Freedom, Liberty and Independence

Esen E. Celik

Jul 1, 2002

People have sought for freedom ever since humanity was created. This search was pursued by perceiving their willpower and trying to realize it fully, and sometimes by struggling with religion, customs, and morals. This freedom has been expressed through liberalism's deceptive face, atheism's aggressive deliriums, and communism's almost bohemian doctrines.

Europe's understanding of freedom, particularly in Britain, and the perception of freedom in the 1789 French Revolution are very different. Likewise, capitalists and communists differ vastly in their perceptions of freedom. Carlyle perceived it distinctly, Goethe described it differently, and Ruskin came up with strange comments on freedom. Holderlin portrayed it as a mysterious spell, Marx perceived it as expelling animalistic feelings in humans, and Nietzche depicted it as an amoral philosophy dominated by powerful (his co-called superman).

The modern understanding of freedom

Today, freedom is no more than the reinterpretation of past opinions, an understanding that the masses appear rational but move on an emotional dimension. Indeed it was inevitable that such people would bring about negative results--which they did. In this period, there was a different attitude toward religion.

History has been judged according to different criteria. Administration, finance, and politics had priority over all human values, and people were perceived as economic animals. Moreover, movies, the theater, and literature were used to propagate this new perception. Instead of religious belief, atheism was pumped into our souls. In short, our age has become one in which geniuses, sometimes sane and sometimes not, play a major role.

As our spirituality was mocked, materialistic generations were brought up in almost all social classes. As indulgence increased and flourished, generations found themselves drowning in social corruption, drug addiction, and obscenity.

Sexuality was defined in such ways to seduce even the cleanest and purest souls. All emotions were interpreted and depicted as slaves of the five senses. Experts looked for Freud's ideas--and claimed to find them--in the most innocent act of a mother breast-feeding her baby. Human conscience, captured by sexuality, was looking for, listening to, and focusing on the body at universities, research centers, school laboratories, journals, porn magazines, and even on TV and radio programs.

In such an atmosphere, it was hard to control morals and chastity over material lust. Moreover, passions were constantly kept thirsty through many types of seduction and encouragement. Nowadays, think of the dilemmas in the minds of those people who became total materialists, always seeking to fulfill their passions and constantly unsatisfied. You will find them in the midst of fights against human weaknesses and pity them.

Those who follow this path, if it can be called a path, and accept both it and its strange notion of freedom accept sexuality, instead of morals and wisdom, as life's dynamo.

What does the future hold?

Unfortunately, no trace of shame can be found in those who planned and pursued this path. Who knows, maybe one day we will discover other misplaced values that will make us shiver. Depression increases due to atheism, unsatisfaction rises from a lack of dialogue with God, and problems arise due to the emphasis of bodily materialism. Problems with drug addiction, young people transformed into bohemians, and family relations turned into a hotel atmosphere are only a few of the troubles ahead of us.

Until this wrong perception of freedom is changed and defined so that people cannot take advantage of this misperception, humanity will sacrifice more lives and psychological problems will engulf societies. Limitless freedom will soon seduce young generations more than now, and will drag them from depression to depression.