Some observations on violent feelings as a motive force
in society
In his book on ‘Modern painters’ (1856), the artist and social critic John Ruskin commented: “All violent feelings produce in us a falseness in all our impressions of external things”. Today, 150 years later, his observation regrettably remains relevant. Violence seems to pervade our society
at many levels despite all we do to contain it.
Violence in politics has been defined as the resort to force for political ends,
beyond its use in warfare and its other applications within the judicial system
to keep some semblance of order in human interrelations.
Political violence ranges from mere stone throwing at persons and property to
life-threatening activities. It ranks as an unlawful and antisocial power in
the land, resorted to by individuals or groups who can apparently find no other
outlet for their unrest.
A more worrying phenomenon is terrorism — an aspect of political violence
of which we are made increasingly aware. It has no precise definition, being
as vague as the terrorists themselves and has been looked upon as low-level warfare
involving innocent bystanders. The question is, when, if ever, can it be morally
justified? Moralists have argued that terrorism may sometimes be justified if
it serves as a short cut to avert an even greater social evil, and in such circumstances
they like to refer to terrorists as “freedom-fighters”.
At a different level, violent feelings can lead to domestic brutality, a complex
phenomenon. Many who carry out domestic violence regularly have neither a severe
mental health condition nor a history of any criminal tendency and seem to act
on sudden impulse. The commonest targets are women and children, and the picture
is one of gradually escalating violent physical assault. More than 90 per cent
of cases involve women being abused by men, either physically or emotionally.
Among the factors that may promote violent behaviour are drugs and drink. It
is almost impossible to control these effectively in face of the marketing habits
of modern society and the concern of governments to derive funds from the trade
in products that impair our faculties of choice and judgement.
From the angle of psychology, attempts to distort the world in an effort to experience
a better one are doomed to failure. Individuals who seek some consolation in
them delude themselves, but seem to be driven by an unconscious inferiority feeling
that makes them emulate others intellectually more powerful and attempt to dominate
them.
Some means must be found to teach the art of self-examination, of introspection
and of empathy with our fellows, Of all the influences calculated to draw human
society to higher levels and greater happiness, empathy and sympathy rank highest,
in my opinion.
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Pharmaceutical Journal
Little is known about the reasons that drive insects to migrate over vast stretches of the world or about the practical purposes that this habit serves in the biological world. In the 11 August issue of Science, three biologists discuss the implications of such behaviour.