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CCG's avatar

On the subject of responsibility, becoming an adult, etc. I’m very interested in accounts of the culture of native Americans in 19th century, mostly the tribes of the plains, because they present a society that it’s in many ways the polar opposite of ours.

There was a high degree of personal independence mixed with a strong expectation of social duty. For instance, a man (women too) could go into the country, by himself with minimum clothing (in the summer) and bow and arrows and survive quite comfortably until he got bored. He had all he needed, for free, around him.

And yet, the intricacy of what was expected of him in his social group was beyond what any modern person experiences.

And not only it wasn’t questioned but was strongly desired. Every account I have read, (Wooden Leg, Charles Eastman) described a blessed childhood that’s lovingly remembered while being pervaded by a strong yearning for emulation of the adults and an eagerness to occupy a dignified place in their society. It’s a way of being human that’s unrecognisable nowadays.

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Kouros's avatar

There is the Golden Rule among hoi polloi. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you", which is quite universal and is older than Matthew.

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