nonviolence, part 1
On Friday night my wife and I saw the movie Gran Turino. The movie deals, in part, with the subject of nonviolence. This can often be a controversial subject, and, interestingly enough, often engenders a violent response from its critics. The idea of violence is such a part of our culture that we have been seduced into only thinking in terms of violence.
From the earliest age we are taught that if there is a bully on the playground that hits us, we should hit him back. This idea is everywhere. Many feel that to do nothing in the face of violence is to only invite abuse from those who are violent. To defeat violence we must return violence.
The problem is that the violence returned will keep going unless one side exerts greater force. The spiral of violence will continue upward until one side commits an act that ends the fight. This can get ugly quite quickly.
What is interesting is that when one side is declared a victor there is no change in the side that has been defeated. I have never seen a fight in which a bloodied, defeated person (or people) walk away recognizing that they were wrong, or walk away feeling the fight is over. More often the defeated only walk away to plan their revenge on the victor. Typically their revenge is more and greater violence.
Violence can never bring peace. The idea that it can is a myth that has been told and retold for centuries. Walter Wink speaks of this false idea in an article titled, The Myth of Redemptive Violence. In a humorous paragraph he describes a famous cartoon that he says describes the myth of redemptive violence:
“In a typical segment, Bluto abducts a screaming and kicking Olive Oyl, Popeye’s girlfriend. When Popeye attempts to rescue her, the massive Bluto beats his diminutive opponent to a pulp, while Olive Oyl helplessly wrings her hands. At the last moment, as our hero oozes to the floor, and Bluto is trying, in effect, to rape Olive Oyl, a can of spinach pops from Popeye’s pocket and spills into his mouth. Transformed by this gracious infusion of power, he easily demolishes the villain and rescues his beloved. The format never varies. Neither party ever gains any insight or learns from these encounters. They never sit down and discuss their differences. Repeated defeats do not teach Bluto to honor Olive Oyl’s humanity, and repeated pummellings do not teach Popeye to swallow his spinach before the fight.”
Violence only breeds more violence. We can live with the attitude of, “You punch me and I will punch you back.” Then what? If the person you are punching back is living by the same rules then you are bound to get punched a second time. Then, you will punch back … and so it goes.
It seems that there is only one way to stop the cycle of senseless violence in which we are entrenched, that being nonviolence. This attitude says, “You punch me and I will turn the other cheek.” It does not pursue vengeance, it pursues peace. It pursues the wholeness of one’s enemies. It seeks the best for all involved.
This way of living seems impossible in our world. Many critics of nonviolence ask questions of how one should deal with violent regimes, or how one should respond if loved ones are threatened with violence. One friend even commented, “If we live a nonviolent life then we would just get killed.”
All of this is true. But where has violence gotten us? Maybe there is a better way.
From the earliest age we are taught that if there is a bully on the playground that hits us, we should hit him back. This idea is everywhere. Many feel that to do nothing in the face of violence is to only invite abuse from those who are violent. To defeat violence we must return violence.
The problem is that the violence returned will keep going unless one side exerts greater force. The spiral of violence will continue upward until one side commits an act that ends the fight. This can get ugly quite quickly.
What is interesting is that when one side is declared a victor there is no change in the side that has been defeated. I have never seen a fight in which a bloodied, defeated person (or people) walk away recognizing that they were wrong, or walk away feeling the fight is over. More often the defeated only walk away to plan their revenge on the victor. Typically their revenge is more and greater violence.
Violence can never bring peace. The idea that it can is a myth that has been told and retold for centuries. Walter Wink speaks of this false idea in an article titled, The Myth of Redemptive Violence. In a humorous paragraph he describes a famous cartoon that he says describes the myth of redemptive violence:
“In a typical segment, Bluto abducts a screaming and kicking Olive Oyl, Popeye’s girlfriend. When Popeye attempts to rescue her, the massive Bluto beats his diminutive opponent to a pulp, while Olive Oyl helplessly wrings her hands. At the last moment, as our hero oozes to the floor, and Bluto is trying, in effect, to rape Olive Oyl, a can of spinach pops from Popeye’s pocket and spills into his mouth. Transformed by this gracious infusion of power, he easily demolishes the villain and rescues his beloved. The format never varies. Neither party ever gains any insight or learns from these encounters. They never sit down and discuss their differences. Repeated defeats do not teach Bluto to honor Olive Oyl’s humanity, and repeated pummellings do not teach Popeye to swallow his spinach before the fight.”
Violence only breeds more violence. We can live with the attitude of, “You punch me and I will punch you back.” Then what? If the person you are punching back is living by the same rules then you are bound to get punched a second time. Then, you will punch back … and so it goes.
It seems that there is only one way to stop the cycle of senseless violence in which we are entrenched, that being nonviolence. This attitude says, “You punch me and I will turn the other cheek.” It does not pursue vengeance, it pursues peace. It pursues the wholeness of one’s enemies. It seeks the best for all involved.
This way of living seems impossible in our world. Many critics of nonviolence ask questions of how one should deal with violent regimes, or how one should respond if loved ones are threatened with violence. One friend even commented, “If we live a nonviolent life then we would just get killed.”
All of this is true. But where has violence gotten us? Maybe there is a better way.