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According to Charles Taylor in his book \u201cModern Social Imaginaries,\u201d a social imaginary involves \u201c\u2026the ways people imagine their social existence\u2026\u201d (250)\u00a0 He states that currently we have a moral order in place that supposes the following points: 1. mutual benefit between individuals, 2. the means to life by practicing virtue, 3. freedom and individual rights, and 4. equality of rights. (244-248) This moral order, established by a variety of philosophers and leaders, has formed part of our \u201clong march,\u201d \u201c\u2026a process whereby new practices, or modifications of old ones, either developed through improvisation among certain groups and strata of the population. \u2026 or else were launched by elites in such a way as to recruit a larger and larger base.\u201d (326-330)<\/p>\n
This moral order stands as a reaction against non-freedom, no rights and no equality.\u00a0 And yet, we as humans have believed another \u201csocial imaginary,\u201d one that breaks down this moral order, that of limited resources.\u00a0 This \u201csocial imaginary\u201d has caused humanity to react against the moral order for numerous resources including land, food, water, oil, and even humans.\u00a0 The \u201cmoral order\u201d disintegrates to ashes when enough humans encroach on other humans in order to acquire more resources.\u00a0 My questions are: \u201cDo we have limited resources, or do we have unlimited resources, which we have poorly used?\u00a0 Have we allowed our greed to push us into using our resources as a quick way to make money and thereby created limited resources?\u00a0 If we were knowledgeable enough and had the integrity to use our resources within the \u201cmoral order\u201d would consumerism have shaped our world and with it the \u201cneed\u201d for wars?\u00a0 Our historical \u201clong march\u201d is a war narrative.\u00a0 It is the story of conquest.\u00a0 It manifests in the way that we do those two topics you don\u2019t bring up at a party – politics and religion.\u00a0 Why, because we view both as battle grounds.\u00a0 What if we chose to transform our political and religious \u201csocial imaginaries\u201d from battlegrounds to greeting spaces?\u00a0 Is that too idealistic?\u00a0 Will there ever be enough humans to enact that kind of tipping point into a new \u201csocial imaginary?\u201d\u00a0 Or will our war narrative be the same for eternity?<\/p>\n
Taylor asks, \u201cWhat exactly is involved when a theory penetrates and transforms the social imaginary?\u201d He explains, \u201c\u2026For the most part, people take up, improvise, or are inducted into new practices. These are made sense of by the new outlook,\u2026 the context that gives sense to the practices. \u2026 the new understanding comes to be accessible to the participants in a way it wasn’t before. It begins to define the contours of their world and can eventually come to count as the taken-for-granted shape of things, too obvious to mention. (319-322)<\/p>\n
Does it matter to us that our human story continues to be one of greed, poorly used resources and war, leading to extinction?\u00a0 What new story do we want to write?\u00a0 Could the moral order lead us to the creation of new \u201csocial imaginaries\u201d in the realm of resource management?\u00a0 Some believe the \u201csocial imaginary\u201d that we are corrupt beings unable to write a new story.\u00a0 Others believe the \u201csocial imaginary\u201d of humans made in the image of God who are capable of working together with the divine to create a \u201cheavenly kingdom on earth.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
What are the things that we have taken for granted that are too obvious to mention?\u00a0 How do these \u201csocial imaginaries\u201d shape you individually?\u00a0 How do they shape your view of the Divine, religion, culture, society, resources, the world?<\/p>\n
If you could change a \u201csocial imaginary\u201d which one would you change and what would it look like?<\/p>\n
If you could create a new \u201csocial imaginary\u201d what would it be?<\/p>\n
Charles Taylor. Modern Social Imaginaries (Kindle Locations 326-329). Kindle Edition.<\/p>\n