The Work Ethic

Despite its appearance at the Auschwitz concentration camp, the phrase 'Work Will Set You Free' continues to flourish, especially in contemporary America. The idea has theological roots: given the premise that mankind is guilty of 'original sin', Work is taken to be the path to Salvation. But even in the more secular dimensions of American life, it is one of the prevalent Ethical principles. Wealth and poverty are frequently taken to be expressions of divine judgment; taxation of the former evokes moral outrage in many, while even the most disenfranchised of the needy often have employment strings attached to the receipt of assistance. The general public adherence to the Work Ethic is perhaps best observed when athletes who are extremely well-paid to play a game, go out of their way to describe how hard they work, or when one of the most influential singers of the past few decades is famously 'The Hardest Working Man in Show Business'. Now, the social and psychological damage done by this precept has been well-analyzed by Herbert Marcuse, among others, so suffice it here to add that the correct counter to that principle is 'Creativity Will Set You Free'. For, more precisely, Creativity IS Freedom, and insofar as Creativity is the synthesis of Work and Play, the inscription at Auschwitz is a fitting monument to the limitations of mere Work.