Alienation and Boredom

[Dooga Aetrus Blackrazor]

I wasn't sure where to post this so feel free to move it. Anyway, I'll explain my question with respect to my situation. I am easily bored by everyday activities. When I work labor jobs, I could give you an exponential graph where my happiness declines the longer I work until, ultimately, the working ceases. This has yet to be a problem due to my fortunate economic circumstances, but that won't always be the case.

It's my view that most jobs are authoritative, monotonous, and alienating. They decrease the well-being of the people working in them in many situations. While some people can do repetitive tasks with pleasure, this is not why most people seem to be moderately content with their jobs. They've been socialized into less than fully human creatures. They are so indoctrinated that the praise of bosses, the low pay, etc, all seem like rewards. They don't actually see the injustice.

It seems irresponsible for a communist to attempt to delude themselves back to the "original position" of ignorance. I stand uncertain of my future and fearful of the prospect of living an existence that, for me, would be distressing.

Speaking with my psychiatrist about this, he presented a theory. He suggested that people who succeed by thwarting social norms have also mastered those same norms. They do this by "striving for excellence" in everything they do. This is his personal view as it's a rather complicated issue. But he believes we can train ourselves to enjoy things.

Even if this is true, this seems like a difficult and even self-alienated task that should be avoidable. Even among workers, they still recognize that boredom is a real phenomenon. Instead, they rationalize monotony in terms of "doing what is needed to be done" and explaining that "working is not fun, which is why you get paid for it."

Let's say I want to be a writer, which is a potential goal of mine. This is deemed unrealistic and when you pursue "dreams" that don't fit the social mold, even those closest to you can be discouraging. This is because they realize you have a good chance of failing.

However, isn't the boredom and alienation in society a phenomenon that can't simply be wished away with "positive thinking" or "complex psychological" theories? If a person wishes to pursue an existence with free labor and creativity, whether in a standard or obscure field, should they really settle in any respect?

When people in modern society live, they live the lives society has forged for them. The little individuality they cling to hardly justifies the continuing existence. They excuse themselves with obligations to friends and family, but these people are still doomed to the same futile existence.

Should a communist simply live according to how the world should be, not how it is? I may have it worse because of my own psychological issues, but I don't understand society. I talk about alienation and people question me as if I have some controversial viewpoint. It's a real phenomenon that I and others have experienced. Are we deluded? If not, how do we address this issue?

[Thirsty Crow]

Should a communist simply live according to how the world should be, not how it is? I may have it worse because of my own psychological issues, but I don't understand society. I talk about alienation and people question me as if I have some controversial viewpoint. It's a real phenomenon that I and others have experienced. Are we deluded? If not, how do we address this issue?
No, you are not deluded. Different people's experience is very similar (apart from the bourgeoisie fat-cats) but their interpretation of real phenomena which influences their reaction and future actions differs. In our time it is very easy to fall into the trap of resignation which turns human beings into half-conscious automatons. The other trap is possessive individualism, that is striving for ever more monetary gain, which reproduces the existing social hierarchy. I would argue that such individuals are as well alienated from their capacities for solidarity as social beings, thus perpetuating the "war of all against all".
Indeed, it is controversial to speak about alienation in a time which has inherited the notions of social hierarchy from epochs which differ in some respects. It is controversial to argue against the accusation made against a manual workers (for instance), that "they are poorly educated, that they are neither intelligent enough nor assertive enough, in a nutshell - that they are not good enough" since our culture encourages selective amnesia and fierce competition (which is supposedly inherent to an individualist worldview - supposedly).

I do not understand as well how so many people are capable of "self-castration" (the part being castrated is their intellect and sense of self-worth, as well as their physical health). And my own personal tendency towards fiercly despising such sheep-like behaviour is what scares me sometimes. Intimidation, lethargy and apathy of all those who labour just to be told that "there will always be scarcity and that the government is always responsible for market crashes which cause your existential problems) are beyond me, and I don't really know how should we, who are more fully aware of the possibility of a different life, reach these apathetic people.
Perhaps we should engage in serious conversation in everyday situations, at the workplace, day by day, organise discussion panels, community events...

But I do know that even a communist needs to eat :D And it is my belief that every individual should live how she/he pleases, if it does not endanger other peoples' livelihood, as well as physical and mental health. And compromise is necessary, it will be necessary for the vast majority of people to labour in demeaning conditions, myself and you included. But that's what takes if we wish to continue with our desired activities. Though not any single human being should be satisfied with this: all should strive for a change.

[Buffalo Souljah]

It is very very very difficult to live "according to your own rules," if those rules happen to be set against the predominant mode. I say, do what you want; however, you have to keep in mind that things are as they are and not everything is possible (materially), eg. we can't hop on a jeplane and colonize Mars just yet--the material resources are arguably just not such to allow for this.

If you want to write or be a writer, try it out and see--just remember that popular culture will repeatedly and ceaselesly try and try again to buy you out and make you a part of its design. If you perservere, like the Beatles, like jack Keroak, like Stravinsky and Dostoevsky, more power to you. You've got nothing to prove--remember that.

Society is complex, and they want you to play by the rules. Arguably, the career of an artist exists on the fringe of society, being sucepitble to revolutionary impulses. This is why it is important to "keep your head above water", lest you end up like Kinkade or Warhol.

Ultimately: do what you feel is right and is possibleb. Don't let your parents and teachers and home town dictate your life. Move to New York or Paris. Introduce some new elements into your life.

I could recommend some useful literature to you to get your head straight. (now is probably not the best time, since I've been hitting the drink ). Ask me tomorrow, late late afternoon.

You appear to have a head on your shoulders, which is good, for starters. We [I]need leaders like you for the immanent revolution, ie., people to make sure corruption, tyranny and misdirection stay out of organized struggle! "Keep own, brotha!"

[gilhyle]

It seems to me that boredom arises where distraction is not sufficient. Whether distraction leaves the person doing things which conincidentally creates socially beneficial outcomes is fundamentally just that - a coincidence.

However, there are two caveats to this. Firstly, some people find that the attractiveness of the distraction may be added to by the socially beneficial outcome to which it leads. But this is a mere subjective affectation. Secondly, the force of distraction need not be continuous but may alternate with endurance. The mind is capable of calculating over periods of time and thus superimposing the welcome sense of distraction on events and experience which are not intrinsically distracting, but rather boring or even painful.

In those ways - i.e. by superimposing social effect on personal effect and by calculating temporal relationships between the distracting and the boring, the 'will' influences living.

I do not believe that we should pose this question in a special way for 'communists'. The fundamental dilemma is the same for all humans - and for all humans it can be dispensed by struggles to survive.

We should not try to formulate ways which communists 'should' live which are fundamentally different from the ways others should live. This is elitism.

In practice, the construction of the will (as defined above) would be entirely rational in character (i.e. a matter of reasoning). But that is itself merely a model on my part. THe will is actually an emotional construct.

Thats where your life experience comes in. Reason as much as you like. But it is your own emotional structure which determines how you respond to these issues. Consequently I suggest you do not intellectualise the problem. Face it as an emotional being in dialogue with another person. Emotional engagemment with life comes from the living of life - talking fucking failing etc.. It is not a trap. It is what you are. Walk away from that and you find that there is no one who has walked away because everything is gone

[epsilon8998]

I think the best thing that we can do as communists is to help people in seeing the things that we already have seen. In order for us to liberate humanity, we must first show them that there is a need to be liberated in the first place.

If they are living in their content little world, working happily at repetitive and distressing jobs, while destroying their lives in the process, then there is little that we can do to help them. However, if we expose them to the truths of their alienation, that the work they do is oppressive and harmful for their own way of life, then there is a chance that they may be convinced to reject it as we have.

Once they have learned that there is alienation and oppression, then they too can help to liberate more people by spreading the word. The best way to do this is by talking to your coworkers about alienation: what it is and where it comes from, either in the workplace or outside of it.