Reading for the Apocalypse

In trying times, for me there's nothing quite like sinking into Jane Austen's calm, rational world where the greatest worry is whether the heroine will marry the right man (spoiler: she will.) So, to counteract the political uncertainty ahead. I've been listening as I paint--doubly soothing. 

I've read and reread Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and Emma multiple times. Now I'm delving into the rest of her works--read long ago and mostly forgotten. Mansefield Park was enjoyable, but Northanger Abbey is exceeding my expectations as Jane's sly humor is at its best here. It's a witty spoof of the popular Gothic novels of the time. I'm very much enjoying this audio version from Audible.

Sapiens, on the other hand, is not soothing at all. But it's an important read, and relevant to the times we find ourselves in. 

For example, in the chapter about money, its usefulness in commerce and cooperation between strangers, the author warns of its dark side.

Quoting "Human communities and families have always been based on belief in 'priceless' things, such as honour, loyalty, morality, and love. These things lie outside the domain of the market and shouldn't be bought or sold for money. . . . Parents mustn't sell their children into slavery; a devout Christian must not commit a mortal sin; a loyal knight must never betray his lord; and ancestral tribal land shall never be sold to foreigners.

"Money has always tried to break through these barriers, like water seeping through cracks in a dam. Parents have been reduced to selling some of their children into slavery in order to buy food for the others. Devout Christians have murdered, stolen, and cheated--and later used their spoils to buy forgiveness from the church. Ambitious knights auctioned their allegiance to the highest bidder, while securing the loyalty of their own followers by cash payments. Tribal lands were sold to foreigners from the other side of the world in order to purchase an entry ticket into the global economy."

And here we are. Our presidency bought by billionaires and our democracy devolving into an oligarchy. Hard times ahead, except for the 1%.

"As money brings down the dams of community, religion, and state, the world is in danger of becoming one big and rather heartless marketplace."

And then, as the Orange Felon eyes Greenland and the Panama Canal, I turn to the next chapter on the building of empires . . .

Back, I think, to Jane.