Alert: Highly random musings today!
Over the last day I’ve been chatting with a friend about cynicism. I know, why would we? It just came up while nattering about less highbrow matters but it got me thinking. He sent me an article which praised the state of cynicism in people, claiming that it is a sign of questioning, analytical and insightful humans. The author makes statements which rather starkly assume that unless people are full blown cynics they somewhat fall short of being able to improve their environment, society or themselves because, he argues, if you’re not cynical, then you must be a cockeyed optimist and then, you either don’t believe anything is wrong or you believe everything will get better by miracle.
I read the piece and enjoyed it. Thought it was well written and thought provoking and for that I applaud the author. But I vehemently disagree with his fundamental premise that people who don’t see the world with cynical eyes are wandering along almost like sheep. You see, I do not believe that, as he presents in the article, only cynics strive to see things as they are or that they are the only type of person who want to see beyond the superficial gloss of a situation or of a person. I can only use myself as a case study as I would be loathe to speak for anyone else but I am not, by nature, a cynic. Having said this, I do not walk through my life expecting flowers to spring where I step or see sparkles shimmering around me as I glide along (though that would be amazing). I do strive to see things as they are and I do question much of what I encounter.
Questioning doesn’t make us cynical it makes us cognisant and active in our own and our society’s development (both material and pastoral) and its governance. Asking questions sees me gathering information to make informed conclusions but it does not drop me into the cynical box unless I am asking the questions less as knowledge seeking and more as potential accusations. Seeing things for what they are does not automatically classify me a cynic, instead just someone who can take a situation such as it is and not judge it. Cynicism would imply, for me at least, an expectation of negative, a permanent slant towards that outcome or intent, a pair of anti-rose tinted glasses which one would wear at all times which would cast a dull pallor over even the most beautiful and true moments that do exist and that you can miss if you expect the worst.
The author was offended by the prejudice against cynics held by the optimistic that they are the doomsayers of our societies. My argument would be that he displayed exactly the same prejudice in reverse, standing by the view that anyone who is optimistically minded must be, by inference, vacant of logical thinking. He basically qualifies anyone who is not deconstructing every moment to see if there’s something bad lurking beneath it as verging on being inhabitants of La-La Land.
After all this swam round in my mind I realised I was left with the sense that I’m happy where I am. I would rather have cynicism as a tool in my arsenal, available for deployment when required rather than let it be WHO I am or it being HOW I operate all the time. I do not feel that my world is less “real” or “valid” just because I refuse to walk around permanently imagining that everything is mired in quicksand.
I don’t want to walk around expecting the worst. Goodness that must be exhausting. I mean, life can be difficult even for us glass half full folk so, for anyone who sees the world in terms where goodness or positives are immediately determined to be not only in less supply but probably absent in much of what they experience simply because their point of departure has already predisposed them to think like that, life must be very stark.
But, wait, that sounds too much like a cynic speaking 😉
E x
Losing Sight of the Margin 