In discussing the individual, we explored the life and death of both Socrates and Henry Johan Ibsen’s main character in “An Enemy of the People”. Socrates was accused and convicted of corrupting the youth through the application of logic and truth. Although he was bettering the youth, the hivemind proved stronger and he was executed. His conversations with a student – Meletus – in “Plato’s Apology” show the horrors of the crowd’s tendency for untruth. Centuries later, inspired by Kierkegaard, Henry Johan Ibsen wrote “An Enemy of the People”. The play details a scientist – Dr. Stockmann – who discovers the healing spas are actually contaminated and killing residents of the town. The political machine of the town does not want this information spread as it will damage their reputation, but Dr. Stockmann is empowered by his values for truth and knowledge. However, in the end, he receives intense backlash and ostracization as the “enemy of the people”. In both the case of Socrates and Dr. Stockmann, idealism is defeated by the very people it is trying to help.
In “The Obsolete Man” (an oxymoron), we meet Romney Wordsworth as he is being tried by the State for obsolescence. Wordsworth is a librarian, which is criminal in the eyes of the State and punishable by “liquidation”. He decides the manner of his execution and invites the Chancellor to visit with him beforehand. The Chancellor obliges and is unknowingly locked in the apartment with Wordsworth to be exploded by a bomb. The two discuss religion, faith, fear, and passion. At the last moment, as the Chancellor is begging God for assistance, Wordsworth lets him out of the apartment. The Chancellor is then tried by his subaltern and found guilty of cowardice and obsolescence.
Socrates, Dr. Stockmann, and Mr. Wordsworth all were punished for spreading knowledge and truth. They were all tried by practicality and fear. In my own life, I have been constantly tried by practicality. My dream job from a young age was to be a film director. Whether out of concern for my financial future or simply out of automated practicality, my family combatted my dreams with fears of impossibility, poverty, and disappointment. This constant battering got to me by the time I was in high school and I redirected myself towards practical careers. I didn’t entirely lose my creative, impractical spark though, leading me to choose psychology as my major given its countless applications and tendency towards the intangible. As I gained freedom of space and thought, I began to reconsider my film career dreams. It led me to applying for graduate programs in film and media studies. This decision of education felt like my first defiant step towards impracticality and passion in years. I plan to specialize in film archives – a decision that was influenced by our viewing of “The Twilight Zone” and accelerated by the “next week” specials at the end of each episode.
Just as Romney Wordsworth was a librarian of books, I aspire to be a librarian of film and television. Maybe it doesn’t save lives or promise an outrageous paycheck, but it is my passion in this life and has, in many ways, saved my life. And, if not for the preservation of culture and society through media, we would not have courses like ours that open discussion on philosophy and psychology. That’s pretty important from my perspective.
“The Obsolete Man” is a venture into the importance of heart, knowledge, and freedom in our pursuits of happiness. “Plato’s Apology” and “Enemy of the People” reinforce this message and remind us that this battle is not a product of the new world, but rather one that started in the old world.
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