¶ … Cannibals

REPLY: Yes, I do think that values become more rigid when we are less sure of ourselves. We tend to value the opinions and ideas of others more than we value our own, as well. Surety gives confidence in the ideas we hold true and how we feel about ourselves. I also think that power can make us more rigid as well. The powerful and aggressive may have feelings of insecurity and feel more unsure, but they also must hold on to their power to maintain their superiority and control. That can lead to rigid values as well, because the powerful have fewer choices if they are to remain powerful and in control. Thus, it seems as if the weakest and the most powerful may be the most rigid entities in a culture, while those who remain more neutral in the middle have less need for a rigid dependence on society's values and ideals.

REPLY: I would definitely want to live in Michelangelo's culture, because his was a culture of hope rather than despair and debauchery. it's not that I don't think Bosch's culture would be enjoyable for a while, I simply believe that a long-term lifestyle like that would get very tiresome very quickly. It does not encourage intellectual thought or innovation, and it does not stimulate cultural growth and superiority. This type of culture would degenerate into hedonism or worse, while Michelangelo's culture of hope and beauty would stimulate growth, intellectual thought, and a forward-thinking society, just as the Renaissance did. A blend of a bit of Bosch's culture with a majority of Michelangelo's could be both stimulating and enriching, and that would create the best of both worlds. Perhaps the biggest deciding factor is that Bosch seems to see no hope of redemption in his culture, while Michelangelo does, and that would be the type of society I would choose if I could.

References

Montaigne, Michel D. "Of Cannibals." Victorian Web. 2003. 26 Jan. 2007. http://www.victorianweb.org/courses/nonfiction/montaigne/cannibals.html