Robin: Would you rather live the rest of your life in permanent dimness (i.e. never see colour again) or fluorescent light (i.e. look hideous)?
Cira: I would choose to live in dimness for several reasons, the first of which has to do with sleep. If I were to live fluorescent lighting, my endocrine system would cease to secrete melatonin. As you well know, I already have trouble sleeping in normal conditions, and I don't think permanent bright lighting would help. Plus, as you point out, fluorescent light is not very complementary. If I lived in permanent dimness, I really would be free to not care about my appearance - how liberating!
Robin:
An argument in haiku:
Cycle I
Artificial Light
See bags, scars, acne and lines
Nightmare without night
Cycle II
Use only our rods
Now the ugly is unseen
Kindness in dimness
I am immensely excited to see that you two have posted this question, albeit, I have discovered it a few months delayed. (we'll thank technology for it archival skills now)(And, I might as well warn you now that I intend to become your primary commentator. Your questions are responses are so amusing and quite clever:)
ReplyDeleteThis question has occupied me for a few years, ever since I moved from the high skies of the mid-west to the (in my conditioned opinion) oppressive clouds of the lower mainland. Given that living in perpetual dimness would not include being perpetually damp, I, too, would choose shades of grey over garish white sterility-- Fluorescent lights are absent of color, too (the physics of light notwithstanding) due to its manufactured relativization of the entire color spectrum.
And one can still create art and with graphite, but not with an undifferentiated puddle of glue.
Dimness, contrary to being a means of hiding, could be the means to see things more carefully, to relish details, rather than being under the illusion of seeing everything, and eventually forgetting that nobody's skin should glow that orange.
A final reason I opt for dimness is because of the vast literary references (in science fiction. . . don't ask me how I know this) of mole people. They survive quite well with little to no light, and their eyes adjust in amazing ways to the dark. Granted, perhaps our eyes would adjust to fluorescent lighting, but i am afraid to imagine what evolved human being this adaptation would create.
Dear Elisabeth,
ReplyDeleteYour commentary is most welcome. Your discussion of mole people brings a new dimension to the discussion, one that I had not considered. I too have a fondness for mole-like creatures. The Mole from The Wind in the Willows will always occupy a soft spot in my heart. Moles seem to be gentle, hardworking creatures. Mankind could only benefit from creating an atmosphere conducive to visitations by such peaceful and productive souls. In dimness, we could be enlightened to a better way of being.
Please keep weighing in on our questions!
Take care,
Robin