Plowing through The Road and Parable of the Sower, I was reminded of the vulnerability of the human spirit and the fragility of the physical body. However, the narratives revolving around the fragility of the human body particularly caught my interest while reading these novels because it reinforced, both rationally and irrationally, my desire to someday go through with LASIK surgery, the correcting of my terrible vision.
I would like to correct my vision because contacts are disposable and often dry out my eyes, and eyeglasses can easily be broken and often times obstruct my view in a multitude of ways: rational.
In case of an impending apocalypse in which there ceases to be organized industry and chaos spreads, I would like to have corrected vision because my eyeglasses could easily succumb to the probable havoc, and a supply of contacts can only last for so long: irrational.
And yet, I don’t necessarily see my “irrational” reasoning for corrective eye surgery as that irrational. Before this class and certainly before reading these books, I curiously enough possessed this “irrational” reasoning to get LASIK, ultimately to assure myself that in the case of some form of anti-industrial apocalypse I would be able to view the chaos that would ensue. I wouldn’t be able to do that with cracked frames or a two-month supply of toric lenses for my astigmatism and near-sightedness (or far sightedness…I never know). Realizing that I entertained thoughts such as these before this class undoubtedly reveals the widespread effect apocalyptic rhetoric has had on my line of reasoning, if not everyone’s; this class allows for not only the continuing of such thoughts, but the strengthening of said thoughts as well.
Should I blame my desire for LASIK surgery on the permeation of apocalyptic language into our culture or perhaps the subconscious fear that something irreparable may one day happen? I don’t think that they are necessarily mutually exclusive, but they do urge some final preparations, particularly the correction of one my current fragilities: my poor eyesight.
To desire Lasik eye surgery is far from irrational. Above cosmetic surgery, the result os lasik surgery is for function, convenience, and conservation, not vanity. To assume that an apocalypse is on the horizon, is a uniquely concentrated way to perceive "eyesight" and critique your desire to "fix" your eyesight with surgery. To presupppose an apocalypse, your inclination to improve your sight is sincerely priveldged because post-apocalyptic conditions would most probably result in pre-civilized evolution: survival of the fittest. Your poor eye sight and the lack of means to obtain contacts and glasses would thus dramatically lower your chance of survival. Lasik surgery might be better viewed then as preperation.
ReplyDeleteI have the same curiosities about myself. Though my eyesight is acceptable I often tease the idea of the apocalypse and its relation to the survival of every person who relies on machines or modern medicine to survive. Once again survival of the fittest would play a role in determining the course of a new civilization, as humans have overcome this threat to the weak. Society acts as a cushion for the weak, but without society, the weak are left on their own to perish.
When you mentioned the desire to "see" the apocalypse take place, I wonder the multiple levels by which an apocalypse could, or would, be seen. What clues can we see to an upcoming apocalypse, and what will the aftermath leave to be seen? Your post addresses the impact that apocalyptic rhetoric has on our perceptions, as values and priorities are reviewed and adjusted based around this anticipation. What does become important? Is lasik surgery then just a priority?