Matt Yglesias, who has never had any job that didn't involve being online all the time, has been trying to recenter himself by reading old books. One of the things he learned from nineteenth-century novels is that rich people used to think it was ok to do nothing.
Yglesias is writing about Victorian England, and even in that case there were plenty of rich people who did a lot; for every Mr. Darcy enjoying his garden there was a Henry Layard traveling the world and excavating Nineveh. In other societies the demands on the rich and prominent were much greater.
But one thing aristocrats did not do across much of European history was hold jobs. Some did, mainly in the military or the high reaches of government, but plenty of others cultivated their leisure as best they could.
So it does strike me as interesting that in our era the aristocrats one hears about all have careers. Like, the Princess von Thurn und Taxis who was an editor at Vogue, or the Earl and Countess of Sandwich, who own one of England's most famous private houses and have spent their lives being busy as an executive in international development (the Earl) and a journalist (the Countess).
I have noted several times on this blog that the only prize our society can think up to give people for hard work and good behavior is a "rewarding career." When Covid created severe labor shortages in some industries many firms reacted, not by raising pay, but by touting "opportunities for advancement." The "American Dream," insofar as I understand it, was always about earning money, not inheriting it. Money you don't earn by hard work makes us suspicious, and we love sharing stories about people ruined by lottery riches, or professional athletes bankrupt within five years of leaving the league.
It seems to me that as a society we put a huge emphasis of work; work as identity, work as virtue, work as psychological stimulus. I wonder how many of our social pathologies can be traced back to our obsession with work and career success. On the other hand, I have no idea what we would do without work, which is one reason I am worried about the post-AI future.
So it does strike me as interesting that in our era the aristocrats one hears about all have careers.
ReplyDeleteYes - the aristocrats one hears about.
You don't make the news much if you're the kind of aristocrat who just puts their money into investments and lets the profits roll in. It's not exactly newsworthy in the classic sense - to say nothing that most of the news outlets these days are actually owned by aristocrats who would rather NOT make the headlines.
You hear about the ones who want to be heard about. You hear about Elon Musk, who is an egotist and wants to be the center of attention and the face of his business empire. Likewise for Trump, with the addition of his political ambitions to make the government his private plaything.
But you don't really hear about the guys behind the scenes, quietly pulling strings. They don't WANT you to hear about them. They prefer their anonymity, and the freedom from scrutiny that comes with it. They prefer to delegate tasks to others, and simply "let their money work for them", with the caveat that they still have the final say and can impose their whims from above whenever they feel like it.
Re what to do w/o a job... I have relished retirement from the day I walked out of my last classroom lesson and turned in final exams and grades.
ReplyDeleteFor the first several years, I did some adjunct teaching at UNewHaven... finally had time to finish a couple of RPG video games... do a lot of fun reading. Then I discovered quilting (thanks to a friend I met online RPGing) and did a lot of traveling between CT and VA... and ultimately l moved to that gorgeous spot in rural eastern VA near the Chesapeake. I was an officer in two different quilt guilds. I found the local community theatre and became first an actor then a director and member of the Board of Directors, eventually winding up as secretary. I also ran the box office and supervised the ushers. I was always busy and thrived on it.
Then I moved back to CT (combination of my daughter making me a grandmother at almost 80 years old and waking up to learn that VA had elected Youmgkin-- and realizing I could not live in a state that would elect him). It's been a lot harder-- not only b/c I'm now 81 and have a cancer diagnosis, but because there are actually fewer opportunities for involvement in things that appeal to me than there were in my little town of 1400 people in the eastern part of the Northern Neck. I did find a quilt guild, and a small group from the guild meets every saturday AM for coffee/tea and conversation. THis is the highlight of my week. But I cannot find a theatre group interested in an old lady (b/c there are far more young folks interested in doing theatre here than in my VA area which is heavy with retirees). And while I love the town I live in, it's more tightly socialized than my little rural area, since most folks have been here for decades or all their lives. Very hard to break into these groups. Neighbors are not social with each other either.
Still, I don't miss working, though I do miss talking about books with high school kids. Don't worry about retiring, John. You'll have *so much * to do :)
People who worry about finding ways to fill their time without working have a criminal lack of imagination. There is no end to the number of things you could do to either better yourself or the world around you.
ReplyDeleteVolunteer! Learn a language! Learn to cook, if you never have! Learn to paint! Learn underwater basket weaving! Learn anything you like! Go hiking! Plant a garden! Join a book club / movie club / quilting club / archery club / wine club / whatever! Explore the world around you! Walk through neighborhoods you've never stopped to look at! Strike up pleasant conversations with strangers! Foster joy and laughter and make the world a better place!
Take all the same energy you would put into work, and put it into discovery and creation and enjoyment and comradery! Think about the things you enjoy, but never get a chance to do! Think about the things you wanted to try in the past, but never had the time for! Think about the things you want to see more of in the world, and then help put more of them into the world!
There is nothing more damning about our culture than our collective failure of imagination when it comes to spending time on things other than working and recovering from work. The sky is the limit, and so many of us don't even bother to start!