Содержание
We look up to Europe. And in Europe there has long been an ethos of labor. It was based on private property. From the time of ancient Greece, the most important moral maxim, that is, the rule of behavior, the principle that guided man in his actions, was: “Work and succeed. The second was, “Compete, and thou shalt be glorious. From there, these principles carried over into medieval Europe. Let’s look at how the mentality of the Russian man became and how it differs from the European, American, and Japanese mentality.
How the mentality of Europeans was becoming
The belief in work is especially entrenched in Protestant ethics. Protestantism is a Christian denomination that arose after the Reformation in the 16th century and preached the ideal of the man of action. The most straightforward bourgeois spirit manifested itself in Calvinism, which saw and sees the divine purpose of man in activity aimed not only at the good of society, but also at the acquisition and multiplication of personal wealth and private property. And the more successful a person is in his earthly work, the more pleasing to God he is. It was the influence of Protestantism that had its effect in the rapid capitalist development of Holland, England, and Germany. Then, moving with the settlers across the ocean, it played its part in the development of the United States of America.
In addition to the competitive or competitive element, European civilization had an inherent “intension. It is an aspiration, a focus of consciousness, will, and feeling. And what was the intention in Europe, then in America? Intention was expressed in the idea of progress, the relentless improvement of man and society as a whole. This idea provided the impetus for development, the basis for the high self-esteem of the individual. It is this idea that is of tremendous importance to every normal person.
A European or an American will never say, “What about me? I am a small man…”. Words that are customary in our everyday life are offensive to his hearing and thinking. If something was worse than demanded or had another, the person made a great effort to make it right for the better. If, for example, a neighbor had a beautiful house, then everything was done to have his own house no worse (and not smeared with who knows what and not set fire to it, as it still happens with us, if envious bitterness is not curbed). And it was not only with the house, it was and is in everything.
Japanese “miracle”
And what about Japan, which with its pace, successes, and wonders of robotics and computer technology amazes everyone, overtaking America and Europe? Japan is the most mysterious country. Billions of dollars are spent each year in the United States to solve its puzzles. Those who have lived there and studied it say that everything seems clear at the beginning, but when you leave, you realize that it is impossible to fully understand Japan.
What I’m saying is that probably no one knows all the reasons for Japan’s success. Of those who were named, one could write at length about the country’s island position, which saved it from nomadic raids, about its isolation from foreigners for over two hundred years, which to some extent prevented it from becoming a colony of the Europeans, about the bourgeois transformations of the late 19th century and the so-called Meiji Revolution, about American help after World War II, about the Japanese national character, in which hard work, capacity for work and culture have special place.
I will note a point that means a lot: Zen Buddhism, popular in the Land of the Rising Sun, teaches that the world is extremely changeable, and that the idea of perfection is incompatible with the changeability of the world and should therefore be avoided. In the process of perfection there can be no pinnacle, no resting point. The Japanese are convinced that one cannot achieve complete perfection except for a moment, which immediately sinks in the flow of time, of change.
The role of creativity in human life
In this perfection, whether European or Japanese, creativity is of great importance. It is a great thing. It happens that the creative nature manifested itself from an early age, as it did with composers, such as the little Mozart. It happens that those who were a loser in school became famous scientists (Einstein’s parents even offered to take the “dumbass” out of school).
It happens that the brush is taken by old village ladies, who have never been taught, but whose paintings are striking for their freshness, spontaneity, originality. There is no need to make an insecure joke about the word “creativity,” no need to be afraid of it. After all, it does not necessarily consist of writing pictures or complex scientific formulas. It is invention, original thinking, the desire to make life better and more beautiful.
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