The Significance of the Individual
Autor: Tobias O. R. Alke
A standpoint, not a lexicon entry. A personal statement by Tobias Alke. Background knowledge: the lexicon entry Collectivism and individualism.
How we become what we are
AI illustration
When we come into the world and behold the first light, we must first learn to use our eyes. It hurts at the start, it demands everything of us, yet after some time we come to terms with it. Even breathing we must first learn in the first minutes, for in the womb our lungs were never yet active.
Later we learn to crawl, then to walk and to speak. Our senses take in ever more varied areas of life. We fight our way up, we learn, and we orient ourselves by our fellow human beings – in the best case by our parents. Later teachers come along, and people who impress us. Layer upon layer our personality forms, building on the foundations of our experiences and on the stories to which we pay heed.
When the group becomes a prison
In times of abundance we receive far more support than our forebears, who first had to work for this abundance. We do not know their privations and feel safe in the multitude of the many. The struggle seems no longer necessary. Stories take the place of experiences, and the stories change with every generation.
Thus arrogance can spread, and the things that matter in life fall into oblivion. The safety of the group then becomes the prison of the individual – who has unlearned how to attend to themselves. Where no one takes responsibility any more, those easily seize the power of interpretation who judge most quickly and remind us most loudly that only the group offers safety.
And yet in some the primal instinct awakens, the power of one’s own birth returns and creates something new. Prosperity can return when people are ready to take responsibility for themselves. We learn from mistakes in order to grow. Or we try to avoid every mistake – and bind ourselves forever to the endless repetition of the greatest mistake: wanting to avoid every mistake.
Prosperity arises from development
Whoever wishes to leave their children a society worth living in must be ready to take responsibility themselves and to learn from mistakes. Development has never taken place in conformity – conformity serves only the conservation of the existing. But since the world keeps turning, standstill in the shelter of the group is a creeping risk for the future.
True prosperity arises from change that individuals set in motion. This does not mean thinking little of community and tradition: traditions offer guiding ideals – they need only be adapted from time to time. Whoever, by contrast, refuses every change harms everyone in the end. It is, then, a matter of balance: to leave the lone fighters room to unfold and at the same time to weigh the wisdom of the many critically. For fear has always been a poor counsellor.
Be an example
Whoever wishes to foster prosperity and development must walk new paths themselves – not call others to trials that they themselves have never understood. Be an example and walk your own path, remember the power of your birth, the heart of a lion, and consider what you wish to leave to your children.
Your Tobias from the Kyborg Institute
Also as a video: YouTube · TikTok · X
Frequently asked questions
What is this standpoint about?
About self-responsibility and the courage to walk one's own paths: Tobias Alke argues that development and prosperity arise from individuals who take responsibility and learn from mistakes. A worldview-based view.
Is the text directed against community?
No. Tradition and community offer important guiding ideals; they need only be adapted from time to time. What is criticised is rigid conformity, not community itself.
How does this connect with the thinking of the Kyborg Institute?
It ties in with the field of tension between collectivism and individualism – with the aim of a mature balance of inner independence and social responsibility.