This is a thought I had a long time ago, when I was in a more Spiritual frame of mind. I guess it’s really an oxymoron and completely, absolutely wrong, because Solipsism consists of living entirely inside your head and believing that nothing else is real – but Materialism consists of examining the outside world and basing your life on those observations… pretty much the exact opposite of Solipsism. But hear me out.
The reason I thought of “Materialism as Solipsism” has to do with the limiting nature of Materialism. To me, it’s as though we’re placed in a small room and derive all of our Moral and Ethical systems from the features of that room. We analyze the smallest particles of matter and learn nothing about how we should live or behave, only that such particles exist and how they generate the matter we see around us. We look into the stars and plot the course of distant galaxies, but all we are doing is describing what we see. Materialism in and of itself can’t tell us anything. After all, if you try to base your morals on Evolutionary Biology, you end up with a terribly Amoral Dog-Eat-Dog system where the strong survive and the weak starve. Surely that is no way a Sentient Being should behave!
I fail to see how a person who truly takes Materialism to its logical end can hold views which we consider to be “Moral.” I think the values that we hold – loving everyone as oneself, helping society’s weaker members – are in direct revolt against Materialism. With Materialism, reprehensible systems such as Euthanasia and Eugenics make perfect sense. Those who cannot produce should be killed, so society as a whole can be more efficient. It doesn’t make sense that an individual should be considered valuable simply because he or she has self-awareness. The only thing that would matter in a Materialistic system would be how much that person contributes to the whole.
Such belief systems – despite the extensive nature of social programs in this country – are extremely evident in American culture. Exorbitantly wealthy people are worshipped merely for being wealthy. Incredibly attractive people are worshipped because they are incredibly attractive. Extremely talented people are worshipped simply because they are extremely talented. There is a culture of Hero Worship in this country… along with the belief that if you’re not a Hero, you’re nothing. This also manifest in such “Alpha Male” credos as “The Game” and Neuro-Linguistic Programming. This Hero Worship beats mankind down and makes him feel as though his life is utterly meaningless and pathetic. I believe that each person should be considered invaluable regardless of his advantages, and encouraged to contribute as much as he can, limited though his contribution may be.
Another side effect of this Hero Worship is that everyone is encouraged to believe that when they mature, they themselves will be a Hero. Society is fond of spouting this Up-By-Your-Bootstraps, Dream-It-Do-It Propaganda without considering that most people simply aren’t equipped to achieve such heights. And even worse, they use incredibly rare Underdog stories to justify this Propaganda. If Rudy can become a football star, so can you! But the problem with Underdog Stories is that they aren’t the norm, otherwise nobody would pay notice to them! This inevitably results in disillusionment and disappointment when such fantastic dreams don’t play out in real life. I think people should be encouraged to do their best… but take pride in the effort, not necessarily the result. After all, even a Janitor provides an important service!
Back then, I would have told you that the only way individual worth could have been justified would be to derive it from a Spiritual source – every man is invaluable because his Soul is eternal, specially crafted, and loved without measure by God. But I don’t really believe that way now. I think of morality as a system where sentient beings rise up against Materialism with Prejudice, simply because of an innate knowledge that the natural world is unethical, immoral, and unfair. We have the power to make the world better, goddamn it! That’s why I support most social programs such as Universal Healthcare. Maybe this makes me Socialist (which is an epithet in our society), but I don’t really care.
I don’t know how to justify complete Socialism given that it has resulted in so many failures throughout history. Maybe my idea of Social Justice is just a pipe dream, but it’s what I prefer to believe – and I think if Society had been constructed more along those lines, I would be more satisfied with myself and lead a happier life. I would take satisfaction in becoming a middle manager or a database programmer. I would have pride in my own independence and my abilities, even though they weren’t at a superstar level! Maybe this, like Delbert says, would suppress individual excellence and make our society unfit to live in. I just don’t know. It’s just the way I wish things could be.