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The Post-Labor Utopia: Can AI Really Set Us Free?
Limitations are something to be transcended by the human spirit—not eliminated through technology.
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We have a special treat for readers today. The following article was written by Eugene Terekhin, the man and the mind behind the publication Philosophy of Language.
Philologist, philosopher, translator, and author Eugene Terekhin explores in Philosophy of Language the secret literary theory behind the fantasy worlds of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Owen Barfield who believed that when words are spoken aright, they invoke the invisible reality from behind the veil of the world. He is a voice of much needed wisdom in our day and age, when so much of true art is being eviscerated and trivialized.
He is the author of the following books and I have read three of his books and highly recommend them:
and The New Exodus: Escaping One Man’s War
We urge you to subscribe to Eugene’s insight-packed newsletter filled with the wisdom of the inklings, poets, philosophers, writers and great thinkers by clicking the button below:
This article originally appeared on Philosophy of Languagehere. I’m sharing it with The BoldBrush Letter because in it, Eugene has explored an important topic, perhaps the most important topic for creative people.
Editor’s Note: In two days, this post will be locked and is available only to paid members because we don’t want this duplicate content on the open web in a way that might draw traffic away from Eugene’s original post. If you are not a BoldBrush paid subscriber, you can still read the entire post here.
The Post-Labor Utopia: Can AI Really Set Us Free?
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In her recent video on “post-labor economy,” Julia McCoy, who calls herself “an explorer of the AI rabbit hole,” presents a bold vision of the 2030s where, thanks to AI, people don’t have to work anymore. No more pressure to work for money—AI is so advanced that, despite the disappearance of traditional employment models, people can still earn an income by participating in decentralized systems of creating universal wealth.
They have flexible schedules—household robots handle all the cooking, cleaning, shopping, etc. People learn, create, play, and chill all day long. According to Julia, humans will finally be able to fully devote themselves to creativity, now that all the tedious, menial tasks are automated.
She describes a normal day for a person in 2030s as a dream come true for humanity. AI will finally free individuals to be themselves—to truly engage in creativity now that all the boring tasks of life are out of the way. She envisions a future where everyone can focus on creativity, innovation, and personal fulfillment.
With all due respect, Julie misunderstands the mystery of creativity. Collective wisdom of humanity has produced a simple truth, well-captured by G.K. Chesterton:
Do not free a camel of the burden of his hump; you may be freeing him from being a camel. Orthodoxy
Julie advocates an approach that could as easily free a human being from being a human being. To be human means to be an artist; to be an artist means to rise above limitations—not to eliminate them.
The best works of art have emerged from transcending constraints. The Lord of the Rings was written in the trenches of WW2. Ludwig van Beethoven composed his Ninth Symphony while gradually losing his hearing. Pavel Florensky, a Russian Orthodox theologian, invented a method for extracting iodine from algae while in the Gulag.
The absence of limitations is the recipe for boredom, meaninglessness, and depression—not liberation. When a woodworker is led by the Spirit, they delight in every part of their work, no matter how menial. Whether it’s picking up wood, sawing, sanding, or hammering, no task is a nuisance but an opportunity to commune with the Spirit.
The most tedious and uninteresting work can become a bridge between heaven and earth, depending on how we view it. The so-called “menial” or “boring” tasks are only boring if we see them as obstacles to our immediate happiness. Yet, deep down, every artist knows that no part of their work exists outside of their creative process. No part can be fully delegated to the machine because everything we do contributes to who we are becoming.
Limitations are something to be transcended by the human spirit—not eliminated through technology. Whatever we seek to eliminate will return, like Lernaean Hydra, with new heads. The fallacy of worshipping technology lies in trying to erase that which must be transcended.
Whatever technology we use to escape limitations will backfire—creating more limitations. Limitations only disappear when transcended—when we see them as a bridge to rise above the earth on the wings of the Spirit.
The artist loves his limitations: they constitute the thing he is doing. The painter is glad that the canvas is flat. The sculptor is glad that the clay is colourless. G.K. Chesterton
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By Eugene Terekhin
A place for the outlaws of poetry and the written word. One of the aims of Poetic Outlaws is to revive the Promethean fire of the dead poets and artists in an attempt, however futile, to elevate the modern soul out of the sludge of the status quo.
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