Thread: Isolation, Wifi Money, And The Prison Of Modern Society
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One of my all-time favorite stories is The Count Of Monte Cristo...
I've read and/or watched different versions of it ever since I was a kid, and its always resonated with me intensely.
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One of my all-time favorite stories is The Count Of Monte Cristo...
I've read and/or watched different versions of it ever since I was a kid, and its always resonated with me intensely.
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The story of the wrongfully-imprisoned young Frenchman Edmond Dantes and his transformation in his cold, dark jail cell- through what we today would call radical self-improvement- always seemed significant to me, and I found myself drawn to it over and over again.
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One could make the argument that part of this is the metaphysical symbolism of the story ("we are all imprisoned by our mortal coils") but I don't think that is it.
And I found similar feelings arise from one of my favorite YouTube channels in recent years...
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And I found similar feelings arise from one of my favorite YouTube channels in recent years...
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...which is Wes Watson (GP - Penitentiary Life), whose story is not entirely dissimilar to Dantes'.
Though guilty, and not wrongfully imprisoned, Watson spent 10 years in the California state prison system, and obsessively focused on self-improvement during that time.
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Though guilty, and not wrongfully imprisoned, Watson spent 10 years in the California state prison system, and obsessively focused on self-improvement during that time.
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I like his early videos the best from right when he got released, where he talks about his daily routine in prison: waking up every morning at 245 am, working out 3x per day, religiously tracking his macros, devouring books and articles, writing, journaling, etc.
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I think in both cases it is this embrace of radical self-discipline and radical self-improvement *amidst and despite* acute isolation that is so affecting, and I think much of this has to do with the acute isolation that afflicts all of us these days.
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If you're reading this its likely you already know what I'm talking about, but if not, think about it like this:
-If you were born 200 years ago (or before), you would have spent almost your entire life on a farm, surrounded by other people, working outside all day long.
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-If you were born 200 years ago (or before), you would have spent almost your entire life on a farm, surrounded by other people, working outside all day long.
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-If you were born 100 years ago, you would have likely served in the military, surrounded by other people, then worked a corporate or government job surrounded by other people, where pretty much your whole daily routine was regimented.
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-If you were born just 50 years ago, you would have spent most of your childhood around siblings/cousins/etc, then worked in a group setting as an adult, whether blue-collar or white-collar.
However, if you are reading this today, your life is likely radically different.
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However, if you are reading this today, your life is likely radically different.
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If you are a young man in many Western countries today, you are statistically likely to be:
a) an only child,
b) single,
c) spend almost all your time indoors...
And increasingly d) work from home.
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a) an only child,
b) single,
c) spend almost all your time indoors...
And increasingly d) work from home.
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Isolation and social atomization are arguably the main defining quality of modern Western society, and our living conditions are utterly unlike those of our ancestors.
(As noted before, Putnam and Junger both have excellent books on this subject)
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(As noted before, Putnam and Junger both have excellent books on this subject)
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It may seem a stretch to compare such living situations to the experience of Dantes or Watson- the social isolation may be similar but there is the utter lack of hardship and violence.
However, on the other side, this lack of hardship is arguably a prison in and of itself.
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However, on the other side, this lack of hardship is arguably a prison in and of itself.
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Michael Easter writes about this in 'The Comfort Crisis'.
That essentially we are so insulated and protected and well-fed and surrounded by luxury that it paradoxically makes us miserable.
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That essentially we are so insulated and protected and well-fed and surrounded by luxury that it paradoxically makes us miserable.
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We humans derive meaning through struggle and sacrifice, and as a result our mundane existence of temperature-controlled houses and cars and grocery stores and doordash deliveries ultimately results in a form of spiritual desolation.
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The symptoms of this are all around us:
-Depression
-Anxiety
-Obesity
-Addiction
-Suicide
-Etc
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-Depression
-Anxiety
-Obesity
-Addiction
-Suicide
-Etc
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And the most dangerous thing for us- ie young men focused on crypto and online business and the like- is that we can become *financially* successful while still falling pray to all of the above.
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For our ancestors... attaining disproportionate wealth usually meant battle/hunting/farming/building/etc.
But for us, it can be acheived entirely online...
This is a blessing in many ways, but it is also a curse, because it does not protect from the above afflictions.
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But for us, it can be acheived entirely online...
This is a blessing in many ways, but it is also a curse, because it does not protect from the above afflictions.
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As a result, the only answer- at least in my opinion- is to purposefully cultivate a life of intense discipline and self-imposed hardship.
There is no tribal elder, or drill sargeant, or older brother to keep you in line. You need to be those things to yourself.
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There is no tribal elder, or drill sargeant, or older brother to keep you in line. You need to be those things to yourself.
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Just as many- perhaps most- who end up in prison give in to despair and hopelessness, so to do most in our modern atomized society, numbing themselves with comfort and vice and growing more and more depressed and ashamed.
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So, it seems to me the fundamental lesson is that no matter how good or how bad you have it, you gotta embrace the Edmond Dantes arc.
Ie get insanely disciplined and obsessive, 'institutionalize' yourself, and continually impose hardship and growth upon yourself every day.
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Ie get insanely disciplined and obsessive, 'institutionalize' yourself, and continually impose hardship and growth upon yourself every day.
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Or, to quote Watson:
"Self-improvement is the ultimate manifestation of self-love. And you can't love someone else until you love yourself. Become the man you aspire to be and then give him to the motherfucking world."
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"Self-improvement is the ultimate manifestation of self-love. And you can't love someone else until you love yourself. Become the man you aspire to be and then give him to the motherfucking world."
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Additional Note:
If you've never read or seen The Count Of Monte Cristo, I highly encourage you to check it out.
Here is a trailer for the 2002 adaptation, from which the clip at the start of this thread is taken:
youtube.com
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If you've never read or seen The Count Of Monte Cristo, I highly encourage you to check it out.
Here is a trailer for the 2002 adaptation, from which the clip at the start of this thread is taken:
youtube.com
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Linking back to first tweet below.
If you found interesting would be honored if you RT/share your thoughts/etc...
If you found interesting would be honored if you RT/share your thoughts/etc...
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