“Self” is a prism of directionless ambiguity, yet it drives us.
We view the world through it, yet fail to understand how that same world shapes it.
“Self” is developed by the same personal and societal forces it is called to interpret.
We cannot perceive the world until we perceive our selves.
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Title Screen from "The Trap"
Go ahead… carve out 3 hours from your day. You are going to want to watch this. The following is a three part documentary produced by Adam Curtis and originally aired on the BBC. It follows the philosophical underpinnings that have guided the way we understand the world for the past century and how that has affected everything from foreign policy to personal health to our notion of productivity. The whole series hinges on how we understand the concepts of freedom and liberty. This is quite timely given the political climate of the day and the obvious disconnect between various wings of society. I have embedded a YouTube playlist for each episode so you can watch it through. I have also included notes on each episode… but trust me, you want to watch the whole thing.
Episode 1 – Fuck You Buddy
I am sorry if the title offends you (if it makes things better… I was introduced to this documentary through a seminary class that required we watch it). The title comes from an experiment developed by John Nash (the lead character in A Beautiful Mind) which supposed that the world operated best when people were selfish. This segment details how game theory and other mathematical formulas convinced the world that the best way to view humanity was through a lens of suspicion where all people were obviously in it for themselves and every decision was motivated by self-interest and preservation. This was the dominate mindset in the Cold War Era. When we approach the whole world through a lens of distrust, it is amazing (and unfortunate) how we view society.
Episode 2 – The Lonely Robot
In this episode Curtis continues to explore our desire for society and people to be predictable. Perhaps it is a desire to understand, or perhaps it is a desire to control. He looks at the development of the mental health field and our own understanding of what it means to be “normal.” From here he explores the consequences of a world where everyone strives for an ideal that is, at best, arbitrary. Curtis follows how this emphasis on standards spiraled out of control in a vain attempt to maximize productivity in all sectors… even if the measurements were pure conjecture. These ideas (however flawed) were monumental in ushering in a new understanding of the free market.
Episode 3 – We will Force you to be Free
After exploring the way we view ourselves and human nature, Curtis begins in earnest to explore our ideas of freedom. Specifically he examines the concepts of Negative Liberty and Positive Liberty as made popular by Isaiah Berlin. Negative Liberty is a freedom from coercion while Positive Liberty is the freedom to achieve one’s true potential. The prior has been deemed the “safest” because the later has historically required force and oppression to bring about. However, following the path of negative liberty to its logical conclusions, as governments have done in the West for the past 50 years, results in a society without meaning populated only by selfish automatons. The answer then must be a peaceful pursuance of Positive Liberty.
Adam Curtis has always been known for producing provocative documentaries. I am sure he overstates some items in this program and under reports others. However, this program forces the viewer to examine the way in which they view the world and requires them to acknowledge how their understanding of society affects their interactions with it.