Importance is a function of place and time, and one's sense of importance is usually derrived by narrowing their perspective. The extent to which this is necessary depends entirely on your position in the world; world leader's, for instance, can feel important provided the focus remains on his impact as it relates events within and immediately following his lifetime. In its day, Hadrian's Wall was a huge deal; now, not so much. Given the eventual decay, or if you prefer, change, of everything, you could argue that everyone will eventually be equally unexceptional, but I think most world leaders would, rightly, argue that using the Apocalypse or the span of thousands of years to diminish their accomplishments is a bit obtuse. Now, for us mere mortals, things are a bit more complex, since most of us are obviously not important in the greater meaning of that word. Every thought you've had has probably been had, or will be had, by someone else. The differences between people are the consequence of various different arrangements of details (hair color, geographical location, preferences) and given that there are billions of us, it is probable that there is someone in this world who resembles you to such an extent as to render your existence unnecessary. You cannot survive by thinking in these terms. You must narrow the focus to your backyard, your experiences, your daily drama. For some of us, this provincial view is not sufficent, so we "cheat" in order to magnify our significance (for example, a family man highlights his status as the sole breadwinner by monopolizing control over the family's assets (LAUGH RIOT, by the way)). I should mention here that I don't think it is possible to really be important, in a greater sense, but that it is necessary to believe that we are, and this causes us to invest our energies in worldly enterprises that may serve as testaments to our worth (families, successful business enterprises, blogs, and so on). Without this need, nothing would have ever happened; the problem arises when people feel compelled to guard their sandcastles of self reverence with all sorts of passion and violence. In other words, it is important to feel important, because otherwise you wouldn't do anything, and while your life really doesn't matter to many outside a chosen handful, I can only imagine that you'd rather be doing something than nothing. Feeling important is our weapon against existential paralysis. It is also important to remember, however, that you are only important within the context of your own immediate sphere, and as such, you should really calm down and stay out of trouble. I hope that makes sense. SAK
It is also important to remember, however, that you are only important within the context of your own immediate sphere, and as such, you should really calm down and stay out of trouble.
Your immediate sphere? Those no longer exist. We are no longer bound by time and space, particularly now that words are more everlasting than ever before.
That said, I think the best way to be "important", if one should so desire, is to write.
And at that, you must then write about important things in an important way.
Will anyone remember Candace Bushnell in a century? Or ten? Probably not.
But will people remember Rushdie? Possibly.
Now does being remembered equate to importance? Certainly not. But important people of the future can't be influenced by important people of the past unless they can read about what they did, what they said, and how they lived their lives...
So the moral of the story is, don't do drugs and learn how to read.
Your immediate sphere? Those no longer exist. We are no longer bound by time and space, particularly now that words are more everlasting than ever before."
Interesting point; however, the surfeit of words now available through the various means of their preservation could serve to diminish the significance of any given statement. A lot of things will eventually wind up eternally ignored. Also, written words are indeed captive to the era in which they were produced. The meaning of words, and what actually constitutes a word, can change in fifty years or less. Given enough time, the author's actual intent in creation becomes less important than the perception of the reader, which, due to changes in language, may be severely compromised. Religious texts, for example, are so old that their "meaning" exists only in the mind of the reader, and may not actually relate in any way to the author's intent. I'm talking mostly about the Book of Revelations, but any other aged source work will do. The manner in which any work is interpreted has quite a bit to do with the context within which the interpreters, well, interpret, and less to do with the creator, whose importance dissipates as a result.
Back to the central question of whether it is important to be important; yeah, it is. Soon after writing yesterday, I remembered how terrible it was to be the only summa cum laude working at Blockbuster. I may think that writing or creating anything in order to derive self worth is self-deception; nonetheless, these are important for the sake of sanity and perhaps posterity. There must be something about just getting out of school and not immediately encountering success that inspires one to cry in the dark along to Pink Floyd. I can't imagine it getting better as death approaches unless you manage to convince yourself that yes, you accomplished something. One mustn't become overzealous; it probably doesn't matter. It's probably not worth writing several paragraphs over in some darkened corner of the internet. SAK
It's probably not worth writing several paragraphs over in some darkened corner of the internet.
That's an awfully cynical thing to say. The glorious words from a summa cum laude graduate are gracing this part of the internet, and in any given word, vivid inspiration--or light--can be gleaned.
Of course perception is everything. But one can perceive nothing from something that does not exist. Surely, in your intellectual might, you've mustered that fact?
But why bother writing in this "dark corner"? You've got some important videos to sell at Blockbuster.
Wait a second, the bit about the darkened corner was self deprecation, and meant to contradict what I wrote earlier. I'm still very much wrestling with the issue of my own importance. It was not aimed at the poster of this blog, whom I greatly appreciate. The summa cum laude part was not a boast, just a measure of how pathetic I was at the time (I am probably still pathetic). Although, upon reviewing my post, I see how it can be interpreted as such. I apologize if I created the impression that I was spoiling for a fight. I just read these posts, write down what is in my head at that moment. By the time I read the responses, I usually don't agree with what I wrote in the first place. But I don't consider my inconsistancy as a sign of greatness. And I apologize if the last comment seems snarky. And I am not bragging when I mention that I don't work at Blockbuster. Anymore. And I apologize if my responses are pedantic. I am actually very insecure, and sometimes I use stilted language. Okay, I use it a lot of the time. And, after reviewing some of my posts, I feel that I probably come off better in person. Well, maybe, I have gained about 15 pounds since last we met. And my back hair is pretty overwhelming. But, with my height, that's probably okay, right? Lauren, I hope that I have not offended you. I don't think that I did, but it is possible, so, um, sorry. Please keep up the good work, not that I would be so arrogant as to expect my opinion to be better than anyone elses, and please don't let any of my posts discourage you from putting up discussion questions, like, have you seen any good movies lately? I just watched Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, and really enjoyed it. SAK
No comments here have offended me in the slightest. I really appreciate all the discussion, from everyone, because the importance issue is one I am (obviously) struggling with myself.
8 comments:
It is very important to FEEL important. Whether one actually is, that is a different question altogether.
Importance is a function of place and time, and one's sense of importance is usually derrived by narrowing their perspective. The extent to which this is necessary depends entirely on your position in the world; world leader's, for instance, can feel important provided the focus remains on his impact as it relates events within and immediately following his lifetime. In its day, Hadrian's Wall was a huge deal; now, not so much. Given the eventual decay, or if you prefer, change, of everything, you could argue that everyone will eventually be equally unexceptional, but I think most world leaders would, rightly, argue that using the Apocalypse or the span of thousands of years to diminish their accomplishments is a bit obtuse.
Now, for us mere mortals, things are a bit more complex, since most of us are obviously not important in the greater meaning of that word. Every thought you've had has probably been had, or will be had, by someone else. The differences between people are the consequence of various different arrangements of details (hair color, geographical location, preferences) and given that there are billions of us, it is probable that there is someone in this world who resembles you to such an extent as to render your existence unnecessary. You cannot survive by thinking in these terms. You must narrow the focus to your backyard, your experiences, your daily drama. For some of us, this provincial view is not sufficent, so we "cheat" in order to magnify our significance (for example, a family man highlights his status as the sole breadwinner by monopolizing control over the family's assets (LAUGH RIOT, by the way)). I should mention here that I don't think it is possible to really be important, in a greater sense, but that it is necessary to believe that we are, and this causes us to invest our energies in worldly enterprises that may serve as testaments to our worth (families, successful business enterprises, blogs, and so on). Without this need, nothing would have ever happened; the problem arises when people feel compelled to guard their sandcastles of self reverence with all sorts of passion and violence. In other words, it is important to feel important, because otherwise you wouldn't do anything, and while your life really doesn't matter to many outside a chosen handful, I can only imagine that you'd rather be doing something than nothing. Feeling important is our weapon against existential paralysis. It is also important to remember, however, that you are only important within the context of your own immediate sphere, and as such, you should really calm down and stay out of trouble.
I hope that makes sense.
SAK
The more important question is, is being important important to you, or important to important people who are important to you?
And is it even important to know the answer to that question?
I think this is incorrect:
It is also important to remember, however, that you are only important within the context of your own immediate sphere, and as such, you should really calm down and stay out of trouble.
Your immediate sphere? Those no longer exist. We are no longer bound by time and space, particularly now that words are more everlasting than ever before.
That said, I think the best way to be "important", if one should so desire, is to write.
And at that, you must then write about important things in an important way.
Will anyone remember Candace Bushnell in a century? Or ten? Probably not.
But will people remember Rushdie? Possibly.
Now does being remembered equate to importance? Certainly not. But important people of the future can't be influenced by important people of the past unless they can read about what they did, what they said, and how they lived their lives...
So the moral of the story is, don't do drugs and learn how to read.
Your immediate sphere? Those no longer exist. We are no longer bound by time and space, particularly now that words are more everlasting than ever before."
Interesting point; however, the surfeit of words now available through the various means of their preservation could serve to diminish the significance of any given statement. A lot of things will eventually wind up eternally ignored. Also, written words are indeed captive to the era in which they were produced. The meaning of words, and what actually constitutes a word, can change in fifty years or less. Given enough time, the author's actual intent in creation becomes less important than the perception of the reader, which, due to changes in language, may be severely compromised. Religious texts, for example, are so old that their "meaning" exists only in the mind of the reader, and may not actually relate in any way to the author's intent. I'm talking mostly about the Book of Revelations, but any other aged source work will do. The manner in which any work is interpreted has quite a bit to do with the context within which the interpreters, well, interpret, and less to do with the creator, whose importance dissipates as a result.
Back to the central question of whether it is important to be important; yeah, it is. Soon after writing yesterday, I remembered how terrible it was to be the only summa cum laude working at Blockbuster. I may think that writing or creating anything in order to derive self worth is self-deception; nonetheless, these are important for the sake of sanity and perhaps posterity. There must be something about just getting out of school and not immediately encountering success that inspires one to cry in the dark along to Pink Floyd. I can't imagine it getting better as death approaches unless you manage to convince yourself that yes, you accomplished something. One mustn't become overzealous; it probably doesn't matter. It's probably not worth writing several paragraphs over in some darkened corner of the internet.
SAK
It's probably not worth writing several paragraphs over in some darkened corner of the internet.
That's an awfully cynical thing to say. The glorious words from a summa cum laude graduate are gracing this part of the internet, and in any given word, vivid inspiration--or light--can be gleaned.
Of course perception is everything. But one can perceive nothing from something that does not exist. Surely, in your intellectual might, you've mustered that fact?
But why bother writing in this "dark corner"? You've got some important videos to sell at Blockbuster.
Wait a second, the bit about the darkened corner was self deprecation, and meant to contradict what I wrote earlier. I'm still very much wrestling with the issue of my own importance. It was not aimed at the poster of this blog, whom I greatly appreciate. The summa cum laude part was not a boast, just a measure of how pathetic I was at the time (I am probably still pathetic). Although, upon reviewing my post, I see how it can be interpreted as such. I apologize if I created the impression that I was spoiling for a fight. I just read these posts, write down what is in my head at that moment. By the time I read the responses, I usually don't agree with what I wrote in the first place. But I don't consider my inconsistancy as a sign of greatness. And I apologize if the last comment seems snarky. And I am not bragging when I mention that I don't work at Blockbuster. Anymore. And I apologize if my responses are pedantic. I am actually very insecure, and sometimes I use stilted language. Okay, I use it a lot of the time. And, after reviewing some of my posts, I feel that I probably come off better in person. Well, maybe, I have gained about 15 pounds since last we met. And my back hair is pretty overwhelming. But, with my height, that's probably okay, right? Lauren, I hope that I have not offended you. I don't think that I did, but it is possible, so, um, sorry. Please keep up the good work, not that I would be so arrogant as to expect my opinion to be better than anyone elses, and please don't let any of my posts discourage you from putting up discussion questions, like, have you seen any good movies lately? I just watched Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, and really enjoyed it.
SAK
No comments here have offended me in the slightest. I really appreciate all the discussion, from everyone, because the importance issue is one I am (obviously) struggling with myself.
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