Living alone in reaction to a society you don't like?

I'm sitting on the terrace of a café in Lausanne at the moment: two old ladies are chatting about «a good time» on my right; two young girls are complaining about their love situation on my left; yet another, barely seated, starts calling someone «to chat», while waiting for her real appointment.

Can man live alone?

Aristotle said: «Man is by nature a political (i.e. social) animal», and perhaps he wasn't so wrong. As soon as it's born, the infant is totally dependent on those around it; it needs them to eat, to keep warm, in a word, to live. Then the infant becomes a child: this time, it needs others to learn, have fun, develop and achieve all the vigor that adulthood requires. And yet, once he has reached maturity, despite all the autonomy, freedom and knowledge he has acquired, it is impossible for him to leave his surroundings without feeling a certain lack, whether physical or psychological.

It's unpleasant for a man to imagine himself alone, even if he belongs to a society he denigrates. Or rather, it's hard for him to imagine himself alone and happy. There are many sages, hermits and ascetics who try this solitary way of life, often linked to a life of reflection. But they all lead to the same result: desiccation. Man without relationships becomes impoverished, shutting himself away in his own world and ideas, confined to his own reality. Does this make him happy?

No, because who, in his reflections, will discuss with him to find solutions? Who, in his periods of doubt, will be there to support him? Who, when he's sad, will be there to listen? Who, when old age weighs down his limbs, will help him carry heavy loads or a simple shopping bag? Who, finally, in his final agony, will hold his hand and soothe him in the face of the Unknown?

That's why, despite all the hatred a man may have for his era, for the world he lives in, it's wrong and reductive to deny it or believe oneself capable of overcoming it alone. Society is a mass, a «majority way of thinking». Man, on the other hand, is a unique, original individual. If you don't like the battalion, look at the soldier. If you don't like the group, look at the individual.

Man needs man, not only to live, but also to survive. So, no matter what the «herd» is, there will always be a «sheep» who understands you.

The terrace is now packed. One person, looking in vain for a seat, approaches me and interjects with a smile: «Can I sit next to you?»

Is it a sheep that has strayed from the flock?

Food for thought.

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