Ma Joad & The Collapse of the Consumer Culture
(With thanks to stillidealistic, who prompted the following "lengthy wandering" by asking a most important question: "What can we little guys do to be a part of the solution to today's economic crisis?")
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What do we do to address the failure in our financial markets and our economy, and its impact on real people in the millions who suffer the consequences?
Finding the answer is important for us all, and it begins with reordering our own priorities. Easily said, to be sure, yet difficult to accomplish. Yet, there is simply no alternative as we confront the collapse - the end of the line - of this economy driven by consumer purchases funded with debt.
And I'm not sure what replaces it. It will take real economists to figure out where to from here. But I know that once the inevitable downsizing of our consumer appetite occurs, we will find other ways to sustain ourselves; to provide the definition of what it is to be successful beyond who has the biggest McMansion and the most toys.
For me, it's my faith in the common folk that holds promise that we will emerge stronger in a much better place for having suffered the necessary challenges we confront.
I'm reminded of the Swedish term lagom. It doesn't translate directly to English. It means "enough," but it means so much more. Who needs a McMansion, when a comfortable cottage is sufficient? That's lagom housing, but with an implied consideration of what opportunities are presented to you when you are satisfied with minimal requirements. A less grand house means fewer work hours to support it. Fewer work hours means more time with family. More time with family means more interaction with neighbors and community. And on and on...
After suffering the collapse of our consumer culture, maybe we discover what lagom means in English. Maybe we rediscover alot of really rewarding social currency that has been overwhelmed by our focus in pursuit of financial wealth above all else.
Steinbeck offers a great deal of insight into what it means to confront many of the issues and concerns we face today. In The Grapes of Wrath, he paints an absolutely bleak picture of a civilization gone to hell. Proud people are all laid low, beaten about the head and shoulders so consistently by their everyday circumstance. As a reader, you rage at the injustice even as you admire the humanity of the Joad family, and the preacher, and all the others who struggle to make it west to where orange groves offer a chance at a new life. (God, I can cry just thinking about Ma Joad as she bears witness to her family coming undone and all the pride being ripped from her husband and her boys.)
And then, for god's sake, you see these people lain prostrate in despair upon discovering that this "new life" is a chimera; only a continuation - no, an acceleration! - of the cruelty and greed and inhumanity that is so oppressively pervasive throughout the novel.
The lesson for us lies not in the depths of the anguish and despair that these okies confronted. After all, there is thankfully no reason to assume we will ever come close to experiencing such depths of hopelessness.
But I take my lesson instead from the last scene in the book where Rose of Sharon, having lost her baby at its birth, suckles a man dying of starvation. It is offered as a story almost biblical in its setting ("Rose of Sharon"; the manger, even) that offers us the essence of humanity; of what it means to truly live in this world with others. In sharing of herself so wilfuly and lovingly and with a quiet resolution, Rose of Sharon is herself granted a reprieve from despair and even death just as surely as is the man she nourishes.
And so where were we? Oh, yeah, what can we little guys do to be part of the solution here?
Much of what needs to be done is internal. I suggest we start by resigning ourselves to the fact that there are troubling times ahead for us all. We must then count our blessings, for we all have more than we probably deserve. (In extreme desperation, even Tom Joad knew the strength of the love and the depth of the character of his mother, and therefore knew he was blessed.)
We must also gain an understanding of the reality of this consumer culture in which we have existed, and truly understand the way in which it is unsustainable and, truth be told, so inherently unrewarding.
Finally, know that we are undergoing some pretty fundamental changes, and have faith that humanity will prevail and be strengthened because of it. In fact, anticipate such an outcome with a good degree of joy and excitement. After all, it is the sacrifices and the reordering of priorities undertaken today that will make possible a more just and loving world for our children and theirs.
But all the work to be done doesn't occur simply in your head. More than ever, it is important to look out for your neighbor if only because it grants you peace in knowing that people rise to the aid of others if needed. After all, no one of us can be sure in these uncertain times that we will NOT end up on the receiving end of such assistance.
And we must be vigilant that justice is preserved. In Steinbeck's tale, he recounts the desperate days at the beginning of the United Farm Workers Union when workers had no power and the wealthy owners were so absolutely brutal in laying them low. Yet, Steinbeck alludes to the strength that comes from within honorable souls pitching common battle against injustice, with a promise that diligent efforts to work for the common good cannot ever be turned back by the forces of greed, corruption, and "authority."
Yes, these times require us all to remain vigilant, and to raise hell every time you see the powerful and their minions trying to consolidate the power that is now slipping from their grasp. We are already seeing signs of this, as in the populist revolt over Daschle's tax and lobbying troubles and the clamoring for fairness and equity from our Wall Sreet CEO's. In so many ways these controversies are minor occurrences and are much more symbolic than substantial. But the common people such as you and me are beginning to find their voice in refreshing ways. We must keep it up.
Be angry, yet hopeful. If you believe in God, say your prayers. If you don't believe in God, then put your faith in humanity. And keep the faith!
Finally, above all else, if you truly want Peace, work for Justice! There is, in the end, a better world that awaits those who will set aside the old ways and embrace the very real revolution that confronts us. And take your comfort in knowing that Ma Joad would be so very proud of of us all.
