The Myth of Individualism

In American we have a strong value called individualism.  In Africa they have another type.  It’s called ubuntu, which in so many words means that we all need each other.  Who’s right?  Well let’s see.  Let’s examine that very familiar American claim that comes in so many forms like, “I’m a self-made person, I’ve done it all on my own, I’ve made my own success, I don’t need anyone’s help.”

First of all, we were all obviously born from parents who raised and nurtured us even if they didn’t leave us a great fortune.  Then there were the many people like extended family, teachers, religious leaders, coaches and Scout leaders.  Not to mention spouses, friends and business associates. 

Let’s get into a little more detail;  Did you get a good night’s sleep last night?  How many people did it take to build the bed you slept on?  Hundreds!  From the people who planted the trees and mined the ore that builds the frame and mattress to those who designed it to those who made the raw materials to build it to those who actually built it to those who warehoused it, shipped it, sold it to you, to those who delivered it to those who set it up.  Oh and don’t forget the sheets and blankets.  How many people did it take to plant and harvest the cotton, bring it to market, spin it into fiber, sew and dye and fold and wrap and ship and store and sell?

Did you enjoy a cup of coffee this morning?  How many people grew and harvested the beans, stored and shipped, roasted, ground and canned the grounds that you brewed in a coffee machine that took hundreds more people to produce and get to your kitchen?

Let’s get into a little more detail.  Have you enjoyed a simple candy bar lately?  I’ll use a Snicker’s bar as an example.  It’s made up of cocoa butter, chocolate liquor, peanuts, sugar, milk, butter, and preservative chemicals.  How many people did it take to get those ingredients to the manufacturing facility?  Then they were combined in just the proper amounts and processed in a facility that takes several hundred production workers,  engineers, maintenance workers, sanitation workers, packagers, warehousers,  managers and executives.

Society is the fondation of individualism.  The end products and services that we take for granted take literally millions of other people to produce.  It’s just that when we find them ready to hand we have the mistaken notion that they just are.  They are not.  They are the end product of millions of hours of human endeavor.  I can’t even imagine the number of people that it takes to produce the automobile that you drove to work today.  Or the gasoline that you used.  Or the highway that you drove it on.  Or the traffic controls that kept you safe.  Or the building that you work in.  Or the electricity that you depend on.  Or the computer that keeps your life organized.  Or the lunch that you ate today.  Or the chair that you sat in after lunch.  Or the TV that you’ll watch tonight.  Or the programs that will entertain you when you do.  Or the furnace that will keep you warm all night.

You see, individualism is a myth.  A great American myth.  Yes of course some people are far more successful than other people.  Some people make better life decisions.  Some people get luckier breaks.  But there are no truly individual heroes who do it all on their own.  We all get lots of help from the day we’re born to the day that six other people carry our coffins.  Even in death we need each other.  You’ll never see a dead man carrying his own coffin, even if he thought that he was a rugged individual.

Robert DeFilippis