Magic Words: Progress and Change
Is all change good and progressing in the right way?
Previously, we looked at the notion of “Magic Words:” words which have been imbued with a magical-type power to change the course of conversations and even thinking. The postmodern movement argued that words have no intrinsic meaning and are just masks for power. It should then not surprise us that those who thought in this way would then start to use words as a means of power and control over thought. I have dubbed the words they use to form discourse to be “Magic Words.” The first Magic Word I looked at was “Gay.”
Now, we will look at a couple of words that are used in tandem to try to give the same impression: “Progress,” and “Change.”
Progressing into a Wondrous Future
For quite a while, our world has been obsessed with the future, having the expectation that things will be always getting better. A perfect example of this is Disney World’s EPCOT Center. The name “EPCOT” was created as an acronym for “Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow.” Walt Disney (the man, not the company) envisioned this as a place which would showcase the wonders of the near future which technology would bring about.
Of course, so many of the predictions about the future have not come true. This is well illustrated by all the jokes in 2015 questioning where are the hoverboards Back to the Future Part II had predicted we would have. Looking back at science fiction movies and seeing their predictions and judging how far off they were can make for a fun diversion.
Nevertheless, our world has a fascination with the idea that the world is getting better and better. This was one of the ideas coming out of Modernism and the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions. This mentality was cemented in what is known as the Whig theory of History.
The Whig Theory of History
The Whig theory of History, or simply Whig History, came out of 19th century English politics. This theory, which was largely espoused by members of the Whig party and came to be named for the party, argues the world is inevitably progressing to a better and better status. Whig theory argued progress in science, constitutional government, and personal freedom was inevitable as society progressed towards enlightenment.
The roots of this are actually deeper, largely coming out of the philosophy of the Enlightenment. A key thinker in the wider movement, who was certainly not an English politician, was the German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. Hegel’s theory of history was based on the concept of the Spirit (Geist), which is his form of god. Hegel believed the Spirit was in history and creation and progressing to find himself. Therefore, as we progress in history, this Spirit moves us to fuller and fuller truth.
The work of Hegel was taken up by a group known as the “Left-Wing Hegelians,” atheists who adopted the idea of history inevitably moving forward but rejected the notion of any sort of God. Rather, they argued things just naturally improve. The most famous Left-Wing Hegelian was Karl Marx, and his theory of Marxism was that history progresses through different economic stages until it will finally reach perfection in a socialist state. In this way, it is somewhat ironic how the idea made famous by the Whigs, who touted increasing liberty, was taken up by the thinker behind the most oppressive regimes in history!
Progress as a Magic Word
While no one really subscribes to Whig history anymore and is even used by some as an insult, the idea still lingers in our society with the belief that things are always getting better. As a result, we are programmed to think of progress as a good thing. We inherently expect things to keep getting better, and one of the reasons for our present angst is now people are starting to question if that will be true.
Of course, in some ways, there has been much progress, especially in technology and medicine. I can’t imagine anyone thinking we would be better served by medieval medicine and leeches than by modern medicine. Likewise, we have made many amazing technological improvements. However, these have led us to assume everything will unavoidably get better, which is not logically the case, and in many ways is not empirically the case.
Nevertheless, since there is, in the West at least, an underlying belief that things will progress to better and better things, the very word “progress” has taken on a positive aura. This has even gotten to where one does not really think about it, but rather progress is expected to be good. However, as C. S. Lewis noted in Mere Christianity, it is not enough to be progressing, but one must ask to where is one progressing. Lewis even noted: if you are going in the wrong direction, the most progressive thing you can do is to stop and turn around.
Still, in our world today, many use the word “progress” as a magic word which is supposed to immediately convince us that what is being advocated is good.
Change
“Change” is a related Magic Word. Our culture assumes all change is, essentially, for the good. Just think of how often people speak about how “it is time for a change.” Likewise, President Obama campaigned on the slogan of “Hope and Change” without ever defining what the change would be. Rather, the general expectation was that everyone would agree change is good.
However, change is not always good. Consider your health; there are countless ways it could change, and very few are good. Losing weight, controlling blood sugars, and building muscle would be good changes, but far more changes to health fall under the category of “diseases.”
Nevertheless, we have been programmed to believe change is inherently good and that it will lead automatically to progress to a better world. A related term which has been used from time to time is “being on the right side of history.” Conversely, people have been chastised for opposing a change with the charge of “being on the wrong side of history.” These terms imply history has a right and wrong side, and if you are opposed to the new change then you are opposing the inevitable “progress.”
These terms are used as magic words to browbeat people into agreeing with the preferred stance without allowing people to think if this idea is actually a good idea. These ideas of progress and change are especially slippery since no objective standard is allowed. Snuck into these terms is a religious belief that there is some unseen force guiding things to progress to the right place. Instead of an objective standard, such as God’s law as described in the Bible, or even Natural Law, we are subtly urged to believe in this Hegelian force driving us through change to inevitable progress.