It’s odd how the notion of sustainability has been appropriated for an unsustainable political meaning. Yet a basic and stable idea of sustainability would be a continuation of what works for any culture.
At its most basic level this is the stable and sustainable nurturing of reproduction. Without it there is nothing else worth sustaining and within a few generations there is nothing to sustain. At this level, sustainability is that simple.
Here in the UK and the developed world generally, the ideal of a culture which generally works, a sustainable culture has been undermined in a number of familiar ways. Take this Elizabeth Skilton poster used in an earlier post.
From one perspective it is an idealised image of nineteen fifties family life. From a more basic perspective it is an image of what can make a sustainable culture sustainable. It depicts family life as one of the principal ways to nurture and sustain the most basic cultural necessity – sustainable reproduction.
Attacks on this ideal were always likely to be destructive, especially as there are clearly other factors at work apart from ideological political meddling. In which case perhaps it is better to stop the ideological meddling and treat sustainable family life as more than an ideal. Culturally we may perish anyway, but without an adequate replacement for this crucial ideal we have little chance of avoiding it.
Here in the UK and the developed world generally, the ideal of a culture which generally works, a sustainable culture has been undermined in a number of familiar ways. Take this Elizabeth Skilton poster used in an earlier post.
From one perspective it is an idealised image of nineteen fifties family life. From a more basic perspective it is an image of what can make a sustainable culture sustainable. It depicts family life as one of the principal ways to nurture and sustain the most basic cultural necessity – sustainable reproduction.
Attacks on this ideal were always likely to be destructive, especially as there are clearly other factors at work apart from ideological political meddling. In which case perhaps it is better to stop the ideological meddling and treat sustainable family life as more than an ideal. Culturally we may perish anyway, but without an adequate replacement for this crucial ideal we have little chance of avoiding it.
What else is there beyond the sustainability of reproduction?
What have progressives proposed as a substitute for family life?
Nothing.
4 comments:
I suspect the middle class predilection for "sustainability" as a political virtue or goal owes quite a lot to the sense that we are comfortable now, thank you very much, and we have to take steps so that we and our children remain like that for ever. In itself, that's not such a bad ideal, but becomes a bit dodgy when it requires "levelling out", so that other people have to be stopped from getting what they want because I want to keep it going for ever.
Ironically, one of the least sustainable things is UK politics is the set of policies designed to bring about sustainability. Watching this realisation dawn is going to be fun.
Progressives! They are the people who know least about sustainability.
I do agree with your argument.
But it is a strange picture. Perspective, scale, lighting and proportions.
Chairs don't match and chair and table legs look odd. Wifey has long legs and short torso. The Valor paraffin stove is tiny. Table setting is wierd. Why is there a patch on the table cloth.
The more you look the more weirdness you find.
Maybe that is intentional in an artistic way.
Sam - it's strange that middle class people don't put two and two together and realise that an inadequate birth rate will mean bigger headaches for their grandchildren anyway. As if it's only about feelings, far more so than sceptics imagine.
Tammly - yes, the only real option was known decades ago - nuclear.
Doonhamer - and the boy has a strange, pointy head. It's a big print which looked odd on the antiques centre wall. We were there recently, nobody had bought it and I'm not surprised.
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