|
|
|
|
The third set of behaviors are defined with reference to one's attitude or orientation to the rest of humanity. Alienation implies that one defines oneself in isolation and contradistiction to other humans. However, this does not imply isolation. An alienated person is not a hermit. In fact, he might be and often is quite gregarious. But he does not "connect" or "relate" with people. If he is altruistic, he is altruistic with reference to an abstraction of humanity, not to humans. Regardless, the alienated person holds you to be a "thing" he must deal with. If he is egoistic, he happily uses you for himself. If he is altruistic, he happily forces you to serve whatever he defines as "best" for "others."
Structuring implies that one sees the self and others in terms of the group. One perceives his relationship to others not in human terms, but in terms of defined relationships. If you are his boss, you will just be "the boss," never Bill or Tom or Fred.
Notice that this does not imply "leveling." The structure is not necessarily horizontal. However, it does imply that individuals adhere to the structured role which is defined for them.
I do not use the term "collectivist" here, just as the word "individuality" is inappropriate for "alienation." Collectivism is a consequence of homogenization, a technique of making people homogenous. |
|
