(no subject)
When you fight something, or engage in battle, you declare a lot of things. You declare that there is a winner and a loser, the possibility of success or failure, a sense of good and evil, and other binary oppositions. "We're at war with terror," "I'm battling my weight," "It's an uphill battle." This seems to be our culture's way of conceptualizing things. A legal battle for your baby? I'm going to fight it. An unjust ruling by your professor? I'm going to fight it! Have the cancer? It's going to be a hard fight. If you look at the tabloid newspapers and listen to anyone talk, you can read and hear about their fights and battles. Patrick Swayze's last words were something about how "I fought it well." "The battle at home." "Bradgelina fight for baby in court." "Dr. Phil fights wife in court."
This is a problematic way of thinking. There are a lot of emotions invested in a battle, and the worst outcome, worse than simply coming out loser, is that you can simply give up. This implies a power heirarchy. Such as, who has control: the unjust assaulter, or justice? Your weight/waist line, or you? This is stupid because you end up anthropomorphizing abstract concepts and giving them authority and power.
Why is it "an uphill battle finishing finals week"? Why is it not an uphill run? A run can't fail. Perhaps you won't break your Personal Record. Even if you stop and walk for a while, you can continue in the same direction. You might even have a seat, eat a bagel and enjoy the sun. Though it can be more difficult than the usual flat run and require a little bit different strategy, it is not fundamentally or structurally different from any other activity.
Fights involve attacks, predicting attacks, responding to attacks by attacking even harder. They don't involve listening, patience, coming to an agreement, appreciation for other views. This is not effective for succeeding in goals.
This is a problematic way of thinking. There are a lot of emotions invested in a battle, and the worst outcome, worse than simply coming out loser, is that you can simply give up. This implies a power heirarchy. Such as, who has control: the unjust assaulter, or justice? Your weight/waist line, or you? This is stupid because you end up anthropomorphizing abstract concepts and giving them authority and power.
Why is it "an uphill battle finishing finals week"? Why is it not an uphill run? A run can't fail. Perhaps you won't break your Personal Record. Even if you stop and walk for a while, you can continue in the same direction. You might even have a seat, eat a bagel and enjoy the sun. Though it can be more difficult than the usual flat run and require a little bit different strategy, it is not fundamentally or structurally different from any other activity.
Fights involve attacks, predicting attacks, responding to attacks by attacking even harder. They don't involve listening, patience, coming to an agreement, appreciation for other views. This is not effective for succeeding in goals.