Solitude - beastial or divine?

[Quasqueton]

"He who delights in solitude is either a wild beast or a god."
-- Sir Francis Bacon
[via loki44's sig]

Do you delight in solitude? If so, are you a wild beast or a god?

Quasqueton

 

[Jdvn1]

Don't make me smite you for such an implication.

 

[Mycanid]

I DO delight in solitude. But I am neither a beast or a god. I may have bestial or godlike tendencies, or may even have "normal" or "human" tendencies. But I do like solitude.

I think, rather, that the person who is in enforced solitude may very likely become a beast or a god ... or simply just lose his mind, or become totally broken - I mean REALLY broken human beings. Plenty of examples of this in concentration camps.... I have met and spoken with, and read some accounts of such people, and their general experience of other people's reactions seem to fall into these four categories.

 

[Jdvn1]

... or simply just lose his mind, or become totally broken - I mean REALLY broken human beings.

I think this is what the term 'beast' might refer to.

 

[EricNoah]

Bacon was wrong.

I like a nice mix. And while I can go a little beastial (no shaving when I'm living like a bachelor on the occasional weekend when Kara's out of town), I do still groom myself, use silverware, wear clothing, etc.

 

[Mycanid]

I think this is what the term 'beast' might refer to.

No ... an utterly broken human being is VERY different from a man who has gone bestial.

Of course the former can lead to the latter and vice versa, but they are two rather distinct behaviors ... at least from what I have read and been told by folks that lived inside such camps....

Edit: Yeesh ... please excuse my rather vigorous disagreement!

 

[Jdvn1]

No ... an utterly broken human being is VERY different from a man who has gone bestial.

While I'd agree with you, I'd don't think that such a distinction would have been made in the 1500s.

Though, I have nothing to base that judgment on.

 

[Steve Jung]

Language has wisely sensed the two sides of being alone. It has created the word “loneliness” to express the pain of being alone. And it has created the word “solitude” to express the glory of being alone.
—Paul Tillich

I tend towards solitude.

 

[Crothian]

I'm a person that perfers Solitude. In fact even when I'm with people I'm usually alone.

 

[trancejeremy]

Well, when you consider the source, in a lot of ways, it's comparable to say, Hugh Hefner. Except in his case, instead of blonde bimbos, it was "young Welsh serving-men"

Obviously basically if you could get all of what you are attracted to you possibly can, you probably would have a rather happy view of people.

Also, it's hard to take someone seriously who wore one of those things around his neck: