THE PSYCHOLOGY OF HUMAN PERFECTION Joshua Yen, Year 12, Shaftesbury “The consciousness of the infinite is nothing else than
When approaching the issue of communism in
the consciousness of the infinity of the consciousness; or,
this entry, I want to make it clear that my main
in the consciousness of the infinite, the conscious subject
aim is not to critique the communist theory, nor
has for his object the infinity of his own nature.”
to provide any substantive discussion of its
—Ludwig Feuerbach
capitalist counterpart. Rather, the formulations of both the capitalist and the communist dreams are
The achievement of perfection has long been an
very profound and have significant implications
ideal that has permeated the heart and soul of
for our current discussion.
mankind. To some, it is the formulation of the perfect society; to others, it is the pursuit of the
Let us, for the sake of the argument, take a
perfect relationship or ideology. The widespread
reduction or a summary, of the two views. In
nature of this fascination not only makes it a
regards to the capitalistic idea, we strive towards a
problem of the individual fields in which one
free market and free exchange of capital. In
wants to achieve perfection, but also raises
regards to the communist blueprint, man is but a
fundamental
about
byproduct of his class, and history the byproduct
why, and in some cases, whether we actually
of class struggle. To Marx (evidently influenced
desire perfection.
by Hegel), this was a nigh inevitable progression
psychological
discussions
of history towards an ultimate destruction of class To come to our conclusions, I would briefly
and the development of a shared economy of the
discuss the nature of perfection on a societal scale
proletariat.
before
turning
more
to
the
personal
and
individual sphere. By delving deeper into the
What we see here is not mainly an ideological
latter, I believe that we would have a greater
difference,
understanding of perfection and why they play
difference.
such an important role in self-development.
achievement of a methodology—the free market,
but While
rather
a
capitalism’s
methodological goal
is
the
communism starts off with the ideology before In regards to society, I would like to compare the
finding a way to achieve it. It is understanding this
communist dream of the “conquest… of the
second approach, more specifically its sudden
proletariat” (Marx, 13) to the capitalist structure;
growth
and in regards to the second, the role of the ideal
applicable to our discussion.
in our everyday lives and achievements.
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of
popularity,
which
is
especially
