jerryk on Nostr: The writer Isaac Bashevis Singer liked to play games with surrealism, using this ...

The writer Isaac Bashevis Singer liked to play games with surrealism, using this technique to dramatize antisocial or asocial behaviors in supernatural terms. So, anyone violating conventional social norms, and somehow getting away with it, is perceived as a kind of ghost, demon or warlock. And, I suppose, in a sense this is true, and has always really been true, in a way. After all, where do you think all those medieval and ancient ghosts, demons and warlocks came from anyway? And why not conceptualize people acting outside of social norms on a regular basis as ghosts, demons and warlocks, occupying some transcendental plane of existence? Isn't that effectively what they are actually doing, really?

While most normal adults are locked into traditional roles of husband, wife, employee, businessman, laborer, civil servant, religious leader, doctor, lawyer etc., there are a significant minority who don't seem to fit well into any conventional social behavior patterns, without exactly being dangerous criminals. So, what are they, exactly?

Isaac Bashevis Singer's answer is that they are supernatural beings. I actually don't find Isaac Singer's stories at all "macabre", it's perfectly obvious what he's doing. He's examining the confusing grey areas of human social behavior in ways that emphasize the powers and limitations of those outside of normal social controls. These are the eccentrics, the loners, the preternaturally independent, the marginalized, the homeless, the creative and independent poor. They generally are not wealthy, but they are by no means necessarily destitute, they can be materially reasonably comfortable. However, they do not follow the rules, and to some extent, the creators of the rules must bend their normal rules to accommodate them, and dance to the tune of these "supernatural beings". This is a rather interesting way of conceptualizing the strong-willed and effective eccentrics of this world.

They follow their own rules, and have their own communities, at times, totally outside of conventional social structures. Why can't they be controlled, exactly? Well, probably because conventional social controls don't really work that well, and have no very clear purpose, much of the time. They don't represent any kind of real ideal for progress and social utility, they just happen to be the way things are usually done. And, they can be done many other ways, that work just as well, much of the time, anyway.

And, these other ways of doing things may, actually, sometimes work much better than conventional approaches, these "supernatural" approaches may ultimately lead to a better society, and themselves become the norms themselves, in time. Or, perhaps not.

For the most part, these supernatural eccentrics do not represent a generally higher plane of existence, just an alternative one, often a somewhat worse way of doing things. A somewhat degenerate approach, that offers no material advantage, but, on the other hand, is much more independent, and offers rather more freedom. Or, it may simply be a marginalized existence that individuals were forced into through bad luck or lack of better opportunities. But, they are still a disruptive influence, almost despite themselves. Because, they still have free will, but, now, a free will operating outside of the normal realms of social behavior.

Ultimately, these supernatural beings, highlight the failures of society and its weakness and vulnerabilities. Otherwise, why would they exist, how could they exist? So, effectively, the ghosts, demons and warlocks force the whole of society to self-scrutinize, and perhaps to improve. Which, ultimately confirms their use.

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