'But what could I do?' he said. 'A man has a right to happiness. I had to take my one chance when it came.' - Mr. A
The desire for happiness is one of the strongest and most destructive passions that posseses man. This is especially true when society affirms one's right to pursue happiness above all else. In modern western life, which is the only kind I have experience with, happiness is viewed as an almost unassailable good. The question, “will this make me happy?”, is used to determine whether one ought to do one thing or another. There are still things that may make one happy but are not condoned by society at large, the German cannibal who was discovered with human meat in his freezer comes to mind. There is one are though, where almost anything is permitted, and that is love, or sex, which is often what is meant by that word.
As Lewis says, “every unkindness and breach of faith seems to be condoned provided that the object aimed at is 'four bare legs in a bed'.” The desire for sleep is at times to be resisted, as is hunger, but god forbid that anyone keep two lovers apart. Lewis replies; “Our sexual impulses are thus being put in a position of preposterous privilege. The sexual motive is taken to condone all sorts of behavior which, if it had any other end in view, would be condemned as merciless, treacherous and unjust.”
Why is this one passion elevated above the rest? It is because it seems to offer the greatest reward for those who satiate it; lasting wholeness and completion. Inevitably though, it's effects wear away and one must find a new object of desire. The deference given to sexual desire is irresponsible and ought not to happen.
Resistance to the passions and the subjugation of them to the will and reason is one of the oldest principles of morality. That modern man has thrown that out shows our foolishness. Lewis finishes with the observation that, “The fatal principle, once allowed in that department, must sooner or later seep through our whole lives.” If we do not reject sexual liberation, we will have no right to reject the free reign of any impulse.
It is truly remarkable, when you stop to think about it, how powerful our sexual desires can be. We would rarely justify stealing, revenge, or murder. But heaven forbid that we would stop ourselves from fulfilling our sexual "needs". I pray that our culture will find a way to stop itself from this slippery slow. As Lewis said in The Screwtape Letters, "The easiest way to hell is the gradual one." It starts with one slip up, then another, until we are people unrecognizable from the original. Great points here.
ReplyDeleteOur society definitely believes that once we fulfill our sexual desires, we will truly have a complete and lasting happiness. Once we get into that pattern though, I believe we will always start looking for more, and wanting something better than what we have. This coincides with your last paragraph: once we start never being satisfied with our sexual desires, I think we'll start to be unsatisfied in the rest of our lives, whether that be with our job, education, or family.
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