The following is a transcribed excerpt from a James Hollis interview titled “A summons to deeper life”, from Sounds True: Insights at the Edge.”
As a parent I felt what Hollis has to say is very profound and makes me consider strongly the way in which I’m raising my children. I have always said I want to raise well-adjusted kids, who understand the value of hard work and are capable of thinking for themselves. In the first paragraph in the interview below James Hollis is refering to the transition from childhood to adulthood that all peoples must go through.
“..one had to learn to face ones fear, mobilize ones resolve, find courage, find persistence and where-with-all – these are (some of) the attributes of adulthood, and nature equips us with these potentials, with these tools, but they’re not necessarily developed by our culture. If anything we have an infantilizing culture, and they’re not supported by the wise elders by and large and so people are out there adrift in… big roles, huge responsibilities and accountabilities and are psychologically speaking still children.”
Interviewer (Tami Simon) > “Why do you say we have an infantilizing culture?”
“When you stop and think about children and adolescents – what do you think about in terms of their emotional disposition? They are impulsive, they are impatient, they don’t like ambiguity, they want clarity & resolution, they tend to fall into black and white thinking. They are too insecure to own their own stuff, so they are always looking to somebody else to blame it on. They organize their lives out of evading as much responsibility as they can, and they are looking for someone to explain it to them. Most of all it’s a culture driven by sensation, meaning you don’t have to reflect upon yourself if you are distracted all the time – and our electronic world has made distraction more possible than any time in history. Blaise Pascal in the 17th century in France wrote ‘even the King grows miserable if he reflect on himself’, so we invented the jester to distract the court from reflecting upon self. He said at that point all of our troubles stem from one thing, that ‘we can not bear to be alone with ourselves in our private chambers’. That’s Pascal before the internet and the 24/7 buzz that our culture represents. Our cultures answer to the existential anxiety of being human is distraction. If you’re distracted we’ll keep you entertained or diverted in someway. until someday you realize – that was your life… that was your life.”
Listen to the full Insights at the edge podcast at soundstrue.com and check out James Hollis’ books at amazon (below, aff. link)
Do you think we have an infantile culture? Share your thoughts below in the comments.
Daniel is a project & peer coordinator for the Langley Community Action Table and Overdose Response Project. He is a passionate public speaker who shares his story of addiction & recovery, advocates for drug policy change, and a greater understanding and compassion for those who use substances and suffer from addiction.
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