The reading, How Equality Suggests to the Americans the Idea of the Indefinite Perfectibility of Man was relatively interesting to me. Based off of the title, ‘time’ stuck out to me most. The reason being is because different generations that derive from different periods of time offer altered perspectives in some cases. Specific time periods analyze perfection in different ways; this is based on the social norms that are currently present. In other words, humanity is always changing, to some, it may seem for the better, but to others, it could be for the worse. What may have seemed normal to an individual in the 1950s may be entirely bizarre to an individual living in the present moment. These ideas are tended to be generated off of the evaluation or opinionating of significant figures or leaders in a given era. Cultural influence has a lot to deal with this concept as what is or is not proper or correct. The author brings up an example of a sailor and why his ship is only meant to last for so long. Ships are only meant to be occupied for so long due to the progress that scientists and engineers are able to make. As time goes on, it can be inferred that certain things advance and in this case, it is the development of ships. Democratic nations are said to be responsible for this as progression is accepted and encouraged. Generations of time are said to be building off of one another.
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2 replies on “How Equality Suggests to the Americans the Indefinite Perfectibility of Man Post”
I agree that Tocqueville’s points regarding in impermanence of nations and other aspects of human civilization are very interesting and quite accurate. I think that it is also important, however, to discuss the idea that people often do not presume that they know absolute truths, but rather grow to accept norms and well-founded opinions. This concept ties directly into his comments on scientific advancement and the ship analogy. At any one point in history, people may have thought they were performing a task the best way available to them at the time, but accepted that there might be a better way out there somewhere. Through science and research, ideas and inventions that were previously staples of a society were broken and replaced with newer, better ideas. Ships were not built to last forever, and neither are nations. Generations are meant to constantly improve upon existing elements of society and bring new light to antiquated ways of doing things.
Yes, generations are constantly changing. It is the nature of it. Sometimes they change involuntarily and others on purpose. It all depends if it is a good change or not, but advancements occur in society in hopes to better the community and it doesn’t always work out. The advancement of ships is a direct correlation to generations and their own development. It is really interesting that Tocqueville was able to understand this concept over a century and half ago and that it still occurs today. What do you think is the best change our current generation could use right now? I think change for a generation is a matter of trial and error because you can only have an idea of what will happen, but until it occurs then you will know if it is good or bad. A generation can never be fully settled as life around us is constantly altering and affecting how we live. Do you believe that perfection can be obtained and generations can reach a maximum of excellence?