; including the exploitation of fellow human beings. â€Å"The ordinary man with extraordinary power is the chief danger for mankind† Fromm, (67). There is always a cut-throat competition among members of society in getting more possession. And when one has acquired a certain amount of riches, he is struck by paranoia. He or she is in a constant state of fear that the property may be stolen or that death may come so soon. Unlike the â€Å"having† mode, the â€Å"being† mode is quite a stationary state in life. Here, man does not really seem to toil for money and other materialistic things of the world. Man is satisfied with the intangible aspects of life such as peace and harmony. He adores love as the only source of joy: â€Å"Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problems of human† (Fromm, 70). He can get pleasure without using money. In fact, everything is a source of his happiness, depending on the perception. The individuals in this state are selfless and can freely share whatever little they have. To them, all the worldly things are meaningless and perishable. Therefore, they see no great deal in investing in material things. The problem with the â€Å"being† mode is that an individual may be isolated from the modern society whose most members are in the â€Å"having† mode. Since the pleasure of the people in this mode is free, they may sometime s misuse this freedom. The problem with â€Å"industrial religion† is that it is economic oriented and enslaves its followers by work. According the ancient religion was viewed as matriarchal where; the church was full of unconditional love and mercy. However, the modern churches are viewed as patriarchal; justice is the order of the day. Fromm states, â€Å"The deepest desire of the human

Nihilism, Provisional Existence, Forfeiture of meaning Research Paper

Nihilism, Provisional Existence, Forfeiture of meaning - Research Paper Example The tribes of these stories are considered as nihilists, because they lack spiritual maturity and focus on the meaninglessness of life; they desire provisional existence, because they lack meaningful future goals and empathy for others; and they have forfeited spiritual meaning, since they have given up hope in changing their lives and enhancing their spiritual development. Tribalism affects nihilism by enforcing collective obedience to authority, thereby sacrificing their pursuit of spiritual maturity. The lottery is viewed as a joint ritual, where all people, young and old alike, participate in its processes and outcomes. People know how their prosperity is hinged on one human being's suffering every year, but they have looked away from their ritual's hideous process and result. Instead, they rationalize that the lottery is required for their existence, wealth, and continuity. Old Man Warner underscores that the lottery cannot be eliminated, like the other towns did, because  "there's always been a lottery† (Jackson). He desires for the continuity of traditions. He further focuses on the benefits of the lottery: â€Å"Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon† (Jackson). He fails to morally analyze this ritual that he has embraced, since he can participate in it. He stands for the moral stagnation of his tribe. In The Ones Who Walked Away from Omelas, people assert that their happiness and development are products of one â€Å"child's abominable misery† (LeGuin). Without this child's suffering, the â€Å"prosperity and beauty and delight† (LeGuin) of Omelas will no longer exist. As a whole, these tribes follow the laws and conventions that enable them to enjoy a â€Å"good† life. The main problem here is that through blind obedience to authority, they are sacrificing their spiritual growth. By denying to embrace suffering as a whole and transferring it to a single person, they fail to accept their suffering and find meaning in it. But these tribes no longer believe that there is value in collective suffering. Instead, they would rather accept a person's suffering to replace their own. Nihilism, moreover, does not reflect on outcomes and Frankl rejects this kind of life: â€Å"We must not despise our lives and treat our lives as if they were of no consequence at all† (Breakthrough Writing â€Å"Man's Search†). These tribes, nevertheless, reject the consequences of their actions as meaningful. They simply accept their rituals as it is, because â€Å"it is.† Tribalism, furthermore, develops nihilism, because these tribes no longer regard the meaning of life. Frankl believes in the value of being â€Å"worthy† of one's â€Å"sufferings,† for it provides â€Å"spiritual freedom† that makes life worth living for (72). The people in The Lottery does not see any meaning in life, as demonstrated in how they exist each day for rudimentary needs. The men focus on materialis tic affairs, while women are relegated to the domestic domain and follow gender-stereotyped roles: â€Å"...men began to gather, surveying their own children, speaking of planting and rain, tractors and taxes...women, wearing faded house dresses and sweaters...exchanged bits of gossip as they went to join their husbands† (Jackson). No one gives a second to reflect on the morality of their actions, because they are focused on their daily survival. Everyone treats this day as any ordinary day with a sense of â€Å"disenchantment of the world†