Illusions and Being Radically Free
Choice blog/non-assigned reading blog
Elizabeth Roy
4/23
One of my favorite books is Illusions, by Richard Bach, in which a man discovers he is a kind of messiah. The book is strikingly similar to a parable about Kierkegaard's assertion that we are all radically free. According to this book, we are so free that we have chosen everything about our lives:
"The world is your exercise book, the pages on which you do your sums. It is not reality, although you can express reality there if you wish. You are also free to write nonsense, or lies, or tear the pages."
"You are lead through your lifetime by the inner learning creature, the playful spiritual being that is your real self. Don’t turn away from possible futures before you’re certain you don’t have anything to learn from them. You’re always free to change your mind and choose a different future, or a different past."
In other words, the only thing holding us back is our lack of ability to see how free we are - just like what Kierkegaard said. Interestingly for this class, one of the main characters uses film as an example of a radically free life. We go to the movies to entertain ourselves or to learn, which are the same reasons we have chosen the lives we lead. I have always found this point a little difficult, because it means that I have chosen any of the bad things that have happened to me. Is that a substantial disagreement - or is it just a desire to see myself as not radically free and thus have less responsibility?
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