The discrepancy between word and deed pervades the entire dilemma of being human. Voluntarily of inadvertently, man is wedded to inauthenticity in all his undertakings. The Kierkegaardian chasm between the possible and the actual portrays our dangling condition, be it construed in terms of artistic, moral, or political unpreparedness to realize our intentions. Throughout history man has gone on record against being himself in every conceivable manner. Whether it be inauthentic piety (sanctimoniousness) in religion or inauthentic joy (Schadenfreude) in rejoicing in the misfortunes of others, he has displayed a seemingly inexhaustible genius for inventing variations on the theme of deceit. From offering apologies meant basically as insults, to masking the worst news under euphemisms, his genius for evasion never deserts him. Yet there is a tragically ironic paradox: though we can only be authentic when we are happy being who we are and doing as we please, all too frequently we act more inauthentically when those very conditions hold true. (An individual carried away by unrestrained impulses is acting inauthentically when these impulses undermine his notions of his own responsible conduct.) Just as frequently, when we do the right thing we did not intend to do it, and our unhappiness, however thickly veiled, makes us inauthentic.... --Geoffrey Clive, The Broken Icon: Intuitive Existentialism in Classical Russian Fiction
Posted on: Sat, 15 Mar 2014 07:20:11 +0000
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