Self-Righteous

 

On Pages 90 and 91of his book, The Passionate State of Mind, Eric Hoffer has written six entries which I quote and then comment on.

 

Hoffer: “          156

 

The chief taint of self-righteousness is not its injustice but its insensitivity. The indulgence of self-forgiving is far less vicious than the blindness of self-righteousness which is naught aware of aught in the self which needs forgiving.”

 

My response: The most menacing personality disorder belongs to Progressive and true believers of any ilk in that they are so self-righteous. Not only are true believer the most cruel of thugs when the kill or maim for their holy cause, but they are sententious, actually regarding themselves as noble, superior, kind and idealistic.

 

They conclude, because they are so perfect, they could not possibly ever act in a way that renders at fault and in need of resolution. So it is that passionate fanatics, the most evil human type, are also the most self-righteous, as their most damaging lie is that they are a moral elite helping humanity. It is impossible to reach such people as to the error of their ways; they must just be defeated.  

 

 

Hoffer: "      157

 

Lack of self-awareness renders us transparent. A soul that knows itself is opaque; like Adam after he ate from the tree of knowledge it uses words as figs leaves to cover its nakedness and shame."

 

My response: Ultra-groupists are pure liars, so they possess know self-awareness, so they are thin and transparent. The soul that knows itself is indvidualistic, realistic and self-awareness, but she must fight the natural tendency to equivocate and dodge explaining who she is, warts and all, if she would will to remain virtuous, honest and ethical.        

 

Hoffer: "      158

 

We can see through others only when we can see through ourselves."

 

My response: If one is a sincere, honest, truth-embracing individualist, then one sees through oneself, and by extension, can see through others.

 If one, instead, is mendacious, dishonest, and lying to the self, then one cannot see through oneself, and then will not be able to see through others, thus lying joiners are credulous beyond belief accepting as gospel whatever narrative their groups espouses. 

Hoffer: "      159

No one is truly literate who cannot read his own heart."

My response: One is not an authentic or functioning individualist or individuator unless one embraces and seeks know what is true about the self."

 

 

Hoffer: “          160

 

The most sensitive among us cannot be as observant of themselves as the least sensitive are observant of others.”

 

My response: Hoffer, the implicit promoter of egoist morality, here is very accurate the most sensitive among us (self-actualizers and developing individualists and loners) are not as observant of themselves as are the least sensitive are among us (the least sensitive are wholly group creatures, so the self for each of them does not exist, so they know nothing about themselves), who are very observant of other group members. I would describe these true-believing ultra-groupists as socially sensitive but not individually sensitive in the way that Hoffer is talking about.

 

 

Hoffer: “          161

 

It will perhaps never possible to speak our inner life in precise scientific terms. Can one laugh at oneself or pity oneself in scientific terminology. The choice is between poetry and aphorism. The latter is probably the less vague.”

 

My response: Our consciousness or inner life cannot be captured or neat, linguistically encapsulated with scientific terms and propositions. There are metaphysical and ethical inputs here that cannot just be descriptively defined.