Chaos, Art and the Human Condition
By Megan Kirchhofer
After nearly six months of quarantine, panic, and chaos across the globe, it’s becoming harder and harder for us to stay positive in the face of tragedy. The state of humanity in the wake of this pandemic, especially in America, is bleak at best, with a seemingly endless increase in deaths, and unemployment levels reaching nearly 15%: the highest they’ve been since the Great Depression. When faced with this much uncertainty and despair, optimism for many seems like a lost luxury, but as spring fades to summer and the days spent in quarantine are literally getting longer, I think it’s important to take the time to adjust our perspectives and recognize the beauty and power in what humans do best: change.
We may not entirely see it yet, but I believe that a cultural revolution is just around the corner, on the other side of The Curve. As millions of people have been forced inside for the spring and summer, an astonishing portion of the population has turned to art and creativity to cope with the crushing despair of our current global health crisis. While it’s important to acknowledge that the ability of individuals to devote the months of quarantine to artistic projects is a privilege, what with essential workers and parents of young children working around the clock, for those who were lucky enough to put their lives on pause, art and creativity have become essential to making it through these hard times. The interesting thing (here’s where perspective comes in) is that this isn’t a new phenomenon. In fact, one of the most significant cultural and social revolutions in all of human history, the Renaissance, happened in part because of the travesty that was the Black Death.
From the year 1347 through the early 1350s, the Black Death ravaged Europe at a scale even larger than what we’ve seen from COVID-19, wiping out a third of the population of Europe. The pandemic had a variety of social, political, economic, and cultural consequences for medieval Europe, but by far the most widely recognized and arguably powerful result was the creative revolution that took place when the initial destruction of the Plague had ended. As death became an inescapable, horrific reality for Europeans, the general attitude shifted to one of intense pessimism. Individuals became obsessed with death and the inevitable end of the world, and subsequently with their need to experience as much joy and pleasure as was available during their fleeting life expectancy. As a result, humanity began to place great importance on art, literature, theatre, and individualism as a whole. Artists, innovators, and academics came out of the woodwork, and thus the roughly 5-year period of chaos gave way to 300 years of cultural evolution and social progress.
You see, when life as we knew it was faced with what was then labeled as some great, divine punishment, humanity began a passionate chase for Something to Live For™ and defiantly dared to create beauty and meaning, even when we knew it was temporary; or rather especially when we knew it was temporary. This defining epoch of human history posits the idea that it is the nature of humankind to use the wreckage of our past as building blocks for a world we’re working to deserve; to take a bleak, burning sky and paint a sunrise on the horizon. The Renaissance period lasted longer than the entire history of America as a country thus far, and the fact that it was kickstarted by an era that was shorter than most wars have been can’t be a coincidence. The massive loss of life in 14th century Europe led to increased social mobility and raised the standard for quality of life, resulting in a heightened sense of individualism, as well as cultural appreciation and theological criticism that defined the shift from medieval Europe to modern global society.
All that not necessarily to say that the Coronavirus pandemic will lead to another three centuries of cultural upheaval, but in terms of a grand perspective, the significance of our seemingly innate need to spin our pain into gold can’t be ignored. What is it about art that makes life worth living? Is it the capacity for depth? The ability to capture emotion within tangible relics for posterity? As much as it seems like human beings are designed for destruction, it appears that we carry an even stronger piece of programming that allows for incredible growth and repair. Judging from our long history with tragedy and our refusal to surrender as a species, I think it’s safe to say that the increase in artistic appreciation during times like these isn’t just a fluke or a temporary solution to boredom, but rather an important indicator of the fluidity of the Human Condition. The contentment of an agreed-upon ultimate Meaning of Life during times of peace and prosperity isn’t nearly as powerful as the turmoil brought on by our instinct to create our own new meaning when it’s nowhere in sight, or when our established answer no longer fits our ever-evolving existential narrative.
When all is said and done, the calamitous experience of living through this pandemic is none other than a valiant battle for the preservation of our humanity. This blip on the cosmic calendar will forever be remembered and revered as the years that we fought for our right to remain; our right to determine what we mean to the present, and what will become of the future. As for now, patience is key, and for those of us who aren’t sick or essential, the artists and dreamers will save our souls. Creativity and growth will plant the seeds of change and fuel the fires of an intense newfound appreciation for our one wild and precious life.
