What is the Lifestyle of the Futurists?
Lifestyle is a general description of the attitudes, interests, behaviors, and social orientations of a person, family, group or society. The word was first introduced by Austrian psychiatrist Alfred Adler in his 1930 book, The Case of Miss R. It was later adopted by American psychiatrist W. Clement Stone in his book, Human Lifestyle.
What are the common characteristics of lifestyles? There are many, but some of them are lavishness, self-indulgence, rationalization, emotional detachment, dependence on friends or other outside forces, acceptance of the status quo, and the celebration of the unfamiliar. Some examples of lifestyle changes are the new love, retirement, living abroad, vegetarianism, non-interventionism, non-judgmentalism, monogamy, forgiveness, low cost living, modesty, self-discipline, non-striving, and spirituality. In The New Love, Clement Stone wrote that he had “changed my way of living as a result of my new love and friendship”. After reading his book, I did some thinking about what a grand life this would make me.
Life-styles have become very closely connected to cultures and even within a culture industry. The difference between a lifestyle and culture is not so much the items listed above, but the depth and detail with which they reflect the personality of each individual. A materialistic culture may live by the motto “Live well, for that will bring you happiness”, while a spiritual culture places greater emphasis on spirituality and the inner journey. Even within a single culture industry, there are different lifestyles such as sports, business, academic, political, and military.
What are the tangible factors associated with each lifestyle? The five elements of a lifestyle are Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, Commitment and Responsibility. Dominance is the ability to make choices in an efficient and effective manner, and Influence is the power to attract others to ones own level of personal excellence. Steadiness is the ability to live by a certain life style and Commitment is a feeling of responsibility towards an organization or group.
There is much diversity and personality expression required in a person to live life in a healthy way. The differences between cultures may be based on such things as age-old traditions and beliefs, language, values, norms, beliefs, and occupations. Adorno, after studying over sixty years of research and observations, found that people of a specific culture tend to have similar patterns of behavior. Lifestyle theories such as Adorno’s, then, attempt to uncover the meaning behind the patterns of behavior and find explanations for how the patterns come about. This is done through examining the motives behind why a person would adopt one particular life style and why they would choose a different one.
The Lifestyle of the Futurists also offers support for some religions and philosophies, especially those that are considered “post modern.” For example, many fundamentalists may consider the Bible to be absolute, and refuse to read it at all. Others may reject elements of modernity, such as collectivism, in favor of a more simplistic, conservative life style. However, one could say that the Lifestyle of the Futurists is simply a reworking of some of the basic precepts of any religious tradition in order to create a more simple, orderly world. In this manner, one could say that the Futurists promote a particular interpretation of the religious tradition, but they do so in a simple, orderly fashion.