Paradigm Wars

At the root of what are sometimes referred to as today's 'Culture Wars' is a conflict of Paradigms. On the one hand is what I have been calling the Humpty Dumpty paradigm. According to this, the human race is a product of a catastrophic descent, in the prejorative sense, with multiplicity and corporeality as the telling characteristics of this misfortune. In contrast is the Evolvemental paradigm, according to which the human race is the product of an ascent, with the complexity of corporeality as the main index of its progress. As a consequence, what is at issue in the Culture Wars is not merely two different means to the same end, but the very nature of Culture itself. George Lakoff is on the right track in characterizing the contrast as 'tough love' vs. 'nurturing', but his use of the parent-child metaphor is, as I have argued previously, fundamentally misplaced in a society of self-governing adults. More to the point is the contrasting notions of the very function of Ethics--a corrective vs. an enhancement. Hence, according to the Humpty Dumpty view, Morality is a demand, often a repression of corporeality, while Evolvementally, Ethics is a program of self-cultivation, in which corporeal development plays an essential role.