gnoselph

desire

“Dex turned the mug over and over in their hands. “It doesn’t bother you?” Dex said. “The thought that your life might mean nothing in the end?” “That’s true for all life I’ve observed. Why would it bother me?” Mosscap’s eyes glowed brightly. “Do you not find consciousness alone to be the most exhilarating thing? Here we are, in this incomprehensibly large universe, on this one tiny moon around this one incidental planet, and in all the time this entire scenario has existed, every component has been recycled over and over and over again into infinitely incredible configurations, and sometimes, those configurations are special enough to be able to see the world around them. You and I—we’re just atoms that arranged themselves the right way, and we can understand that about ourselves. Is that not amazing?”

Chambers, Becky. A Psalm for the Wild-Built: 1 (Monk & Robot) (p. 140). Tor Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Disclaimer, we are neoZizekians and desire to be corrected where we are mistaken.

We've been dipping back into #Zizek, which is a divergence at the moment, and critiquing his philosophical theories through the lens of #EvolutionaryPsychology. All our analysis is via EvoPsych and mindfulness.

The trigger question here is what drives us to desire a life of meaning? Or maybe why do we fear living a life that has no meaning? Let's see if I get there.

#TheAct – The pressure of profound personal dilemmas seem to be a catalyst for one to “act,” Zizekianly speaking. The act being an authentic and liberated achievement free of any unconscious, subconscious and conscious drives and limitations. It argues that to be able to “act” is desirable.

Now, ignoring the infinite existential loop/reflection for the moment, in Zizekian terms, it could be argued it isn't the desire to be able to act autonomously that we want, rather what truly drives us is the desire to desire (ala #Lacan). What isn't discussed thus far in what we've read is how we came to be beings who are driven to desire beyond having (“Having is not so pleasing a thing, after all, as wanting. It is not logical but often true.” – #Spock, Amok Time, #StarTrek the original series).

From an Evolutionary Psychology POV, desire is secondary to survival and reproducing. But somehow it has also become an end in itself. Somehow we evolved to desire incessantly.

I think it could be argued desire stems more from reproduction (desiring the healthiest and most fertile mates – one imagines at first mating with whatever, but mating with the healthiest and most fertile became naturally selected and with that the ability to discern and desire therein). But for survival, one also must learn to discern foods that enhance survival and flourishing, thus desiring those foods. Power, another secondary drive also uses desire, the desire for it (#Nietzsche), and the desire for the power payoffs that increases ones status which enhances #survival and mating. In fact we believe an argument could easily be made that desire is a secondary retroactive characteristic of almost any drive (will to desire?) But #sex and #love overwhelms us with a #desire that makes us forget everything else, love as an act of violence (Zizek, Badiou?, Spok), such that we become irrational with desire.

Have you ever experienced a desire that overwhelms every aspect of who you are (it doesn't even have to be sexual or because of love)? This is what the gods of #capitalism, and retroactively (Zizek, Lacan?) #evolution and #being have capitalized on. We'd even argue capitalism is, probably innocently, but maybe not, based on this fatal flaw of evolution. Capitalistic #consumerism feeds the desire to desire without any life giving purpose. We become like addicts, and our #addiction, consumerism, will kill us, and maybe the planet (my usual soapbox stuff).

Now what does all this have to do with the lengthy quote from #BeckyChambers's must read for those seeking plots based on #mindfulness and #reflection? As we've preached elsewhere, we can't master these evolutionary drives that have run amok from the top down. Most of us do not have the #willpower. Those that do have the willpower and are still slaves to the hierarchical drive for #power, are often our masters, even in this seemingly world of #democracy and #liberty. Us mortals, we do not have that kind of willpower. But we can master our drives from the bottom-up!

Mindfulness practice allows us to find that space between the drive to impulsively act, react, act out, and actually acting. Mindfulness allows us to truly “act” even without having to wait till life's pressures make it possible (One wonders if the “act” as a result of life pressures then is a true “act” compared to the mindful “act”). Mindfulness is the true power of the final revolution. Not only against those with superhuman will power, but against the gods of evolution as well. Mindfulness is the third pill (Zizek).

MossCap is a sentient robot. MossCap is a being free of everything that #psychology and modern and continental #philosophy strive to cure and resolve. He is not burdened with the evolutionary and social burdens we are. He is desireless and thus, we'd argue, he is a true rebel (Camus) and he is free to “act.” He is example par excellence standing right in front of Dex, the somewhat enlightened and evolved human. Yet Dex cannot stop desiring something. He has an idyllic life as a Tea monk, going from community to community bringing serenity and peace, with the perfect teacher/guru/friend. Yet they (Dex, identifies as nonbinary) are never satisfied. They've gone from one occupation to another, one place to another, always seeking to find what will satisfy their existential desire. Even when Mosscap spells it out (above quote), Dex, because of their human predicament cannot hear or see the answer in front of them.

Now this analysis is not a conclusive theory but it is clear where we must begin, becoming mindful of our evolutionary predicament. We are not to blame. We should not blame ourselves or others. Blaming is not helpful. We cannot just willfully change. It takes a cooperative, compassionate and patient practice. In the book quoted, “A Psalm for the Wild-Bilt,” by Becky Chambers, that is the role of MossCap, the cooperative, compassionate, patient, and sentient robot companion. But if we could just get to where we are not driven by all our human shortcomings and learn how to be happy, or at least OK, in this existential moment, ala MossCap, then we can truly “act” free of our evolutionary, psychological, and sociological chains. We can truly revolutionize what it means to be human (Nietzsche without the human martyrdom).

The desire to desire may never be eradicated, but we believe it can be mastered and redirected towards desiring that which benefits all. In theory.

Ephemeral Gnoselph Prat Discuss...