When it comes to measuring the intellectual capability and the level of human relationships, the young people are the best instruments. This can never be achieved better by looking at any other place rather than the American society. The American youth and what they display is a fundamental measure of how environment affects behaviour. The ever changing behaviour of the society is so alarming which has prompted literature writers and other scholars to condemn the act. Technology not only promises people an easy life but also providing measures through which people can leave a life free of stress despite it being inevitable. From the invention of machines, philosophers have even come up with psychological measures that promise a life of freedom and absolute happiness. The biggest issue with humanity is the invention nature whereby in the process of creating a solution to a problem, they create another problem which they will also work at getting a solution.
Human nature is naturally greedy and seeking pleasures, this perspective keeps changing even with each passing generations. Unlike some decades back where people found a lot of pleasure in relationships and helping one another, the system is clearly changing as people adopt selfish lifestyles. In order to achieve this, human relationships are slowly turning into objects if selfish gratification. In the ancient days where religion and inclination to religious beliefs was a basis of human relations and unification, science came in with experiments that replaced such beliefs with research. The gradual move from religion to science was simply because religion was considered a myth that could not be trusted since its teachings were based on historical events that could not be ascertained. As science promised more realistic solutions to problems, the society started worshiping it at the expense of religious teachings.
It was only a matter of time that philosophy was birthed and people slowly shifted their attention to theoretical thoughts. The argument was that science offered more physical solutions to problems and ignored the psychological. The realisation that a man’s physical actions were birthed from their psychological thinking made people to quick rush to science. The invention of philosophy and using it as a measure of human relations is what has caused even more problems. Even though religion and science remain an integral part of human life, philosophical thoughts have taken over especially in the minds of the young people. One of the main reasons behind this is the fact that young people want to be associated with something new and current. This hence implies that religion and science cannot match with their current desires considering the ancient nature. Even though philosophy is old, its dynamic nature and the fact that the thoughts can be modified to suit current needs makes it a comfort zone for the youth (Kimball 87).
As Allan Bloom explains in his book The Closing of the American Mind, the current philosophical thoughts, together with scientific inventions have turned the American youths into zombies. The reasoning and intellectual capacity has been removed from them as they replace humanity with machines. The need to have things done quick and promptly has made them undermine human relationships which take quite some time to build and to maintain. The sacrifices that were involved in getting and acquiring things have lost its meaning as technology makes it possible for one to obtain what they want without much strain. The result of this has been an immoral and self cantered society. This can be related to the disparity in views between religion and philosophy. Comparing the two, we realise that religion encouraged togetherness and the need of minding each other’s welfare. Philosophy on the other hand teaches people to only mind their business no matter how much it hurts others as this is the only way to obtain absolute happiness.
Looking at this different views and how they affect the moral standing of the youth, we notice that religion is all about the do’s and don’ts. Religion teaches people to be content which is a key ingredient to living a satisfactory life. Philosophy however teaches individuals to strive at being engaged in what will make them happy which is considered to be the goal towards absolute satisfaction. Looking at the two, we realise that religious thoughts recognizes the fact that human beings will never be satisfied no matter what they do to be happy. This is because, the more a person has, the more they want. With religion however, an individual is guaranteed absolute satisfaction as long as they learn to mind the welfare of the others as well as being content with what they have. With contentment, it implies that whether a person has more or little, they will still be satisfied. This also encourages people to do the right things and hence making them morally upright.
With the birth of philosophy, the theories teach on an integral part of human psychology which is happiness. In a world where happiness has become rare due to dwindling human relations, philosophy promises them an alternative way through which to be happy without minding those close to them. This is in fact taught that happiness is a personal decision which should not be pegged on people or situations happening around them. Despite the irony in the statement, desperate human beings are willing to make the sacrifice just to practice the theories taught by the philosophers. It is even more ironical to note that most of the philosophers that advocate for happiness rarely smile. When giving such lessons, there is such a serious look on their faces that one will definitely be in doubt of their teachings. However, the inquisitive nature makes people to try it rather than die cowards (Bloom 163).
Positive thinking is one of the philosophical thoughts that have occupied the minds of the young people. This therefore means that by merely thinking and not necessarily adding hard work to it, one is able to invoke the unseen into the reality. This is however simply a consolation theory where by a person is made to have a hope of obtaining something that they will probably never have. With the frustration of keeping the mind positive without any fruit due to lack of hard work, the youth engage into all manner of immoral and selfish behaviours that are detrimental to their health. In the long run, philosophy and technology has achieved the goal of making relationships meaningless and hence making people to live carefree life. After being promised to obtain all they wanted by simply thinking in that line, the value of hard work was replaced and when they could not see the fruits, they became frustrated.
This is the kind of lifestyle that Boom is talking about which is to blame for low quality of education in institutions of higher learning. It is rather unfortunate that the young people base their loves on the thoughts of others rather than become innovative. This has subsequently transformed people into machine like puppets where they act according to the system rather than following their intuitions. A perfect example of this is the pop industry which has recorded some of the most frustrated youths, who appear happy and even become an inspiration to many. The addiction to pope industry and the need to be blame has imprisoned many young celebrities who no longer live for themselves but for the others. They are afraid of facing their own challenges and instead take cover in the fame and money they have. To survive such a lifestyle, many indulge into drugs, alcohol and promiscuity just to help them forget their internal troubles.
The most serious danger about this is the fact that most of the youth who are oblivious of what such posters go through look to them as role models and hence desiring to be like them. The fact that such young celebrities never open up to the youth about their personal lives which are unbearable makes them fall victims of such addictive lifestyles. Some of the technical courses that were to be desired by the young people are currently being considered complicated. The fact that they do not give them a good return and require substantial amount of sacrifice acquiring the skills as well as enjoying the fruits makes most youths not think of pursuing the direction. The need for quick money and even fame has prompted most youths to adopt certain lifestyles without considering the consequences thereafter. This can only explained by premature deaths that are experienced by the so called celebrities and the drug addiction that is synonymous with them.
It has always been easier to train and adopt a habit rather than reverse the mistakes. The situation is moving from bad to worse even as the young generation indulge into a lifestyle that promises them freedom but in the end denies them the freedom to be themselves. It is clear that the current generation is not willing to follow strict rules and measures that will ensure they live pious lives. They in fact consider regulations such as those of religion outdated and tiring. They would rather follow the philosophical ironies that will promise them happiness rather than follow religious rituals that will ensure they live happily with others. The fact is that human relations is the least of the modern teachings as scholars train the young people to only mind the status of their happiness. In a world where relations are inevitable has hence turned human beings into objects (Wolff 184). This means that instead of relating with each other, they use each other with the sole purpose of reaping personal benefits.
While advocating for humans to work towards achieving happiness, philosophical teachings advocate for not pursuing or valuing anything that will make them unhappy. This does not matter the relationships that the individual shares with the other individual. For instance, if your own parent is sick and you feel that attending to them will make you sad, you would rather leave them unattended and pursue what makes one happy. On the other hand, if stealing or killing will guarantee person happiness, it does not matter how the same will hurt others, they are to pursue it as long as it gratifies them. It is no wonder that cases of violence, divorce, murder and even rape are prevalent in families. This has become as a result of what people have chose to feed on and ultimately leads to their actions. Such incidences were not common in a society that cherished religious teachings and observed repentance as a solution to strained relationship.
As people pursue personal gratification and happiness, they care less about who their friend, neighbour, sibling, parent, spouse and even child are. Instead of looking at them as vital people that will perfect their lives, they look at them as stumbling blocks that will hinder them from living the kind of lifestyle they desire. With any minor strained relationship, people resort to a totally different solution than it was required for in the past. Separation rather than resolution is what most relationships end up to. The fact that philosophical teachings also advocate for likeminded relationships irrespective of whether there is a historical connection or not, has made most people venture into relationships with strangers. Technology has even worsened this by making it possible for people to have virtual rather than real relationships. It has come normal for a person to feel that the people around are not understanding enough and hence seeking other people that will accredit of their behaviour.
Philosophy mostly consoles an individual that there is nothing wrong with them. When there is something wrong, it is the other party and not them. This is simply because, whatever their conscience feels is the right thing to do, they should do it even when it is not pleasing to the others. With such confidence, a person will not bother to repair a relationship even with the closet relative but rather establish one with a total stranger. As this goes on, a person realises that they are cocooned into a life full of loneliness as they realise that nobody can actually fir perfectly into their shoes. They even realise when it is too late that their relatives and friends were the best and what they told them was the real facts and truths. Unfortunately, since it becomes difficult to admit one’s mistakes and start mending the broken relationships, they indulge into drugs just to counter such loneliness.
Until when the young people learn to admit the fact that human relations are replaceable, they will start to appreciate each other and live for mutual benefit. Looking keenly at modern teachings, we realise that they have an expiry date. Despite the fact that they come with a lot of hope, it only becomes a matter of time before they lose their meaning and the young people start craving for something new. It is no wonder that some philosophical teachings are using religious teachings to justify their thoughts. Current philosophers are realising the fact that no kind of teaching can satisfy the religious aspect of man and the need for them to observe such teachings for good leaving. However, since young people have been taught to believe theories rather than practical living lessons, the society will increasingly raise a bunch of frustrated people.
Works cited
Bloom, Allan. Closing of the American. London: Simon and Schuster, 2008.
Kimball, Roger. Tenured radicals: How politics has corrupted our higher education. New York: Harper & Row, 1990.
Wolff, Robert Paul. "The Closing of the American Mind." Irish Philosophical Journal 6.1 (2010): 181-186.
