This is in keeping with the line of reasoning I have followed in the last couple of entries, and is just another category of belief which I find corrosive to the development of mental independence. Most broadly, a waif is one who talks shit and than resigns his/her will to that shit. The shit in mention consists of a belief in the futility of decision-making which leads to a steadfast (or attempted steadfast) conviction in the value of laissez-faire existence. There is a ‘come what may’ attitude underlying most of the decision-making, which leaves choices up to the lightest of scrutiny, regulated by the immediate circumstances and the chance happenings of mood and external factors to determine the next move. I like to think that this waif mentality is a product of fear towards the imposing complexity of modern life – I know my time as a waif fits this description.
So it’s a lie, but according to my philosophy everything is fundamentally a lie so what’s the problem? The problem is this is a lie that is life-taking, that robs you of your ability to mature into an autonomous free-thinking individual, despite its surface allure. On the surface the waif philosophy of ‘come what may’ has a residual social appeal due to its endless propagation in popular culture: I am of course thinking of the James Dean archetype, and its many modern permutations. And this is hardly a new concept, for as far back as Castiglione in sixteenth century Italy, there has been a certain respect for nonchalance, which is the outward aspect of the waif philosophy; but unlike the nonchalance of this period, which used it self-consciously to conceal effort, the waif mentality I presently speak of is all too often one enacted without the slightest attention to the art, but one enacted to dodge responsibilities in a complex and imposing world.
The waif mentality is rebellion. Not just in its conscious reaction to the world, but ultimately, it becomes a rebellion towards oneself and one’s capacities. I have no problem with doublethink, and with using strategic lies to coerce a certain action out of oneself, but I do have a problem with coercion against one’s autonomous development. The waif mentality is unconscious doublethink, and if followed devoutly, one which imposes limitations by setting as default the notion that ‘come what may’ has value irregardless of circumstance. Thus introspection is bypassed and in its place, the fanatic faith in chance, in the inherent logic of laissez-faire existence, or some similar nonsense.
We shouldn’t try to spin our fear and laziness, nor hand over so much authority to external factors and mere chance; rather, we should have the inner strength to make decisions, to challenge the world, and redefine it through our developing autonomy.