There are many parts in the book True Wealth, by Juliet Schor, that directly relate to my lived-in ethics project. Most prominently, the fact that the first principle of plenitude is the reclamation of time. Though perhaps not perfect, I loved Schor's ideas on the ways that society and our values can shift in order to become a more sustainable, stable, happy global community. The fault that I found in her proposal is that it may not be realistic. Her proposed change of priorities from ones related to work, consumption, and monetary achievement to ones about relationships, serving one's community, creating more, and becoming more self proficient, are incredibly appealing to me.
For the past few days I have kept Schor's vision in mind but the things that she makes seem easy have been proving quite difficult. For example, simply slowing down in general and spending less time working and more time connecting with people. These are very difficult tasks in the context of Colorado College. The times last week that I chose to converse with friends, practice yoga, or to spend time painting, instead of getting straight to my homework, only resulted in my being significantly more stressed out when it came time to get to work. This, of course, is the opposite of what Schor intends with her proposed lifestyle changes. Another issue is that there is so much that I want to do and so many opportunities that I want to take advantage of and I think hat my life would be less satisfying without all of these activities. Yet, this rarely allows me time to sit back and relax which is a key component of plentitude. I love her ideas I want to slow down and live that way but it involves sacrifices that are not realistic. Regardless of these flaws, many of Schor's ideas have promise and, if anything, provide initiatives to strive towards whether or not it is realistic for an individual to accomplish all that plentitude entails.
For the past few days I have kept Schor's vision in mind but the things that she makes seem easy have been proving quite difficult. For example, simply slowing down in general and spending less time working and more time connecting with people. These are very difficult tasks in the context of Colorado College. The times last week that I chose to converse with friends, practice yoga, or to spend time painting, instead of getting straight to my homework, only resulted in my being significantly more stressed out when it came time to get to work. This, of course, is the opposite of what Schor intends with her proposed lifestyle changes. Another issue is that there is so much that I want to do and so many opportunities that I want to take advantage of and I think hat my life would be less satisfying without all of these activities. Yet, this rarely allows me time to sit back and relax which is a key component of plentitude. I love her ideas I want to slow down and live that way but it involves sacrifices that are not realistic. Regardless of these flaws, many of Schor's ideas have promise and, if anything, provide initiatives to strive towards whether or not it is realistic for an individual to accomplish all that plentitude entails.
I can't help but feel that you are viewing this "reclamation of time" slightly wrong. Schor said that it may NOT be less beneficial for some people with a steady job to take less hours. As a student in college, I feel this is the case. There are so many wonderful opportunities and experiences to be had at CC, all of which will make us bigger better people. Spending less time taking advantage of these opportunities would be a waste. Instead, I think that Schor want you to consider this "reclamation of time" in your lifestyle choices. Everyone knows Meredith Bird would make a mean stock broker, but maybe it would be more beneficial to yourself and those around you if you took a job that had less hours and paid less.
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