The Burden of Being a Paragon or Superman
An ordinary human is the product of a mixed and compromised sort of structure. They are pulled in countless different directions by the many physical and psychological influences they experience. They are remarkable at adapting themselves to become whatever is most convenient to be smack in the midst of everything. That is how they have survived so long under so many conditions.
But in some, there is a seed of defiance against the competing pull of all these forces. Some feel their own emotions so strongly or believe in something so deeply that it does not matter how well they fit into the local environment. Those who follow their own pull as far as it can go become embodiments of it.
It is as though there are extra-dimensional entities living through them by adding foreign influence that would otherwise never emerge in the local culture. They are the recipients of emergent psychological mutations that could not have been anticipated.
A paragon is someone who has become so totally identified with their values that their embodiment of them is uninfluenced by external conditions. Eventually, the overtake the dominant sources of social influence, becoming beacons to guide others who haven’t yet experienced enough of themselves to develop that same strength of character.
When we ask a classic rhetorical question like, “What would Jesus do?” we are really asking, “What would a paragon do?” which is another way of saying, “What would an unconflicted being totally identified with their values do?” We only have to ask such a question because we, ourselves, are conflicted. We identify with values to some extent, but not enough to act with certainty. We are pulled in multiple competing directions, and we cannot follow more than one at once. No man can serve two masters. We must choose a direction to go at the expense of all others.
A paragon is not necessarily virtuous or a “good guy.” One can be a paragon of evil, disorder, or destruction. It just means they have identified fully with that path. There is no conflict. Few “bad guys” ever really reach this state. Most of them are pulled in many directions, just like the conflicted good guys are. Many of them can be distracted from their evil actions or demotivated with the smallest amount of resistance. They are villains of convenience.
A superman is a paragon totally identified with virtuous values. There is nothing more important to them than doing the right thing and upholding the type of order they are capable of seeing and creating above all others. They recognize that there is such a thing as the objectively right thing to do in every situation. They have to, or else they would hesitate and deliberate constantly as normal people do.
A paragon’s only deliberation lies in checking that their actions are in line with that absolute rightness, not that the absolute itself exists. That type of self-reflection is crucial, or else errors can compound, and a man who has convinced himself he is doing good can easily accomplish the opposite without ever realizing it. Most people never get that far. They even know what standard to compare themselves to.
For the paragon, there is no separation between the concept of self and the mission they identify with. There is no difference between the ego they own and what they value. To exist is to act in service of those values as an outcome. The only way to stop serving them is to cease existing, which means either to literally die or be rendered incapable of consciousness, choice, and action.
The paragon changes the behavior of those around them. Ordinary people see a concentration of something in them that they will either fear or admire. It’s a type of purity they don’t have within themselves because they are so conflicted. They see the disconnect from the general flow of things, and it intrigues or frightens them.
The paragon rises above conventional influence and supersedes social entropy. Just by existing, a superman activates latent potential in others and influences those who are still on the fence to be a bit more like them. They are stable concentrations of a particular type of influence not otherwise present around them in great quantities. They are not swayed by what’s going on or what social forces happen to be selecting for at the moment.
The task of the paragon is, indeed, to create new paragons out of the paragon-worthy.
The burden of being such a superman is that everyone else thinks you’re invincible. It’s a similar dynamic to how young children see their parents. My dad can do anything. He can even beat up your dad. My mom knows everything. She makes me feel warm and safe when everything else in the world is so cold and threatening.
It’s the same reason that children can be so abusive toward their parents in moments of emotional erraticism. Children cannot really empathize with someone they perceive as being far above them. An ant cannot consider the concerns of a man, nor a man the concerns of a deity. They see only their impressive power and apparent invulnerability. They cannot begin to take on their otherworldly concerns as part of their own, which is one signature product of mature love and empathy
Who heals the healers?
Who saves the supermen?
Who guides the mentors when they need guiding?
I do not know the answers to these questions yet. Perhaps I am still waiting for another force to enter the world that is as far beyond a superman as the superman is beyond ordinary men. I don’t know where else to turn for answers or guidance. So, for now, I will continue doing the best I can under the circumstances, from the position I am in.
The Monolith and the Ape Men from 2001: A Space Odyssey
Credit: Hal Hefner
https://halhefner.artstation.com/projects/BQAKr