One of my favorite books of all time is The Brothers Karamozov by Fyodor Dostoevsky1. It is a masterpiece of a novel that delves deep into the human condition asking questions about God, morality, and free will. One particular passage sparked my interest2. In Book IV “The Russian Monk”, Chapter II “The Duel”, Dostoevsky enters into a monologue about the “age of isolation”.
He says:
“Why, the isolation that prevails everywhere, above all in our age—it has not fully developed, it has not reached its limit yet. For every one strives to keep his individuality as apart as possible, wishes to secure the greatest possible fullness of life for himself; but meantime all his efforts result not in attaining fullness of life but self‐destruction, for instead of self‐realization he ends by arriving at complete solitude. All mankind in our age have split up into units, they all keep apart, each in his own groove; each one holds aloof, hides himself and hides what he has, from the rest, and he ends by being repelled by others and repelling them. He heaps up riches by himself and thinks, ‘How strong I am now and how secure,’ and in his madness he does not understand that the more he heaps up, the more he sinks into self‐destructive impotence. For he is accustomed to rely upon himself alone and to cut himself off from the whole; he has trained himself not to believe in the help of others, in men and in humanity, and only trembles for fear he should lose his money and the privileges that he has won for himself. Everywhere in these days men have, in their mockery, ceased to understand that the true security is to be found in social solidarity rather than in isolated individual effort. But this terrible individualism must inevitably have an end, and all will suddenly understand how unnaturally they are separated from one another. It will be the spirit of the time, and people will marvel that they have sat so long in darkness without seeing the light. And then the sign of the Son of Man will be seen in the heavens….
But, until then, we must keep the banner flying. Sometimes even if he has to do it alone, and his conduct seems to be crazy, a man must set an example, and so draw men’s souls out of their solitude, and spur them to some act of brotherly love, that the great idea may not die.”
- Brothers Karamazov, Book IV, Chapter II
In light of today, one could argue that Dostoevsky’s words are prophetic considering the time in which it was written. There is a lot to unpack here. Let’s begin.
Isolation
“All mankind in our age have split up into units, they all keep apart, each in his own groove; each one holds aloof, hides himself and hides what he has, from the rest, and he ends by being repelled by others and repelling them”
Isolation has gripped and divided man, most notably in the industrial and post-industrial ages. Dostoevsky characterizes isolation by repulsion. One can’t help but compare to atoms and their electron clouds which repel and are repelled by other atoms. No two atoms ever “touch”, in fact, their behavior is governed on the basis of repulsion. In a similar way, no two individuals truly touch each other in this age. Two individuals might be friends and will go out and spend time with each other, but there are invisible walls separating the two. Neither is willing to let the other into his life beyond the superficial facets that drew them together: location, employment, social circles, hobbies. These two individuals have no need or reliance upon the other. They are two solitary silos that stand separate and apart and only interact for mutual benefit.
However, the clearest example of isolation is the modern American suburb. At face value, America sprawls with vast communities that surround major urban areas. Yet, these “communities” hardly deserve the name. Each suburb is made up of thousands of individual units, each autonomous, each distinct. Having lived in a suburb for the majority of my life, I can attest to this isolation. I hardly knew anyone that I lived within walking distance of. My neighbors were strangers, even while I sought to make strangers online into my neighbors (the digital age has only worsened isolation). When Dostoevsky talks of “holding aloof” he is speaking about the way people act in suburbs. There is a high degree of privacy and aloofness about each individual house. Even the very layout and architecture point to this, each house requiring a fence and separation. It is almost as if the houses themselves are “repelling and being repelled”.
Self-reliance
“He heaps up riches by himself and thinks, ‘How strong I am now and how secure’ … he is accustomed to rely upon himself alone and to cut himself off from the whole; he has trained himself not to believe in the help of others … and only trembles for fear he should lose his money and the privileges that he has won for himself”
Isolation may be the current state of affairs, but the mechanism of self-reliance drives it. When community is dismissed and charity thrown out all that is left is the self. The self has but itself to carve out its place in the world. It is only by your own faculties that you can achieve success: pull yourself up by your own bootstraps.
As Dostoevsky illustrates, when man gets into this mode of being he is singularly focused on building up himself in strength and security. This is achieved by amassing within his little silo as much wealth and material possessions as possible. This provides the strength and security necessary to be an atomized individual. You can only be an individual in your capacity to be free from dependency on others. This is done through wealth accumulation. This is why poverty is the great evil to individualism in the age of isolation, how can you be independent when you need charity from others? When man rejects and repels others around him he simultaneously cuts off himself and others from true love and charity. He is no longer capable of helping another person out of love and can never allow himself to be aided. After all, he has but “to rely upon himself alone … [and] not to believe in the help of others” as Dostoevsky puts it.
Solidarity
“Everywhere in these days men have, in their mockery, ceased to understand that the true security is to be found in social solidarity rather than in isolated individual effort”
After diagnosing and describing isolation and its causes, Dostoevsky moves on to offer us an alternative: solidarity.
Solidarity is a subset of the broader virtue of charity. Charity and solidarity are intertwined and must be discussed as such. Charity is “the theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God” 3 at least as the Church is concerned. Here, solidarity finds its roots in a charitable love that seeks justice and peace. Stemming from this, the Church describes solidarity when stating, “To love someone is to desire that person's good and to take effective steps to secure it. Besides the good of the individual, there is the good that is linked to living in society: the common good. It is the good of "all of us", made up of individuals, families and intermediate groups who together constitute society”4.
It should be clear now that charity is sorely missing from individualism and absent in isolation. Charity gives the framework necessary for social solidarity to flourish. The pursuit of solidarity links together a local group of atoms into a community, into the body of Christ. A true outpouring of love between people will lead to an elevation of their souls, one that is focused on the other before the self. Dostoevsky makes it clear that charity and solidarity will pierce through the fog that blinds the world to the madness of isolation.
Triumph of Community
“A man must set an example, and so draw men’s souls out of their solitude, and spur them to some act of brotherly love, that the great idea may not die.”
Dostoevsky leaves us with an exhortation to hold the banner high. Catholics, with the full deposit of revelation and tradition, ought to be especially sensitive to the call for charity. The world may have descended into isolation, but the Church guided by the Holy Spirit remains lucid to the call that Dostoevsky articulates.
Catholics today already have a great model by which to begin this task. Parishes all across the United States and the world can become intentional communities5 by which charity and Christian brotherhood are sought, and built up. Suburbs of isolation may plague our country but refuges, where charity and solidarity are practiced, can still spring up by those brave souls who keep true “that the great idea may not die”.
“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another” - John 13:35
Fyodor Dostoevsky (1821-1881) is a famous 19th-century Russian author. He wrote The Brothers Karamazov in 1880.
Inspiration for this article came from the Tradistae Podcast. Check them out!
CCC 1822
Pope Benedict XVI, Charity in Truth [Caritas in Veritate], no. 7
For more info on intentional community
Nice reflection. I have often commented that God did not intend his most marvelous creation to be stacked on top of each other in cities.