Hermits

[Dimentio]

I am originally from a small village in the mountains of Sweden, and there were several unique cases. In our village for example, there lived a man who was educated at university who was in his 60;s, and he mostly sat with his books while his mother took care of him, isolated from the outside world. In the neighboring village, there lived a guy who had 36 cats, slept on newspapers on the floor and smelled like hell.

But in the mountain-sides, we have the true originals. One guy there, I do not know if he is still alive, lives aloof on a mountain-side and just strolls down to a village where there is a store once each month to buy canned food. He really hates people, and when he got a neighbour who lived to close (5 km;s) he moved further into the mountains.

Tell me, do you believe that kind of life-style should be accepted in a post-capitalist society? I mean, it surely does'nt do any harm to anyone.

The relevance of this thread is that it is connected to the issue of the gay bar discriminating women. I will argue that such measures of discrimination are fully okay as long as they are not enforced as a general law, and that clubs and individuals should chose to interact or not interact with anyone.

[Body Count]

Originally posted by [email protected] 20, 2007 09:35 am

Tell me, do you believe that kind of life-style should be accepted in a post-capitalist society? I mean, it surely does'nt do any harm to anyone.

A better question I have for you is : Whats the alternative?

It doesn't really matter if it's "accepted", if people don't like him and what he's doing that one thing, but nobody has any right whatsoever to tell him he's not allowed to do it.

Honestly, I think that doing what you want to do or living how you want to live, while not limiting others to do the same, is the "height" of human interaction.

[rouchambeau]

What the fuck is this shit?

[GiveITall]

I don't have a lot of knowledge on the issue but my understanding is that human beings are social by nature. I think that many people who live as hermits have been or could be diagnosed with a schizophrenia (or related disorder). I would argue that most mental health disorders can be largely attributed to the current system we are living under and would probably would not exist (or be a lot less common) in collectivized communist society.

Any thoughts?

[Black Dagger]

Originally posted by serpent
the relevance of this thread is that it is connected to the issue of the gay bar discriminating women. I will argue that such measures of discrimination are fully okay as long as they are not enforced as a general law, and that clubs and individuals should chose to interact or not interact with anyone.

What are saying here? I dont understand.

You're arguing that gay bars should be allowed to discriminate if they want to (but not as a rule - what's the difference?)

And

That bars and clubs (queer and hetero?) should be allowed to 'interact' (permit entry? Cater to?) with anyone or not, as the case may be.

The later point being quite similar to the first.

But yeah, is that what you're saying?

Also, i don't understand how this relates to the 'hermit' thing.

[Mariam]

Originally posted by [email protected] 21, 2007 06:03 pm
I don't have a lot of knowledge on the issue but my understanding is that human beings are social by nature. I think that many people who live as hermits have been or could be diagnosed with a schizophrenia (or related disorder). I would argue that most mental health disorders can be largely attributed to the current system we are living under and would probably would not exist (or be a lot less common) in collectivized communist society.

Any thoughts?
It's said that human beings are social by nature, arguable considering some psychoanalytical aspects and could be true.

But looking at it in the light of current social circumstances of any capitalist society, it is more likely that this situation of self-alienation is understandable.

The choice of alienation a lot of people would make if they were able to is a rejection of the social repression, spiritual, and moral (if there is such thing) death. choosing to be alienated is much better than staying within that society and be subject to chaotic or destructive tendency that grow out of what is mentioned above.


One guy there, I do not know if he is still alive, lives aloof on a mountain-side and just strolls down to a village where there is a store once each month to buy canned food. He really hates people, and when he got a neighbour who lived to close (5 km;s) he moved further into the mountains.


That must be heaven!

[Janus]

I think that many people who live as hermits have been or could be diagnosed with a schizophrenia (or related disorder).
I'm sure that there have been a few but psychological disorders generally require the victim to depend on help from another; total seclusion would probably only worsen certain cases. The term hermit is used to specifically denote recluses who choose their way of life for religious reasons simply because certain philosophical and religious practices or doctrines breed and stress some sort of seclusion and ascetism.

[Mariam]

I'm sure that there have been a few but psychological disorders generally require the victim to depend on help from another; total seclusion would probably only worsen certain cases.

Departing their society is nothing but an indicator to a stage of loss of faith in others, therefore they wont turn to others for help knowing -even though they might be psychologically or mentally disturbed- that they "the others" were part of the problem that caused the disturbance and eventually to take the option of seclusion.

[Genosse Kotze]

Well, I think it's BS to charachterize all people who prefer solitude as mentaly ill. I don't get out much myself, and I don't hate people especially. Not everybody who lives like a hermit is bitter and hateful like the Underground Man (although I find him, and lot's of Dostoyevsky's charachters very sympathetic).

Under the current state of things, I don't see why more people haven't moved out into the mountains. Alienation is the name of the game in capitalist society, and if you have problems relating to people in this current state of affairs, I think wanting to remove yourself from everything and everybody is perfectly legit!

In a future society, if there are still people who want nothing to do with the rest of us, I don't see what the problem is. I think people desperatly need to have a more communal outlook, and shed this "look out for number one, I'm gonna get mine" individualism, but the fact of the matter is that some people are just loners and their reasons are their own. As long as your not making letter bombs out in those mountains, let's just leave them be.

[Mariam]

Loner is the word i was looking for, hermit as Janus said is more religiously loaded.

[Palmares]

In an anarchist society people can be a part of the community, or not. Unless they are capitalists, and then it gets complicated.

One model that comes to mind is how such a society operates in the book 'the Dispossessed'.