Hey Everyone,
We hope your first day of classes went well. Today's post will be about an article in The Atlantic by Eric Weiner. The article discusses ways to address the uncertainty that is 'pandemic life.'
To summarize, the article begins to explain that humans hate uncertainty. A British study showed that individuals experience more panic and stress when they have a 50% chance of being electrically shocked than when they know 100% that they will be shocked. Humans detest uncertainty so much to the extent that they are more willing to pick a poor outcome over an uncertain one (Weiner, 2020).
The article then explains the ideas of Daniel Gilbert, a psychology professor at Harvard. Gilbert's theory is that when uncertainty is "in the right form and the right amount," it can be a great pleasure for individuals. This theory explains why people like to watch thrillers and horror movies, and why we like having secret admirers.
When discussing Alexander the Great's fall, the stoics remarked that although we cannot control uncertain events, we are in control of what is most important: our attitude, opinions, and approach. An excellent metaphor for this would be an object rolling down a hill (Weiner, 2020). Gravity will ensure that the object will roll down, but it is the object's shape that determines how smoothly it will roll (Weiner, 2020). So rather than resist the uncertainty that is 'pandemic life', it would be far easier to accept it or, at the very least, tolerate it. Suppose we change our attitude towards the situation in which we find ourselves. In that case, we will have a much easier time adapting than resisting.
Tolerance for uncertainty has also been linked to greater creative thinking, similar to a term described by John Keats, "negative capability". Keats believes that poets and artists are most creative when they are "capable of being in uncertainties, mysteries, doubts, without any irritable reaching after fact and reason."
However, Japanese philosophers explain that uncertainty should not be tolerated but celebrated. Cherry blossoms are known for their beauty, yet they are fragile and last for 1-2 weeks. In his book, Donald Richie, A Tractate on Japanese Aesthetics, explains that the beauty of a cherry blossom tree "lies in its own vanishing". The tree is beautiful, not even though it is fleeting, but because of it. The one certainty of life is that it is precarious, and everything we know and love will cease to exist one day. Thus, Eric Weiner and I encourage those of you who are resisting this pandemic's uncertainty to accept and celebrate the fleeting nature of life. I implore you to change your attitude toward the situation. Who knows, it might just result in a positive outcome or unexpected delight.
Until next time,
Writer: Duaa Fatima
Editor: Kate McLennan
Link to article: https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2020/08/how-embrace-uncertainty-pandemic-times/615634/
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