(Ceramic sculpture of the Greek Fate Clotho by Leslie Fry)
Character is destiny. We associate the idea with the Greek tragedies, where we long for the protagonist to escape a tragic fate, even as something internal and inescapable, it seems, drives them them toward this end. The relationship between character and destiny is portrayed poignantly in the show Succession, which had its series finale in June of this year. In it, Brian Cox portrays media tycoon Logan Roy in such a way that we see the brutish, leviathan will that defines his character as deeply embodied and animating the fibers of his being. Similarly, the character of each of his potential heirs is evident throughout the series in how they speak, how they relate to the world, in how they physically inhabit their bodies and in the decisions they make or fail to make.
Today, as smoke from Canadian wildfires inundates large swaths of the US and an unforgiving & anomalous "heat dome" grips parts of the southern US, we have to wonder if the concept of "character is destiny" may also apply to entire societies and even civilizations. What is it in the character of our Western civilization that is forging this grimmest and most destructive of fates for us and the rest of the planet?
What is fundamental and common to the characters of the Roy children is their inability to fully individuate from their father. Their full individuation and development into independent and dynamic selves operating not in relation to their father was the only thing that could have molded different destinies for them. The prevention of his children's development was largely the sadistic design of Logan Roy. It was his demented plan to stifle the development of his children into true individuals and, as of the show's conclusion, his plan succeeded. Had any of the children been able to exit the shadow of their father, their character and therefore their destiny, would have been other.
And so we must ask ourselves: What is Western civilization's version of character transformation that might alter the course of history and thus prevent the annihilation of the biota of the planet? This seems to me the fundamental question that we need to be asking ourselves. Humans are storytelling animals. Narrative may be our greatest strength and innovation as a species. We must learn to alter the narrative of our own tale or we will find ourselves composing and enacting the final tragedy.
Today, as smoke from Canadian wildfires inundates large swaths of the US and an unforgiving & anomalous "heat dome" grips parts of the southern US, we have to wonder if the concept of "character is destiny" may also apply to entire societies and even civilizations. What is it in the character of our Western civilization that is forging this grimmest and most destructive of fates for us and the rest of the planet?
What is fundamental and common to the characters of the Roy children is their inability to fully individuate from their father. Their full individuation and development into independent and dynamic selves operating not in relation to their father was the only thing that could have molded different destinies for them. The prevention of his children's development was largely the sadistic design of Logan Roy. It was his demented plan to stifle the development of his children into true individuals and, as of the show's conclusion, his plan succeeded. Had any of the children been able to exit the shadow of their father, their character and therefore their destiny, would have been other.
And so we must ask ourselves: What is Western civilization's version of character transformation that might alter the course of history and thus prevent the annihilation of the biota of the planet? This seems to me the fundamental question that we need to be asking ourselves. Humans are storytelling animals. Narrative may be our greatest strength and innovation as a species. We must learn to alter the narrative of our own tale or we will find ourselves composing and enacting the final tragedy.
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