There are certain situations that don’t strike me at first. But as time goes on, I’ll start to think about it more and more. And that’s exactly what happened to me recently.
I was just coming back from school at the time, and anyone who’s ever been on a bus now probably has some idea of what it’s like to wear protective gear. Simply put, there is a large group of people who either wear the wrong respirator or face shield, or ignore the precaution altogether.
The origins of this situation can be seen from many different angles. However, I was most interested in the viewpoint relating to the relationship between the individual and society, because I believe that this is one of the most important factors that ultimately influences the behaviour of the individual.
Elderly man with walker
I’m already on the bus and an elderly man sits down in the next aisle. He also had a walking aid with him, which someone had helpfully helped him to load onto the bus. At first glance, it was obvious that this gentleman was disabled and had a speech impediment.
As the bus departs, the man immediately looks for a respirator and tries to put it on. Unfortunately, he has poor motor skills in his hand and repeatedly fails to put it on. At this point I have already offered to help the man and he is happy to accept. I helped the man and then he asked me if I was going to the same bus stop as him and that he needed help with the walker. I didn’t understand him for a while and when I did, I had to say no because my stop was earlier.
Seemingly common situation
How much effort does it take the average person to put on a respirator? Maybe so little that we can’t even call it an effort. But in this man’s case, it’s different. Even though it’s more difficult for him, he makes the effort to do it, whereas some ordinary people wouldn’t bother.
This got me thinking. Is what’s happening here just a result of the current situation, or a symptom of a much bigger social problem that was already there?
Individualisation of the person
What is happening here, I believe, is rooted in the relationship of the individual to society as a whole. A good help in my argument is the book “Escape from Freedom” by Erich Fromm.
„The increasing process of separation of the individual from his original bonds, a process which we may call “individuation”, seems to have reached its peak in modern history in the centuries between the Reformation and the present.“
Escape from Freedom, from page 32 **
I’ll go through it step by step. When the author talks about original bonds, he means the connection between people, nature, and other people. When we lose these connections, he calls it “individuation.” Since the Reformation, this “individuation” has been at its peak. The author is likely referring to Calvinism and Lutheranism, which he mentions a lot in the book. (For context only, as it’s not needed now.) Finally, he refers to capitalism as the current system that replaced the medieval order. We need to remember that the book was written back in 1941. Nonetheless, I find it accurately describing the present.
What does that have to do with the situation I was looking at?
I see the key to the solution in the comparison of the probable degree of individualisation in the man mentioned and in ordinary people. In other words, in the awareness of the unity or, on the contrary, the separateness of the individual from other people (society).
It seems logical to me that a person who has to rely on the help of others more often will be more considerate and feel more connected to society as a whole. This also explains why, despite the difficulties, he still tried to put on a respirator. His separation from other people is not so great that he allows himself to be careless with others.
It is more difficult for the ordinary individual, we can only guess at what makes him act in this way, because there are a multitude of things that can be the cause. But I believe that these people have one thing in common. And that is a high degree of detachment from other people. They feel little or nothing for other (foreign) people. Their individuation has reached a peak.
A big difference at first sight, then not so much
I have already written that the gentleman in question is often dependent on the help of others. This makes him dependent on society. But is the ordinary individual independent? Of course not. He is mentally dependent, without society he would go mad. And if I were to compare the degree of dependence of the man here with that of ordinary individuals, we would still conclude that they could not exist without society.
The difference is probably that the man is much more aware of the addiction, whereas the ordinary individual may be under the false impression that he is not affected by it. Being isolated from society and feeling no attachment to it, I would not be afraid to call that a “sick” relationship to society.
This is where an interesting contrast begins to emerge. Because in our case a disabled (sick) person has a healthier relationship with society than any other person without limitations.
Is there a solution?
Improvement must come from the individual. There is no point in forcing people to take action if they are not aware of their unhealthy relationship with society. Of course, there are many more aspects to this, but I am highlighting this one because I believe it is the key.
So let’s not wait for others to change, let’s start with ourselves. I think our society is sick in some ways and this situation reflects that. If there is a disabled person who observes it despite his difficulties, and then there are normal people who have no difficulties but still ignore it, there is something wrong with us. We should look at ourselves and rethink the situation.
Positive conclusion
Not to be all negative here, there is one positive thing that came out of this situation. And that is that the man did not hesitate to ask for help. That’s an indirect testament to our society. Obviously he has had positive experiences with other people in the past, and it is true that whenever I see a disabled person, there is usually someone there to help them. This is a wonderful feature of society and I am glad to have such people in our society.
** This is originally a direct quote from the Czech translation of the book.
