Category: Apathy

The ever growing effects of political disenchantment are more than evident upon analysing the attitudes of populism alongside the dangers of apathy within modern society. Evidently within the youth, the underlying consensus of apathy displays distinctly, attitudes towards voting that pose a threat to equal representation under a democratic system. Whereas one may also assess further disenchantment arisen from the extant stigma against democratic politicians as liars, the lack of public confidence condemning them whilst encouraging apathy towards politics to a foreseeable downfall of democracy. Alternatively one may also explore the view of political disenchantment posing no threat toward democracy, due to increasing political engagement, specifically within the UK following the Brexit Referendum.

An undeniable contention of 33 percent of British citizens exists that politicians put personal interests ahead of the national interests their vocation pursues. Whilst this may lay evident of political disenchantment, it is countered by British political scientist, Gerry Stoker. Within his book “Why Politics Matters” Stoker explores the extent by which sustained growth within many countries has correlates with an increasing lack of confidence in individual politicians and entire political systems that have thus gained reputations for economic incompetence. Emulating the fact that there is in fact no evidence for corruption amongst politicians with the exception of minor expense scandals of the 2000s. Stoker emphasizes that there is a severe lack of connection within democratic nations, between economic failure and public disaffection for politics and it’s workers as is generally feared by commentators of African and Latin American societies alike. Therefore ultimately Stoker’s contention is that the future and safety of democracy is unaffected by political disenchantment but rather by other means instead. This view challenged by Peter Oborne whom constitutes that the decay of selflessness within British politicians is an immoral enemy of democracy, “The general sense of redoubtable honesty that was such an enviable element of British government has generally vanished” surmising that we must morally sanitise democratic politics if it has any hope of surviving.

Furthermore, the apathy of political disenchantment is further evidenced by the declining voter turnout: OECD 1970-2005 8% average decline. The relative voter turnout relatively decreases each year most prominently amongst youth voters. While 90% of over 65 year olds turned out, only 64% of 18-24 year-olds voted in the June 2016 Brexit Referendum in close relation to the fact that over 70% of 18-24 year-olds voted Remain, while just under 30% opted to vote Leave. Thus allowing one to estimate a dramatic change in result had there been an increased level of mobility within the youth population. Brexit exempt, one may further attribute this decline in voter turnout may be affected by relates further to the decline in the strength of party identification amongst youths of 18-24 years. In 1983, 85 percent of the same age group identified with a particular political party compared with 66 percent of those in their 20s or early 30s today, arguably as a result of the fact there is less specific class appeal to most political parties today. It is needless for one to clarify the catastrophic extent to which a continually declining voter turnout may mean for the future of a democratic nation in relation to equal representation of citizens.

Alternatively, evidence for an increase in political interest is also evident and thus diminishes the argument of any disenchantment posing a threat to the future of democracy. There has been a 28% surge in applications to politics courses since the lead up to the EU Referendum. Moreover, this surge in further relation to the narrowing ‘political interest gap’ that exists between the 52% of those with a degree or higher education interested in politics, compared with 24% of those with no qualification; determines that in lieu of political disenchantment, it may instead be the growing apathy that inherently is found attached to the age of distraction we understand to be the modern world. Through more encompassing education, any threat to democracy may be challenged. Democracy itself still maintaining an overwhelming level of support, the disaffection bearing mostly towards its representatives and practice. Therefore the critical nature of the British public comes into question as the true estimate of why growing political disenchantment exists in Britain. It can be attributed that in actuality we now possess higher expectations of government despite the lack of austerity in relation to the most recent generations.

To conclude, one may assess that political disenchantment is a growing phenomenon in action, without one specific but rather various discernable causes. A key factor being an increasing lack of confidence within modern politicians, whom are considered disreputable by the general public, despite (in the UK) living in the highest level of prosperity society has yet to see . As such, G. Stoker considers this view highly lacking as a genuine reason for the increase in political disenchantment, to the dismay of P. Oborne’s argument that politicians today exhibit abhorrent and deceitful behaviour that engages the populist consensus that those in government are centred upon self-interest in a regime of ‘politics-as-usual’, despite an irrefutable lack of evidence of corruption within parliament to truly place our democratic society at risk. Contrarily there is certainly an abundance of evidence through statistics, that displays the effects of a particular disengagement amongst youth citizens. The recent increase that contrasts this can be attributed to the 2016 European Referendum result that has engulfed most political headlines since. However a more educated generation may win the battle for democracy for the foreseeable future. The contention of a severe lack in political identification may further be attributed to the apathy and lack of all encompassing education of politics that also ties as reason for the recent incline in general interest. Therefore overall one may deduce there is an unstable safety attributed to the future of democracy within the nation, however that may change should the advance of political disaffection evolve towards pure ignorance and apathy or rather even more concerning; the prospect of anti-politics.

Voter turnout has increased in recent elections, but the issue of non-voting remains a prominent concern. According to van Deth’s (2001) model of political participation, almost every activity by a citizen can somehow be understood as a form of engagement in politics. However, activities such as: party membership, contacting politicians, signing petitions, demonstrations, blocking streets, reading information and volunteering amongst others do not necessarily lead to the problem of non-voting being reduced. The issue of non-voting can be due to protest voting where individuals vote in order to demonstrate their dissatisfaction either to their ‘real’ party or to the government of the day. Protest votes are sometimes cast for a leading opponent or for a single-issue minority party and voters sometimes spoil their ballots (Myatt, 2015). Alternatively, apolitical apathy can also lead to individuals not voting due to feelings of disinterest towards politics and political activities. These feelings can be categorised as the indifference of an individual and a lack of interest in participating in political activities (Harder and Krosnick, 2008). The paradox of voting theory analysed by Downs (1957) suggests that many voters believe that the cost of voting does not outweigh the benefit and therefore choose not to vote which contributes to the issue of non-voting which can be considered an aspect of apolitical apathy. This essay will seek to examine the effects of both protest voting and apolitical apathy and prove that it is significantly the latter that results in non-voting.

The contemporary problem of non-voting in British politics can be contemplated as diminishing since evidence proves from general elections, within the United Kingdom (UK), that voter turnout has increased as it has risen in every general election since a sharp fall around the beginning of the millennium (Parliament. House of Commons, 2017). This rise in voter turnout may be due to the opportunities of new technologies widening the scope and modes of participation (van Deth, 2001). The internet is a two-way communication system allowing those working in the political sphere such as councillors, MPs and peers to directly interact with citizens and vice versa whereas during the use of the printing press or traditional broadcast media contact was largely one-way. Additionally, the internet and other forms of modern technology allows citizens to sign political petitions online with the possibility of them being debated in Parliament, contribute to online donations, join social media campaigns such as the Me Too movement which spread virally in October 2017 as a hashtag on social media in an attempt to demonstrate the widespread prevalence of sexual assault and harassment, especially in the workplace (Carlsen et al, 2018). People can also contact public officials and other like-minded citizens to discuss, argue and converse current issues, with the potential of the message reaching millions of people increasing political participation. Activists are often able to deliberate with people that they would not usually meet via this medium.

Arguably it can be said that non-voting is not a critical issue as through the means of modern technology there has been a rise in political participation. Yet this does not necessarily correlate to an increase in voter turnout. The online medium provides a platform for a number of ordinary people however it has been suggested that online political behaviour fails to achieve conventional standards of significance in the offline participation model (Best and Krueger, 2005). It should be questioned how effective political participation through ‘liking’ or ‘sharing’ a post is and how often this leads to a vote. This form of participation can be considered low cost; as long as one has an internet connection, they are able to spread political information. This information is not always truthful and is often biased and created to be shared and influence others opinions. From this it can also be inferred that citizens may simply end up to talking to like-minded people who have similar ideological views or support the same party. While an increase in political participation can be treated as a positive it may not directly affect voter turnout.

A substantial cause of non-voting is protest voting which can take a variety of forms such as: blank ballots with no markings on them, null ballots where votes are cast incorrectly and cannot be accepted and spoiled ballots that have been defaced, deformed or otherwise marked in a way that makes the ballot ineligible (Driscoll and Nelson, 2014). These particular forms of protest voting exacerbate the issue of non-voting as evidence indicates that in the 2015 general election, the UK total of rejected or spoilt votes was 97,870 (Vote or Vote None, 2017). If these votes were valid and not dismissed as spoilt ballots or ‘voter’s mistakes’ then they would have the potential of possibly changing the results of the election and significantly making a difference. These type of protest votes have a consequence for official statistics as these invalid votes cannot be counted yet in a sense they cannot be classed as non-voting either because voters have shown that they are passionate about an issue causing them to turn up to vote and spoil ballots.

Another form of protest voting is where citizens will vote for a fringe or less preferred candidate or party hoping to indicate a sense of frustration to the party they would typically vote for. Alternatively, the voter may adopt a desire to constrain the expected winner. This may arise where the voter wishes to humble a party that is poised to win an overwhelming margin (Franklin, Niemi and Whitten, 1994 pg. 552). However, this type of protest vote can be fairly undistinguishable as if a minor party option is available and taken, then the intent of protest voters is further compromised as the message they are sending is both unclear and likely to siphon votes from their true party of preference (Damore, Waters and Bowler, 2012). This specific type of vote does not worsen the issue of non-voting directly as voters are still participating by voting due to a rational choice nonetheless this action does not reflect their true attitude to politics but rather show a dissatisfaction for a party or candidate in that particular election.

Furthermore, abstention can be regarded as a form of protest when it is not the result of apathy naturally intensifying the concern of non-voting. This action may show disillusionment with the system itself as citizens may choose to abstain due to a feeling of alienation from politics as a whole if they feel that the political system is not serving their interests or is not aligned with their values (Shryane, Fieldhouse and Pickles, 2006). Politically dissatisfied voters may temporarily withdraw their support from their preferred candidate or party even if that party has a good chance of winning, in the hope that this signal of dissatisfaction will lead to downstream improvements in that candidate’s or party’s performance (Kselman and Niou, 2011). Actively spoiling or defacing ballots in order to ‘send a message’ to a party or candidate may be more effective than simply abstaining that may be mistaken for apathy and impacts the non-voting controversy. The concept of anarchism which favours statelessness and opposition to hierarchy and rejects representative democracy in favour of direct participation in decision-making has historically called for abstention as a form of protest. Unlike the other forms of protest voting, abstention, to some extent, can negatively influence the matter of non-voting to a substantial extent.

Protest voting carries a common theme of a voter feeling disappointed however protest voting is not in itself an apathetic behaviour; it assumes the configuration of a complete electoral act performed as an expression of disaffection against the established parties and/or those for who they usually voted (Kang, 2004). Although this act can be considered as a rational, politically informed choice, it still effects the issue of non-voting. In order to try and overcome this problem, a small number of countries have attempted to introduce compulsory voting. For example, in Brazil it is compulsory for literate citizens between 18 and 70 years old to vote as they believe it is the citizen’s duty and responsibility to vote (Power, 2009). On the one hand, this reduces the problem of non-voting as it has been made compulsory but on the other hand, those who are determined to either abstain or protest will continue to do so.

Unlike some forms of protest voting where voters still turn out to vote and non-voting isn’t affected as directly as abstaining, apolitical apathy can have a larger effect on this topic. Apathy can lead to a low voter turnout and stagnation in a state’s government (Merrifield, 1993). Similar to protest voting, apolitical apathy can take form in a numerous amount of ways. Firstly, the paradox of voting, suggested by Downs (1957), explains one theory why people refuse to vote as for many people the cost of voting in the form of transport and time is too valuable compared to the benefit, they would potentially receive from voting which is perceived as very low. These voters often feel that their one vote wouldn’t have much influence. This also relates to chequebook voting when people will only vote if they feel that they will benefit from it which can also possibly lead to apathy as if voters don’t feel that they are likely to benefit personally from voting they will not participate.

Additionally, Downs suggested that in democracies the aggregate distribution of political opinion forms a bell-shaped curve, with most voters possessing moderate opinions; he argued that that this fact forces political parties in democracies to adopt centrist positions (Rogers, 1959) enforcing the opinion that parties often direct their policies to the median voter. The theory of the median voter states that a majority rule voting system will select the outcome most preferred by the median voter (Holcombe, 2006). From this it can be inferred that, in theory if policies are adapted and geared towards the mass population then there should be no question of non-voting as the majority of citizens will agree with the objectives of the planned policies presented by parties. However, in reality this theory is broadly one-dimensional as often voters make their decision on who to vote for based on several policies rather than just the one. Moreover, for those who are apolitically apathetic and do not care about voting, whether or not policies are tailored towards them will not make a difference therefore continuing to aggravate the issue of non-voting.

Apolitical apathy significantly fluctuates in certain groups, for instance young people and ethnic minority groups are generally considered to often refrain from voting. A study conducted by Franklin (2004) analyses electoral trends and concluded that age in Britain as in many other countries is a significant predictor of turnout. There is evidence to support this as in the General Election of 2001, only 39% of eligible 18-24 year olds voted and in the following election this fell even lower to 37% (Electoral Commission, 2005). This trend may be simply due to the reason that young people feel disconnected and uninterested in politics or there may be a fault with the education system in place which isn’t providing enough knowledge for school leavers. Many believe that within the current education system and curriculum in place schools are not effective at communicating current political and economic affairs (Morris, 2017). In the long run, this will significantly affect the issue of non-voting as if the current generation are uninterested in politics now, as they grow older it will become difficult to engage them and for them to become unapathetic. Although this is concerning, turnout within this group increased to 44% in 2010 (Ipsos MORI, 2010) which was largely due to the university tuition fees campaign motivating a lot of young people to politically participate. This further proves the theory of chequebook voting where voters will only participate when they will receive some benefit personally from voting which can be seen in this case specifically.

The leadership effect can impact the decision of a voter as arguably leaders are the face of election campaigns especially since the development of mass media. This has resulted in a suggestion that many voters may only vote if they like the party leaders. It has been argued that parliamentary elections in the UK have become ‘presidentialised’ (Bean and Mughan, 2014). Even though theoretically in the UK, citizens vote for parties who campaign for seats, in reality it is claimed that occasionally voters would cast their vote for whichever party leader they would most prefer to see as prime minister. Alternatively, if voters do not find party leaders charismatic, motivating and relatable it may cause them to become apathetic making the issue of non-voting worse. An example of this can be seen during the time Tony Blair was prime minister as he was constantly described as ‘charismatic’ and ‘approachable’ (Brown, 2010) which may have resulted in those who are typically non-voters to vote as they found Blair’s personality captivating. There is a possibility that the leadership effect could potentially reduce apolitical apathy amongst some and the issue of non-voting.

Similarly, to young people, ethnic minorities have often felt disconnected from politics and thus not voted in elections. Votes from ethnic minorities can cause a consequential effect for non-voting and may be due to apathy. On the one hand, a reason why this group of people don’t frequently vote may be simply because English is not their first language and they can’t understand how to vote. Additionally, minorities may not understand the system which prevents them from voting. Ethnic minorities may also feel that policies don’t impact them and feel neglected by politicians (Wigmore, 2014) causing them to not vote. Minorities may also feel anxious about giving details of their status as it might result in a loss of benefit, raise debt problems and they may face immigration questions (Wigmore, 2014). This may not be directly due to apathy but considerably impacts non-voting. However, ethnic minorities may choose to not vote because they are apathetic and do not care about voting as it doesn’t impact their home country. As ethnic minorities make up a significant amount of the population, without their votes, the issue of non-voting continues to deteriorate.

In conclusion, when analysing the effects of both protest voting and apolitical apathy on the political sphere, and answering the question, ‘is the issue of non-voting a matter of political protest or apolitical apathy?’ it is significantly apolitical apathy that causes non-voting. When comparing the two aspects, it is clear to see that in many forms of political voting, citizens are still technically casting a vote. Whereas with apolitical apathy, people do not care about the political activities occurring in their country and will simply not vote at all causing the issue of non-voting to become even weaker. Political apathy occurs within a number of groups, that either believe their vote won’t count or make any difference, who collectively make up a large amount of the population and have the potential to change certain results and reduce the problem of non-voting. Countries who introduced mandatory voting have attempted to tackle this problem of apathy and disinterest. For example, both Belgium and Turkey have political participation rates over 80% (Desilver, 2018). While some forms of protest voting such as spoiling and defacing ballots and blank ballots also make the problem of non-voting worse, it is significant to note that several forms of protest voting mean that a vote is still cast by a citizen therefore not effecting non-voting directly. From this it can be deduced that apolitical apathy causes the issue of non-voting to worsen to a larger extent than protest voting does.

Any action that humankind takes is a decision that could lead to either progression or degeneration. A civilization is comprised of a system that is created to serve the well-being of a people, not a corrupted one that has been succumbed to indifference, lack of morality, deception, and materialism, etc. Looking back at history, we can discuss the struggles of African Americans during the early 20th century. The novel Invisible Man written by Ralph Ellison, is about the trials and tribulations of a colored man struggling through life who simply wishes to fit in and contribute to society any way he can. He is met with obstacles every way he turns. It is not a pleasant world that the author has created. It is clear that there is a deeper layer behind the meaning and message of the novel. A person becomes a part of a marginalized group and experiences the indifference or apathy from other groups in society. The world depicted in the novel is unpleasant, where it becomes a battlefield for a colored person who has to struggle to fit into society. Apathy is a dangerous phenomenon in the world, and the novel depicts its dangers where division and prejudice among black and white people have caused a rift within a society where the misery and struggles of African Americans have become the norm.

Hate and bigotry toward people of color, and at a time when African Americans were still considered as Negroes during the mid-20th century, the historical contribution by colored people from the past appeared to have been disregarded. There is a melancholic quote from the novel about the people we have forgotten who contributed to the world, and they are usually overlooked: “The men who made the railroads and ships and towers of stone, were before our eyes, in the flesh, their voices different, unweighted with recognizable danger and their delight in our songs more sincere seeming, their regard for our welfare marked by an almost benign and impersonal indifference” (Ellison 88). The narrator laments on the history of the African slaves, and some may argue that he tries to victimize himself because he is suffering as well indirectly. He may not be in chains, but the main character has to struggle to survive in the world around him constantly.

In a world where apathy has become the norm, people can manipulate others to get what they want. In other words, people are used for devious purposes. Usually, most people do not go out of the way unless there is some agenda involved. When the main character joins the Brotherhood, which supposedly exists to fight against social injustice, it has its own agenda and restrictions. He realizes that the Brotherhood is not really about taking care of Harlem or the black movement. “Everywhere I’ve turned somebody has wanted to sacrifice me for my own good—only /they/ were the ones who benefited. And now we start on the old sacrificial merry-go-round. At what point do we stop?” (Ellison 391). There was a scenario where the main character is manipulated to thinking that certain white men care about him because they are willing to offer him a scholarship for college. However, he is humiliated by them after he is forced into a boxing fight with other black men. The white men were humiliating black people because they were enforcing their own mindset of the world where a person has to struggle to get what he/she wants.

The main character was forced to accept the ‘dog-eat-dog world’ mindset, where each person has to struggle to achieve something. Every way the black man turns, he is met with obstacles and deceit, and these things become normal in an apathetic world. The theme of responsibility is brought up time and again throughout the novel. We are responsible for how the world is shaped because we make a decision to either bring about change or remain accustomed to the status quo. If we do not accept responsibility in one way or another, then “apathy becomes present to some degree in everyone. Everyone had sometimes had a chance to get involved when another truly needed help and has chosen non-involvement or denial of responsibility” (Sharpe 298). In the novel, there is a moment where the main character was about to kill someone with a knife but made a choice not to. The character stresses that ‘All dreamers and sleepwalkers must pay the price, and even the invisible victim is responsible for the fate of all. But I shirked that responsibility” (Ellison 12). If we do not work towards change, then we face the price of what we see in the world today. Apathy or lack of indifference is more prevalent than it ever was. For example, the majority of people simply walk past a beggar or homeless person on the street. People are living comfortable and luxurious lives because of the materialism around them, and they are totally unaffected by what they see on the side of the street or sidewalk. At a certain point in the novel, there is a dream sequence where the main character is trapped in a metal box and glass. The symbolic image of the man inside a machine is highlighted throughout the novel several times. We can also infer that the machine is referring to technology and the rise of materialism, leading to apathy or indifference. “Behold! A walking zombie! He’s learned to repress not only his emotions but his humanity. He’s invisible, a walking personification of the Negative, and the perfect achievement of your dreams! The mechanical man!’ (Ellison 74). Even though the issue of race is one of the main themes of the novel, it hints at other subtle meanings. “Today amorality is exhibited by society tolerating: lies, innuendoes, cover-ups, and distortions by our politicians, riots, unruly protests, destruction of other peoples’ property, leaking of classified documents, fake news, half-truths, and double standards” (Levitt). There are those who have become blinded to the destruction they are causing to people around the world due to the fact that their lack of morality and apathy has become prevalent in a degraded world. The events that took place during the civil rights movement were just the beginning of social inequality. Today it has spread throughout society, whether it comes to social classes, economic disparity, conflict of opinions, and the rise of leftism, etc. The problems that the main character of the novel faced have not been diminished. In fact, they have been taken to a whole new level in a divided world today.

If we look back at the prologue of Invisible Man and understand what the narrator is actually trying to say, we know he has suffered because of his race and color. However, it is a cry out to humanity that has lost touch with reality and the ability to really connect with others. ‘Apathy, distrust, boredom, and indifference are the end result of invisibility as this is articulated by the author of the Invisible Man in the prologue of the novel” (Johnson 24). The narrator says that people refuse to see him. The people he comes across in the story do not make any attempt to look beyond the veil of what lies before them. Their minds are already polluted with prejudice, division, and a sense of superiority (regarding the white people the narrator comes across throughout the novel). Many readers may ask why is the character put through so much conflict, obstacles, and misery. Some would say the novel is a story about the survival of a Negro in a hostile world. The character’s life is a reflection of us in one form or another. Just as the Negro continues to find ways to conform to society, we too find ways to conform to society in the modern and complex world we have today. So this begs the question if the world depicted by Ralph Ellison is really any different from our current one, and if anything has changed from the mid-19th century to the current 20th century.

Apathy has become a major problem in the modern world, combined with the lack of indifference that has existed in one form or another for centuries. However, it only started to become widespread from the early 20th century. In Invisible Man, what the narrator faces and the kinds of indifferent people he confronts throughout the novel can be relatable to anyone who has belonged to a minority group or the less fortunate members of society. It makes us wonder why apathy has become the norm today. If we look at this from a psychological perspective, “apathy comes from a human being experiencing something that they simply cannot handle. Instead of the brain attempting to reconcile and comprehend, it performs its own convoluted coping mechanism: a numbing or getting used to the cause of the distress” (McKim). The suffering of African Americans became normal for the general population, especially for the whites. They did not feel any impact on changing it, and they went on with their busy lives. Unfortunately, for the narrator in the novel, he decided to isolate himself from the world since he became so convinced that humankind had no place for him. He experienced apathy from people different than himself at a time of division and hate. He was mostly treated as inferior as compared to the so-called “superior white race.” This manner of division is still prevalent in our world today because “when you are a member of a marginalized community, it is easy to feel at once the indifference, casual or studied, of the world passing by, and, too, the way you can never quite blend in, for you become visible precisely at the moment you break societal rank, the moment you step where your class is not supposed to” (Bellot). This is why the novel of Ralph Ellison still resonates with many readers today. If people do not associate with other people as equal to themselves, apathy will continue to be an epidemic in the world.

If people do not associate with other people as equal to themselves, apathy will continue to be an epidemic in the world. Other people may explore if the author’s point of view, and the narrator’s point of view were the same. That is a very good possibility to ponder upon since ‘Ellison’s outlook was universal: he saw the predicament of blacks in America as a metaphor for the universal human challenge of finding a viable identity in a chaotic and sometimes indifferent world” (Seidlitz). The main character ends up in a manhole at the end of the novel, and he accepts his situation as a man who has been broken by the fabric of society. In Ellison’s view through his novel, the United States has become a perplexing and cruel world for the unfortunate groups of society. There are numerous people belonging to different cultures, societies, and lifestyles. So why do we oppose a certain group of people who pose no threat to us or those who look different from others? The author Ralph Ellison masterfully highlighted this during a powerful moment in the novel Invisible Man when it is asked that why a Negro in war is treated as an equal as compared to a Negro living in a city that is just trying to get by in life. Why would the main character place himself in defeat at the end of the novel? Some interpret it as a kind of triumph for the character, whereas others see it as a form of defeat. The character may have seen himself as invisible, but isolating oneself from the world is not a form of justice for a colored man who has been wronged by society for a long time. Life for colored men was not easy for centuries, not even after when Lincoln abolished slavery through the Thirteenth Amendment. It is possible that the author was hinting about social divisions that fluctuate according to certain circumstances in the current society.

What makes the story of the Invisible Man tragic is that the main character of the novel has no apathy towards the world, yet he is forced to struggle in an apathetic world. The man has both an optimistic and pessimistic worldview about humanity as he goes through his trials and tribulations. He tries his best not to impose any ill will on anybody, however, at one point he does attempt to try to kill a man who insulted him, but he does not. If he had murdered that person, he would be no different as the people who hated him simply because of the color of his skin. The author Ralph Ellison has lived long enough to witness the civil rights movement and the assassination of Martin Luther King. Would the novel Invisible Man be interpreted differently if it was written in the 1970s? No, but perhaps Ralph Ellison may have had a different method in telling his story. It would have been interesting to ask the author if his worldview changed before his death in the early 1990s. The world had changed, and the African American people became more inclusive in society. However, there are still no shortages of literary works based on slavery, racism, and prejudice today. Readers need to be reminded of the untold stories of African Americans because we still have a lot to learn about their stories. If apathy is reduced in the world, we may no longer need to be reminded of the pain and suffering that so many have endured over the ages.

Negativity is unfortunate and misfortunes endeavors that majorly results due to some people’s undoing or ignorance. Normally, human beings are exposed to all manners of emotionally, physically, and psychologically disturbing events and activities that might either lead to a state of indifference or apathy. The state of indifference is characterized by a lack of interest, concern, or even sympathy about an individual, society, event, or even a State policy. Equally, apathy is the inability to have enthusiasm or zeal for any sort of concern.

Consequently, concerns have been raised on whether indifference or apathy has the necessity of leading to something negative. This essay, therefore, affirms indeed if improperly handled at early stages of manifestation, indifference and apathy based on the definition may necessitate to something negative. Additionally, it elucidates how such situations may become dangerous hence the negativity.

Indifference makes an individual to be unable to distinguish situations. A state of indifference as a circumstance of no difference (Wiesel 4). Whenever an individual assumes or considers a situation as one that does not need any intervention, the situation is deemed to be normal. Lack of interest or concern may lead to an inability to sympathize with a situation however much harmful it is. Such happening may let a situation that can be controlled, avoided or prevented to happen. It creates the no difference mentality making a circumstance that might have been corrected to have a positive result is ignored. Therefore, indifference as a state of no difference may lead to something negative.

Additionally, agreeing to Wiesel that the state of indifference equals being inhuman while at the same time considers other people unimportant (8). Ideally, normalcy dictates that whenever a fellow human being is undergoing unbearable situations, there is supposed to be an intervening response. Due to the coldhearted nature of indifference an individual may lack the influence of their personal feeling or opinion on intervention in saving a situation. The act of unresponsiveness may lead to deaths or injuries of endangered individuals. Therefore, an individual may lose a life due to a situation that could have been saved by having interest, humanity, and the importance of life.

Apathy as a lack of enthusiasm may also lead to the absence of a zeal that may get involved in an activity. Psychological research which is accepted scientifically that the drive to pursue a course entirely depends on one’s feeling of being part of it, (Seltzer 2). Therefore, in a situation where apathy guzzles an individual, it leads to a lack of personal interest, vehemence, and aptitude to follow up on a situation to its success and positivity. Moreover, a lack of eagerness to handle a condition with keenness and goodwill automatically affects the aftermath negatively. Therefore, apathy or indifference of an individual of a group of people in an organization spontaneously leads to undesirable and damaging results.

Furthermore, indifference may necessarily lead to something negative since it elicits no response (Glynn and Alexandra 7). It can hence be defined as more of a culmination than a commencement and more often of an associate to a rival which benefits the oppressor but not the casualty. It makes the less fortunate or privileged feel elapsed. Consequently, indifference may lead to a lack of response to vital issues and situates which in turn hurts the sparks of hope from individuals. Lack of response due to indifference or apathy may leave other people feeling less of human hence it is considered more of undeserved punishment.

The tempting nature of indifference make is more likely to lead to more negativities in many scenarios. According Wiesel indifference or apathy makes it easy for an individual to look away from targets of situations that might turn negative (5). Furthermore, apathy and indifference make interventions to save jobs, dreams, and hopes look obdurate, bothersome, and pain since it interferes with other people’s hope. Moreover, an indifferent person views others as futile and less important. Consequently, this nature of the living, operation, or implantation may lead to ignorance hence failure to save a situation that could otherwise turn out to be positive. Therefore, the tempting nature of indifference and apathy basically contributes to the negativity of various situations.

In conclusion, indifference and apathy may grossly and necessarily lead to something negative. Based on the definition of both indifference and apathy as a condition, no difference makes it difficult for an indifferent person to attempt in changing a situation which may consequently result in negativity. Additionally, the ability of indifference to view people as less human and important, make it problematic for an indifferent person to intervene in saving a situation. Furthermore, lack of enthusiasm and response due to indifference and apathy may also disinterest and indifferent a person to be reluctant in saving situations. Therefore, indifference and apathy naturally necessitate something negative.

Reference

1. Glynn, Alexandra. ‘Elie Wiesel’s’ Perils of Indifference ‘and the Ownership of Words, Ideographs, and Archetypal Metaphors.’ Ideographs, and Archetypal Metaphors (March 2, 2011) (2011). Paragraph 7.
2. Leon F Seltzer PhD. The Curse of Apathy: Sources and Solutions’. Psychology Today, (2016) paragraph 2. Retrieved on 27th March 2020 from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/evolution-the-self/201604/the-curse-apathy-sources-and-solutions.
3. Wiesel, Elie. ‘The perils of indifference.’ Washington, DC, April 12 (1999). Paragraphs 4, 5&8

Technology, while connecting us and letting us share our feelings with the world, it also seems to suck up feeling, leaving us apathetic. With the technology we have today, we see a lot of world events all the time on reality shows and the news. All of this constant media desensitizes the viewer and makes these events seem every day and normal. This is shown in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 when our main character is yelling at one of his wife’s friends to “‘go home and think of your first husband divorced and your second husband killed in a jet and your third husband blowing his brains out, go home and think of the dozen abortions you’ve had, go home and think of that and your damn Caesarian sections, too, and your children who hate your guts!’” She, not unlike the rest of humanity in the novel, has been desensitized to much of what we would consider taboo. “Are You Lost in a World like Me” also illustrates this in a more symbolic way. You see, throughout the music video, Steve Cutts animated many cat-like, anthropomorphic people into the crowds. Normally, cats in media represent a deep knowledge of the natural world. But, by contrast, these cat-human hybrids symbolize a dulling of such senses. This is the case due to how the other humans throughout the video are represented. They all act ignorant and drone-like all the while looking down, at their phones. This is further proven with a singular, seemingly normal cat, hiding in the background for a few quick seconds. This shows that cats and these cat-people are different.

Tech can provide constant stimulation in the form of news, relationships, and entertainment, but it can become addicting for those seeking the things that are absent from their lives. Ray Bradbury showcases this while describing a vision our main character has while his city is bombed. Mildred, his wife, “saw her own face reflected there, in a mirror instead of a crystal ball, and it was such a wildly empty face, all by itself in the room, touching nothing, starved and eating off itself, that at last she recognized it as her own.” This vivid description of Mildred depicts the health effects addiction has caused her. She has put off doing everything just to feel happy in her ‘parlor.’ She hasn’t slept or eaten; she’s become horribly thin. She “needs” the rush of talking with the ‘family.’ This is further proven by how Mildred interacts with these TV walls: “leaning anxiously, nervously, as if to plunge, drop, fall into that swarming immensity of color to drown in its bright happiness.” She uses these walls as her coping mechanism for her troubles. She wishes to envelope herself in the happiness and permanently ignore everything else. Montag views these walls as “great idiot monsters/ with/ white thoughts/ and/ snowy dreams.” Both “white” and “snowy” being symbols of false innocence and harsh ignorance, the very emotions Mildred wishes to feel internally. Of course, this dependence of technology is an unhealthy and faulty way of fighting one’s problems. It can only prolong the inevitability of your problems snowballing into something you can no longer control. Steve Cutts also refers to humanity’s unhealthy addiction to tech in “Are You Lost in a World Like Me” with the phrase “THESE SYSTEMS ARE FAILING” flashing on the screen and appearing in ads throughout the music video. The phrase illustrates how the cycle of addiction is like a system. You do it to distract yourself and to deny the issue; then, realizing that you’re only shielding yourself for a short amount of time, you do it again and again, hoping to erase the issue with ignorance entirely.

With all this negativity about technology, there must be another side, right? There is and it’s all about awareness. You see, before people around the world could communicate with one another instantly, things didn’t spread much. Sure, we had paper and all that came with it but nothing as reliable or fast. One example of this is the Iran hijab protests. So, if you didn’t know already, women in Iran don’t have to same freedoms as men. They always must be accompanied with a man and they must wear hijabs. Well, “protests have gone on for years, [most]times unnoticed outside Iran,” writes Peter Kenyon, an international correspondent for NPR, “[protesters] say public awareness of the issue has grown [significantly].”

Now, that’s good and all but when the higher-ups control what is seen and what isn’t, awareness is thrown out the window. Whoever is running things can censor what they don’t want people knowing and promoting what they want the populace to know. This is where censorship and brainwashing come into play. Fahrenheit 451 holds technology solely responsible for humanity’s brainwashing. Books are burned because, as Beatty lectures, “‘a book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it. Take the shot from the weapon. Breach man’s mind. Who knows who might be the target of the well-read man?’” Books are feared because they give the people something to think over, something to argue about. Beatty summarizes this when he states, “‘if you don’t want a man unhappy politically, don’t give him two sides to a question to worry him; give him one. Better yet, give him none.’” The books are gone because they can spark rebellion.

This could also happen with the internet. If a world authority doesn’t like a certain website, they can wipe it completely from public consumption. This is already happening in Iran with the women’s rights protests stated earlier: “Facebook and Twitter are banned in the Islamic Republic. Other popular platforms like Instagram have also been blocked temporarily from time to time — ‘to keep the peace,’ according to authorities.” The Islamic government doesn’t want its people to know what’s going on. Things only get worse when the government promotes their own agenda. Bradbury hints at this multiple times throughout the novel but one of his most conspicuous examples is when Faber, an old, cowardly professor, explains to Montag why no one will listen: “‘[The media] tells you what to think and blasts it in. It must be right. It seems so right. It rushes you on so quickly to its own conclusions your mind hasn’t time to protest.’” Everyone is so addicted to technology that anything they learn from it is now engrained into their own beliefs. Mildred can’t understand why Montag cares so much about the books because “‘she listens to the walls.’” She has been brainwashed into thinking like Beatty. She believes that books only cause conflict.

One of the most important factors to staying independent as an older adult is the ability to perform daily tasks of living and self-care. The progression of Parkinson’s Disease (PD) leads to an increasing inability to perform daily activities, loss of independence, and a decreased quality of life, and it generates socioeconomic and occupational impairments (Morris, Watts, & Iansek, 2009). The most effective interventions that are beneficial not only for PD prevention, but also for most other common chronic diseases, is an increase in physical activity (Ascherio & Schwarzschild, 2016). The potential benefits of exercise in individuals with Parkinson’s disease are an area of active investigation, including randomized trials.

An inverse relation between amount of physical activity and PD was first prospectively reported in the Neurology (2005) and substantiated in five additional longitudinal studies (the Harvard Alumni Health Study (2006), the CPS-IIN (2008), the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study (2010), the Finnish Mobile Clinic Study (2014), and the Swedish National March Cohort (2015)). The combined results of these studies show that frequent moderate or vigorous physical activity is associated with a reduction in PD risk and development of symptoms, such as bradykinesia, rigidity, tremor, and postural instability. Especially when associated with decreased activity and a sedentary lifestyle due to apathy, the impairments in PD accelerate the decline in motor function.

PubMed, CINAHL, and Embase electronic literature searches were conducted to find current research using exercise therapy as an adjunct to pharmaceuticals in the relief of PD symptoms. following key words and MeSH terms were used: Physical therapy, exercise therapy, L-Dopa, dopamine, therapy, pharmacology, Parkinson’s disease, symptoms, tremors, routine, administration, and nervous system. The following limitations were applied: full text, abstract available, English language, last 5 years research article, peer reviewed and human subjects only. Of the most appropriate level IV articles (Polit & Beck, 2012), four are described in detail in Table 1, which include one from PubMed, two from CINAHL, and one from Embase.

The pathophysiology of tremor in Parkinson disease (PD) involves a complex interaction between central and peripheral mechanisms. The therapeutic response of tremor to dopaminergic medications is generally unpredictable as no drug has been proven to consistently relieve the symptom (Jitkritsadakul et al., 2015). Dopamine replacement strategies, either through pharmacological or non-pharmacological means, like exercise, are effective for many motor symptoms. Throughout the disease course, essentially all patients with PD will receive treatment with L-DOPA. In a healthy individual, L-DOPA is converted by amino acid decarboxylase to dopamine within dopaminergic neurons and is released via normal synaptic and non-synaptic mechanisms. In Parkinson’s disease, conversion sites for L-DOPA to dopamine diminish progressively, causing the PD symptoms (Svenningsson et al., 2015). Therapeutic options for PD should not be limited to interventions that involve basal ganglia and cerebellar circuits like pharmacologic therapies or surgical procedures (Bloem, de Vries, & Ebersbach, 2015).

A physical activity that has had some success in preventing fall injury is strength training. These exercise programs target the fall risk factors of balance, leg strength, and freezing of gait. Although falls were only significantly reduced in those with milder forms of PD, there were signs of improved physical and psychological health overall with strength training (Canning et al., 2015). Physical rehabilitation is commonly used in patients with PD. Both strength training and aerobic training have been shown to be effective to improve their health and alleviate the symptoms of PD patients (Carvalho et al., 2015).

The willingness to do exercise and strive for self-improvement must be fueled by a desire to reach certain physical goals. Not having the desire to overcome obstacles in life, such as a neurodegenerative disorder like PD, combined can make outcomes detrimentally worse. Apathy is highly prevalent in Parkinson’s disease and can severely affect the quality of life of both patients and caregivers (Pagonabarraga et al., 2015). The integrity of subcortical structures that link the prefrontal cortex with the limbic system is necessary for human motivation. Dopaminergic treatment of Parkinson’s disease is the frontline intervention when it comes to staving off apathy and other symptoms.

Apathy is a frequent neuropsychiatric disturbance that can precede the onset of the first motor symptoms of PD (Pont-Sunyer, Hotter, & Gaig, 2014). Apathy seems to decrease after introduction of dopaminergic treatment and is a key symptom of the worsening of PD as the disease progresses; predictive of decreased functioning in activities of daily living, decreased response to treatment, poor outcome, and diminished quality of life. (Dujardin et al., 2009). Dopaminergic drugs in combination with exercise therapy to improve the emotional and behavioral aspects of motivation, and for cholinesterase inhibitors to treat the cognitive aspects of apathy, is what the current literature points to as the most effective treatment. (Drijgers et al., 2009).

It can be concluded that physical training associated with pharmacologics contributes synergistically to improving the PD treatment response and should be prescribed by healthcare providers to improve the mental and physical health of patients. Even with optimal dopaminergic treatments and physical activity, many patients with Parkinson’s disease are frequently incapacitated by apathy, accelerating the disease process. We should give patients all the tools they need to have the best chance at their success.

Introduction

It has been years since the alarm of the climate crisis has been ringing, a cascade of catastrophes following in its wake while civilization remains either aware and alert but also unaffected. There is a constant discussion in media about the alarming trends that speak for themselves; the rising global temperatures, warming of oceans, rising sea levels, shrinking of ice sheets, increase in extreme events, population growth and many other global phenomena, the prove evidence for climate change is overwhelming. It has been recognized and advocated since 1992 by scientists across the world that “a great change in our stewardship of the Earth and the life on it is required, if vast human misery is to be avoided”, a notion that has been echoed once more in 2017 (Ripple et al., 2017) by 15,000 scientists from 184 countries (Mortillaro, 2017). While there is an increase in public acknowledgment of this reality, it has led to general disengagement of public and inaction towards climate change. While both apathy and climate change denial are destructive attuites that move the public away from our goal to mediate the climate crisis, public apathy only continues to grow along with the abundant evidence of climate change that comes to light. The aim of this paper is to understand the causes and effects of apathy towards climate change and potential methods to combat this attitude. Understanding these aspects of public perception towards global warming is important as it can become a critical step in turning public apathy into public action as a response to climate change.

Causes of Climate Change Apathy & Inaction

One of the main causes of public apathy stems from the lack of clarity in climate communication. The communication between climate specialists and political authorities often creates an understanding of the underlying sciences which is not sufficient to appropriately evaluate climate problems and face controversies. This results in the inability of political leaders to issue public support climate policies and for the public to take personal actions to mitigate emissions (Lorenzoni, Nicholson-Cole, & Whitmarsh, 2007). Contributing to issue is the disparity among media coverage on climate issues which have been proven to have a dramatic impact on public perception (Lewis & Boyce, 2009) and create uncertainty and skepticism within public (Lockwood, 2011). In addition, the media coverage on climate issues varies extensively based on geopolitical and economic contexts. A paper looking at the climate issue coverage in the media by major greenhouse gas emissions countries showed that coverage within developing countries was similar but large disparities consisted in developed regions (Pandey & Kurian, 2017). These barriers which cause a lack in understanding the issue in its entirety, which include aspects such as the sources of climate change, evidence of climate change, evaluating environmental impact on various individual and community level, and understanding climate policies and debate.

Another factor that can cause public apathy is the perception of the climate crisis as a psychological distant threat. The concept of psychological distance was developed by Liberman and Trope, which states that multiple factors such as certainty, urgency, personal harm or implication of a threat create the perception of threat (2008). A study applied this of psychological distance in the context of climate change and found that environmental threats especially global warming was psychologically distant in all three of the dimensions of urgency, certainty and personal implications (Carmi & Kimhi, 2015). This study also concluded that psychological distance was a strong predictor of emotional response and motivation to act and make changes for the sake of the environment. As climate concerns are perceived to be a temporally and spatially distant threat, we prioritize and assume the responsibility of other concerns at an individual and governmental level as they are presumed to be a more urgent, likely and probable threat to our existence or well-being than global warming.

While this paper identifies communication disparity and viewing climate change as a distant threat to be the main contributors to public apathy in developed countries, other possible causes may still exist. These individual causes of public apathy can greatly contribute to public attitude, is it also possible that public apathy is a result of not one, but many of these causes working in conjunction and leading to unmotivated and unaffected attitudes towards climate change.

Combatting Climate Change Apathy and Inaction

The United Nations Paris Agreement aims to increase and accelerate action towards combating climate change by reducing global carbon emissions and limit global temperature increase (United Nations, General Assembly, 2016). To reach these ambiguous goals requires not only the contribution of government but also the awareness and participation of the public. Perception of climate change becomes a barrier of awareness and participation is leading to in inaction and apathy of the public. A change in our behavior against the climate crisis first demands a change in our attitudes towards the issue.

The lack of clarity and understanding about the public on global warming drastically affects the way people perceive these issues and act accordingly. A study suggests that enhance education on climate change is required to reduce communication barriers but also to explore the pre-existing notion on global issues (Wibeck, 2014). To reduce the distortion of information created by media, the paper also suggests that it is crucial that improvements between science communication of complex information to the media (Wibeck, 2014). Another study highlights the importance of climate literacy as a necessary means to establish public trust of climate change experts and policymakers in democratic societies. This study claims that climate literacy must come in the form of empowering messages and delivered to the public through many forms of media eluding to the emphasis on media literacy education to create a better understanding of climate issues and reduce skepticism (Cooper, 2011).

The implementation of fear and urgency in the way information on climate change is conveyed to the public is often an attempt to promote motivation and action. Studies have shown that this is in no means an effective strategy and can have counter-productive effects on climate communication and engagement (Ruiter, Kessels & Kok, 2014, Reser & Bradley, 2017). As mentioned previously this tactic fails due to the perception of the climate threat as psychologically distant which reduces motivation to act. A study suggests that it would require a mental representation that would create an intense emotional reaction to the anthropogenic activities and its ecological consequences in order to make these aspects seem more relevant, likely and vivid and be detected as a severe threat (Böhm & Pfister, 2005). Another study supports the claim that fear-inducing tactics can distance and disempower the public and move them toward apathy, however making public engagement more meaningful through visual imagery and icons to make climate change a personal issue for the public to empathize with (O’Neill & Nicholson-Cole, 2009).

Conclusion

Succeeding the industrial revolution in the early 19th century, the adverse effects on the environment as a result human activity came into the forefront which launched an environmental awareness known as the ‘green revolution’ (Mason, 2014). Since then there has been a consistently increasing concern growing in the public which acknowledges the reality of the rapid rates of global warming and the many implications it can have on our social, political, economic and ecological systems. Rather than driving people to respond to climate change, the constant news, reports, and alarms have resulted in an apathetic attitude of the public general towards the issue which has become a barrier toward responding and mediating the effects of climate change. For this reason, it is critical to understand the reasons for public apathy toward the issue and resulting effects of this attitude to be able to find ways to turn public apathy into public action. Only when we understand the barriers of public perception can we hope to find means of engagement, empowerment, and action in actions towards climate change.

References

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