The many selves of Krista – or, things to discuss with ourselves over drinks as we watch a sunset/sunrise on Guemes Island

I thought this an interesting read, worth some discussion, especially since Walker Percy haunts the margins of the piece but never quite makes an appearance:

The Romantic conception of self-knowledge as a quest for “authenticity,” to some extent a revolt against the rigidity of the Enlightenment model, is still very much with us, particularly in the argot of the New Age and self-help movements. More importantly, one must point to the rich tradition of Christian thought and praxis, which assumes that each person is the unique creation and image of a loving God, a duality of body and soul destined for immortality. There are many variants of the Christian discourse on the self, but none of them has ever posited a purely autonomous paradigm of selfhood. Indeed, one might suggest that the postmodern, decentered self is simply the all but inevitable outcome of a process of secularization that began in the 17th century. Robbed of its metaphysical foundation, the Enlightenment or, later, the Romantic self has grown increasingly attenuated and subject to disintegration.

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Comments

Big Jon Bully says

June 5, 2014 at 8:27 am

We are dead and our lives are hidden with Christ.

More here:

Paul S. says

June 5, 2014 at 8:58 am

“her ambition is {insert ambition here} but her greatest passion is gaming”
guilty as charged… sort of. It’s one of my favorite pastimes but being a “gamer” hasn’t defined me absolutely, yet, I think.
I remember the days before we got a computer and first games Lego Island & Lego Racer on the old Win 95 & 98.
Thanks for posting this piece. I’d never thought about the “self” in terms of gaming before, or at least as it’s examined here.