From: David Buchanan (DBuchanan@ClassicalRadio.org)
Date: Tue Jun 29 2004 - 03:28:51 BST
Arlo said:
it seems to me still that (in ZMM) the deathforce has become most pronounced
(if you will) since mass production. That is, even though the SO duality
ruled the west since Aristotle, the schism Pirsig wrote of seemed to be
centered in the post-Fordist era. So even though Pirsig's alienation was the
result of Aristotle's ghost echoing through the generations (to use some
poeticism), I find his analysis indicating the 50's (i.e. a recent era of
mass production) were a time when this alientation became critical. Thus, he
is able to lament the simple change in attitude among mechanics over one
(possible) two recent generations, that seems to be a direct result of
alientating the activity from the product of labor. Do you think this is a
fair observation?
dmb says:
Right. And may I say what a pleasure it is to hear a fresh idea. Please,
keep them coming.... I think that mass production lead to mass products and
the kind of consumerism that really took off in the 50's. The alienation
spread to other areas of life. A certain anonymity sets in when reality
starts to take on a cookie-cutter sameness everwhere. In chapter 22 of Lila,
Pirsig describes the technological world as a pointless and impossible
pursuit of a phony goal...
"He knew that intellectual contrived technological devices had increased in
number and complexity, but he didn't think the ability to enjoy these
devices had increased in proportion. He didn't think you could say with
certainty that people are any happier than they were during the Victorian
era, This 'pusuit of happiness' seemed to have become like the pursuit of
some scientifically created, mechanical rabbit that moves ahead at whateer
speed it is pursued. If you ever did catch it for a few moments it had a
peculiar synthetic, technological taste that made the whole pursuit seem
senseless."
He talks about a "secret loneliness", a "psychiatric isolation and
futility", of "drinking life through a straw" and a loss of "realness"
because of this same scientific and technological world we've created,
because of SOM.
And speaking of Social Marxism... The argument that capitalism is immune to
this problem will not fly. The source of it is too deep and pervasive
throughout the West for any of its ideologies or economic systems to be
exempt. Sure, it manifests itself in different ways and there is the
inadvertantly correct thing, but the infection is completely widespread.
Thanks.
dmb
MOQ.ORG - http://www.moq.org
Mail Archives:
Aug '98 - Oct '02 - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/
Nov '02 Onward - http://www.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/summary.html
MD Queries - horse@darkstar.uk.net
To unsubscribe from moq_discuss follow the instructions at:
http://www.moq.org/md/subscribe.html
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Tue Jun 29 2004 - 03:38:46 BST