HW #3: Blog post #2

Response to "the Ethics of absolute freedom"
(Part II Continued again...)

Am I free?
I think not.
"How can I be free when most of my external circumstances are determined by forces beyond my control...?" but also How can I be free if I do not allow myself to be that way?
These two questions are more similar than what you think. Banach's suggests that an individuals freedom is determined by that individuals perspective. As he said "the answer to these questions lies in the nature of our radical individuality." We cannot truly control what is happening around us. "the objects that appear, how they appear, and when they appear" cannot be determined. However we are able to control our own perspective of how we see these external circumstances, and act according to what we think is right for us. I believe that this is the only we way we can truly feel we are living as free individuals.

It is possible that who we truly are is "the self within its island of subjectively" who lives "free in virtue of its radical individuality." And if we act according to our own self, living authentically, then we would be able to live and practice freely. However, must of us choose to keep the real self hidden, and act according to society's expectations. Imitating someones style, adopting someones favorite phrase, etc. are different ways of forgetting who we truly are and believe that we are forced to become what society makes of us. Most people do not recognize the possibility of being free due to their comfortable lives as slaved robots. This is often considered as normal.

How can I be free when "I cannot help where I was born, what type of body I have", what type of parents I have, How I was treated as a child, etc, etc, etc?
I think that the first step to understand freedom is to understand that what we experience in our past or present does not determine who we are or how we became. However, most people think differently. We are taught to believe that the experiences that occurred outside of our subjective self have an impact on who we are, and therefore create an explanation of our thoughts, behavior, and purposes.
I believe that it is our future that makes us who we are. Take the following example for instance.
You are a week away from summer vacations and you have two tickets to Hawaii for you and a dear friend. You know that the weather will be perfect the day of your flight, and everything is ready for your trip. During that week you will be extremely happy and excited because you know that you are going to Hawaii. Regardless of all the work, pressure, obligations, etc. You still feel relaxed as if you were already there... After 3 awesome weeks in Hawaii you know are aware that you will have to go back the following day. There, in the perfect sun, the magical view of the ocean before you, surrounded the calm and exotic environment, you feel horrible. This is because you know that soon you will be back to the city. Back to your obligations, your work, etc.
This example represents that a person does not really "be" in a certain way because what he experienced in the past or by the type of present he is being part of. Our ideas of what is good or bad were given to us by our society. For example, going to Hawaii=good. Going to work=bad. Therefore we know how to feel when we become aware of things that we will experience. And interesting enough we define freedom as being one of the "good" things that happen in our lives. Such as going to Hawaii, or going to Six Flags during the weekend, or having time to practice our hobby. However, this freedom is just temporary. And we consider it freedom because of the simple fact that it is something we WANT to do without the feeling of being limited or obligated to something.
So this leads me to think that as people from this society we "become free" at times, which is not the same as being free. So how could we remain as free individuals under this culture?
As previously mentioned, I think that the only way to consider ourselves as free individuals realistically speaking, is by changing our perspective on external circumstances. For example, a school janitor could be the happiest man in the world for having the job he has. This would be if he sees his job as an opportunity to provide a clean space for children who will be preparing for their own future in it. By providing such space he is contributing to the lives of many children. And although those children will not truly appreciate his work they will feel comfortable to learn in that clean area. In other words is it up to you to determine how your decisions, actions and words will make you live as someone who is not trapped within unable to make a difference. It all depends on our own perspective on life and thereby freedom.

In conclusion, we do not truly know what freedom is. Because no one in our community has truly experienced it. I do think that we can believe we ARE free because of our perspective in life, but we cannot really live as absolute free individuals. It is not because we do not want to. We all actually want to be free. Be able to do what we want, when we want it, how we want it, without being afraid of how other will look at us. But it is just not possible for us. And this is because we know what it is to live as part of a society with specific ideals which is under one culture which is in one country which is divided form the rest. We know that there are rules to follow and work to accomplish. If one day we decide to leave everything we are "attached" to and do what we want (or be free), we would either starve or get arrested. And no one really wants any of these two, because these do not feel COMFORTABLE.