schele

Singing praises to suffering is always wrong, but the golden spirit is right.

Synesthesia#

Dialogue 1#

• "What is synesthesia? Or is the phenomenon you mentioned caused by synesthesia?"
• "Simply put, it is confusion. In some cases, it means mistaking two things with similar characteristics as one and drawing some unrelated or even absurd conclusions."
• "I can only think of a literary figure of speech called synesthesia. Does what you mentioned have anything to do with that figure of speech?"
• "One of the operating principles of this figure of speech is the confusion I mentioned. Take the commonly used term 'involution' as an example. Do you remember the words you used to express it before it existed?"
• "Competition and comparison, in a negative sense, um, vicious competition and comparison. Now people directly use this term in all situations. I dislike this aspect, as in the end, they will become repetitive parrots."
• "Perhaps. In any case, this is an example of synesthesia. They will associate one thing with another if the latter is judged to be good, then they will think the former is good, and vice versa."
• "Is this a habit brought about by language? I remember you mentioned it before."
• "Yes, Western languages have a clear feature of emotional detachment, while in East Asia, you can easily find that they tend to lump two similar things together in similar situations. For example, when they complain about the dish you served them and are dissatisfied, most of the time they only express the surface meaning, but people here are used to interpreting it as an insult."
• "But this habit cannot be said to be bad, right?"
• "Yes, but in linguistics, mathematics, philosophy, and other fields that require precision, this kind of language should be eliminated and improved. They can't even distinguish what is 'truth' and 'concept'."
• "Haha, but I think this thing has long been used by some PR and propaganda specialists. It's everywhere now."

Overview#

• What is synesthesia? It is a fuzzy judgment mechanism that operates based on association and the support of associations. It can be cross-sensory or solely based on thinking and logic. It is used in artistic expression and construction, but it can also be a tool for controlling people. In any case, it causes confusion.
  • In the worst case, synesthesia can work together with "Tatar lock" (a term referring to the phenomenon of being brainwashed) to cause superstition or confuse the tool of "collective" with every individual in the collective.
• Obviously, the synesthesia revealed in the dialogue is not something rare. It permeates all aspects of Chinese life, and it also has a certain proportion in English life.
  • For example, in the use of the subjunctive mood in English grammar, the use of the past perfect tense and the retrogressive aspect is formal because people have confused things on another timeline with past events on the present timeline during its development.

Analysis of Synesthesia Examples: Singing Praises to Suffering and Growing Through Hardship#

Dialogue 2#

• "Lately, the thing that has made me most aware of synesthesia is related to 'enduring hardship and growing'."
• "Tell me more about it."
• "It's about saying things like 'young people should endure more hardships and sufferings in order to grow', and 'singing praises to suffering'. According to what you said, I think they are all problematic, but there are some correct ideas in them, and I don't know what they are. I feel conflicted."
• "Firstly, I think you should analyze the meanings of these concepts, just like when I give you math problems to solve."
• "I have never been able to solve the problems you give me... Anyway, let me think."
• "How about this?"

The Contradiction of "Singing Praises to Suffering"#

• What is suffering? If we break it down, it consists of pain and hardship. We can find a lot of synonyms to match it: pain, disaster, torment, misfortune... But after this search, we can find that apart from the harm to human rights, there is also the observer's compassion and charity towards the person suffering, otherwise it wouldn't be called suffering.
  • When have you seen people show compassion towards a beast who raped a young girl and was executed? Isn't that a cause for celebration and well-deserved punishment?
  • Therefore, we can say that suffering is the phenomenon of harm to human rights plus the observer's sympathy/compassion/charity towards the victim.
• Therefore, singing praises to suffering and the definition of suffering are contradictory. If you believe that you cannot simultaneously feel sympathy for the victim and say "it's good to have more of such things", then let's think about it. I remember correctly that it should be "hardship leads to prosperity". So, actually, the question should be: "Is the idea of 'hardship leads to prosperity' a good one?" In fact, this question is the same as "young people should endure more hardships and sufferings in order to grow". But obviously, they are not the same as singing praises to suffering, they are just similar, or rather, they are products of synesthesia. Those terrible propagators never even thought about it. By doing this, they have lost the opportunity to think about the answer to the problem.

"Growing Through Hardship" Requires Reflection#

• What is this? Obviously, it is the experience of someone who has been through it: "The hardships you experience will make you grow", "Back in my day, I went through this and that, and that's why I have achieved what I have today, so you should also do this and that." Let's refute it according to our usual thinking.
  • Experience is one thing, but whether experience can be effective is another. Even if the training in the military can really temper one's mentality, can you guarantee that you can maintain your health after years of training? In other words, can you guarantee that the benefits you gain outweigh the drawbacks?
  • In China, this statement often represents the deceptive persuasion of someone with malicious intentions.
  • Obviously, enduring hardships does not necessarily make a person grow. Blindly enduring hardships can cause a person to regress or even be destroyed.

Dialogue 3#

• "That was my analysis, but I still feel that there are things worth praising and agreeing with, but I can't find them."
• "You did a great job, don't be discouraged."
• "It's the golden spirit!"
• "When did the painter arrive?"
• "I've been here all along, painting in your cubicle. You didn't get to the point and made me anxious! Let me speak!"

The Golden Spirit and Trials#

"If I don't defeat fate with dignity, then I am not qualified to possess this power. This is a trial that only I am qualified to pass!"
The boss's PUA, threats of pay cuts and overtime, this is the suffering you encounter. No, when you acknowledge that it has happened to you and intend to solve it, it is no longer suffering, but a challenge and trial of your fate. If you fail, you will fall into an abyss. This is the same as the protagonists of JoJo being pushed to the brink by the enemy's Stand. You have all faced trials. The protagonists refuse to be slaves to fate and challenge it. What about you?

• The choices of people facing hardships are indeed artistic, but when we face hardships, what should we do?
  • Yes, when facing hardships, we will not always be observers of suffering. One day, we may encounter suffering ourselves, and it is inappropriate to be driven by self-pity from an observer's perspective at that time. What we should do is to do our best to solve it towards our goals.
• When hardships are unavoidable, we should treat them as trials and challenges. This is the golden spirit that deserves to be praised. It is obvious that "enduring hardships" has been mixed up with this, the golden spirit only manifests when you acknowledge that the suffering imposed on you is a trial, and others' impositions are never trials unless you acknowledge them.

Dialogue 4#

• "Facing adversity but never giving up, that's JoJo, that's what should be praised."
• "You're right. So we shouldn't say that 'young people should endure more hardships and sufferings in order to grow' is wrong. Its rightness or wrongness depends on the content and what is gained from enduring hardships. Continuously challenging and testing oneself is worthy of praise."
• "In the end, there is synesthesia everywhere."
• "In fact, there is one more thing that must be mentioned, and that is the essence of 'hardships lead to prosperity' and facing trials are actually not equal in certain situations. It depends on the intention of the person saying it. It may not be the golden spirit, but another expression of sympathy and comfort. In my opinion, the latter is a deceptive form of comfort because there is no trial in that situation."
• "Yes, I think only those who face trials can say it, others are not qualified."
• "And only when the victim acknowledges it, there is a trial. Otherwise, it is just torment and victimization."

Written by schele, who was forced to treat the painter to a meal, supported by the painter and mathematician.