Turning Our Backs
Contemporary humanity is marked by its relentless assertion “I’ve got to be me.” So secure are we that individual self-expression is the highest possible ideal, that we often assume our own propriety as a matter of course. If someone won’t do as we say, if there is a conflict between us and someone else, then the presumption is that they are in the wrong. If our own urges conflict with the communal interest, we assert our individual drive above the needs of the community.