Hi Gail,
I was going to respond to your earlier posting by writing that I think that
the scientific method and the multitude of research specialisations that
have developed around and about the human condition in recent decades give
far more sane and sensitive guidance to us than all the rest of the
humanistic and artistic creations since the dawn of man. I would not want
to demean religious belief, great literature, music and art and so forth. I
enjoy and appreciate the best aspects of these as much as anyone, but these
productions also contain much that is suspect, nasty and ideologically
dangerous.
But I will now swiftly duck out of the way of a reply by my good friend Ray
Harrell who thinks that I am most awfully materialistic and turn to the
other question that you've now asked!
>Now there's a challenge! 50 points for simply participating,
>and 50 points for a great three paragraph contribution on
>looking at work as a pleasure (a utility) rather than a
>disutility (a pain) and what would be needed to reorganize
>work so that it becomes the pleasure for everyone that it
>already is for some? A 21st century concept of work. But
>this time how about everyone participating in the marking,
>giving credit for welcome and helpful postings?
I really don't think there's anything that can be done to reorganise most
work so that it becomes a pleasure. Some work has intrinsic opportunities
for skill-learning and creativity -- and thus, pleasure; other types of
work (most of it, still, I suppose) give little opportunity for the
personality to keep on learning and to blossom. But I don't think the
modern world of work is any worse than at most other times throughout the
history of man. In fact, it's probably a great deal better. Until about 100
years ago, 90% of the world population worked as either peasant labourers
or slaves, and there was certainly little opportunity for pleasure in those
occupations! Today, the proportion is only about 66%, so we must be
progressing, I suppose.
In my 45 years of working, I've been employed by others for about 30 years,
and for myself for about 15, establishing three businesses along the way
(and experiencing about as many failures). I have twice lost every penny I
possessed, except for a few books. But having experienced the freedom and
fascination of working for myself, I would now rather starve and sleep in a
cardboard box on the streets than work for others. And, even at 65, I could
still pick myself up by my bootstraps, given reasonable health. But I know
what it was like for most of my first 30 years of being employed. I was
immensely bored but also immensely afraid of the world outside. I think,
like most others of my generation, I was conditioned to this from
childhood. My father, a skilled tool-room worker as a young man, found
himself out of work for nine years during the 20s Depression and every day
of my childhood he dinned into me that I must find a "secure" job.
Happiness was not important; security was all. My junior school motto was
"Service not self". How appropriate in a hierarchical society!
Those in power -- religious, political, economic, academic -- always try to
create dependency and conformity in as many others as possible. But this
conditioning is not succeeding as well these days as it used to. The very
fact that you are asking the question, Gail, means that freedom and
satisfaction in work is now, and probably for the first time in history,
becoming significant. I believe that we're getting there. There has never
been such a high proportion of self-employed and small businesses as in a
modern developed country. I'm optimistic.
-----
There we are. I'll take 50 points for participating. but I don't suppose
I'll be granted 50 points by most of the usual FW contributors. More like 5
points, perhaps a grudging 10. But they're all cleverer than me, so I
mustn't grumble.
Keith Hudson
___________________________________________________________________
Keith Hudson, General Editor, Calus <http://www.calus.org>
6 Upper Camden Place, Bath BA1 5HX, England
Tel: +44 1225 312622; Fax: +44 1225 447727;
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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