Utopia: The Secular Delusion by Bo Jinn

Author:Bo Jinn
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Divided Line Publishing
Published: 2015-04-27T23:00:00+00:00

The Problem of the Self

I should make it absolutely clear at the outset that the problem to which I am referring is not the common moral egoism, although to be sure I can think of no good reason why the staunch atheist should not, at every opportunity, put her own desires before the desires of others, whatever the cost might be to them. You will recall what I had previously referred to as the secular Problem of Power; that there is no sufficient reason why the will should not continually strive to impose itself on others by any means necessary if it suits its fancy to do so. Well, now we come to the sister-problem, and the focal point of the entire secular universe. Whilst the first problem merely places the individual within his rational rights to pursue tyranny, the Problem of the Self places upon her the obligation to do so. The reality of this Nietzschean duty had struck me shortly before my own de-conversion, sending a chill through the marrow of my bones. A large part of the sudden terror came in part with the realisation that it could have just as easily excited as terrified my soul. And another chilling realisation followed soon after; namely that every vile atrocity perpetrated at the suit of every tyrant from Nimrod to Chairman Mao must have begun with that same diabolical whisper:

“Ye shall be as gods.”

The umbrage toward what I am suggesting is only too predictable. “Surely,” you may say, “the idea that I am obliged to do anything at all is absurd, much less to lord over mankind with a rod! I have no interest in power. I am quite content to live, let live and above all be merry, and I am sure most people feel the same way.” Of course I am not recommending that anyone follow the path of Mr. Hitler or Mr. Sar, though I might, not entirely facetiously, point to such figures as secular saints. However, if you really think this so utterly absurd a proposition, I do invite you to think it over for a moment.

In 1984, arguably the most important novel of the 20th century, the defining moment of Orwell’s magnum opus occurs somewhere in the 3rd Chapter of Part III, during one of three famous torture-scene dialogues. And, given the tremendous import of this moment, it is no wonder that those who have so eagerly championed Orwell as one of the great secular heroes have done their utmost to treat it as a mere passing moment:

As usual, the voice had battered Winston into helplessness. Moreover he was in dread that if he persisted in his disagreement O’Brien would twist the dial again. And yet he could not keep silent. Feebly, without arguments, with nothing to support him except his inarticulate horror of what O’Brien had said, he returned to the attack.

‘... Somehow you will fail. Something will defeat you. Life will defeat you.’

‘We control life, Winston, at all its levels. You

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.