Clark Kent

Sigh, just dragged myself back from Marseille and now I'm in class again. Marseille was reasonably pleasant, I suppose. The Provencal countryside was not bad at all. Fairly picturesque, very quiet, loads of rich people in Porsches. Seems like a pretty nice place to retire to. Not so good if you're still vaguely young, since it takes something like an hour to get into town.

It has occurred to me that while those of us who live in cities romanticise the countryside, people who actually live in the countryside probably romanticise the city. After all, we look on the country bumpkin with some disdain as he stumbles through a small city for the first time, jaw slack, eyes to the sky and staring at the mediocre skyscrapers. Yet the man from the city finds himself royalty in the countryside. Perhaps it is only the money, but it seems that it is something more.

Do note that I was referring to the type of countryside where the rural are poor, and the urban richer. Say, like much of China these days. In places like Provence, where the property is expensive, and the cars flashy, there is little difference, since the distinction is purely voluntary. Still, even in such a case, the choice is not made by the dependents. If a couple chooses to move to the Provencal countryside and soak in the atmosphere and be able to claim that they live in Provence, their children don't get a vote. And it is the children that will be formed irrevocably by the experience. In the formative first 15 or 20 years, these children will find themselves isolated from the bustle of city life, and naturally fail to acquire the required savvy and expectations that a child in a metropolis would.

Classic example, Superman. No matter how long Clark Kent has been in Metropolis, he is still a farmboy from Kansas. To a large extent, this is the explanation for his altruism. The concept that he was from the heartland of America, and in the bucolic, idealised vision of rural life, it seems natural for people to help each other. This is why he is shocked by crime, and feels the need to help those require it. Morals are more important than appearances and self-preservation. Of course, Superman gets around this by being invulnerable. Even then, when he meets enemies that do pose real physical danger to him, he is able to square off against them without hesitation, for he has no moral ambiguity. All arising from his upbringing in the countryside.

For most people who aren't of Kryptonian origin, such an upbringing with a similar effect on the personality would result only in the Clark Kent side of things. Remember that Kent is essentially a loser. He only manages to become vaguely successful due to the confidence that comes from being Superman.

In any case, comic book references aside, one of the problems I have with all those social theorists who are so enamoured of their image of the bucolic farm is that there is a serious misconception of how most farmers live. While I do not claim to be personally familiar with farm life, I am fairly certain that aside from the rich sorts in Western Europe and America, who are supported by the wealthy state, rural life isn't all it's cracked up to be. Imagine working 12 hours a day in the fields, not sitting at a desk and staring at spreadsheets, but hard labour. I find it hard to believe that anyone would voluntarily give up being an investment banker or lawyer to work similar hours of physical labour in a muddy field. Not only the hours suck, but probably the pay and the food as well. There really is a reason people leave the farms to live in the city.

Similarly, I don't really understand why some people stick to cities even in dire poverty. I would imagine that if you cannot pay the rent for even a tiny room in a terrible part of town, your kids are starving and you have no electricity because you cannot pay the bills, you would leave and find work on a farm or something. If nothing else, I'm sure one can find work in a rural setting if minimal pay is accepted. No one owes you a living, and if you are unable to prosper, then you should be prepared to lower your opinion of yourself and accept that you will have to abase yourself somewhat. Pride is a fun thing, but sometimes you have to swallow it to eat.

Alright, that was an undirected meander. Luckily it was fairly short. I'm going to listen to class now.