And what's interesting is that underneath all the babbling propaganda stories about what's happening in our world, humanity is indeed showing signs that we are collectively slipping out of our old relationship with mental narrative. It's happening in the usual sloppy, awkward, two-steps-forward-one-step-back shamble which has always marked all of human progress, but it's happening.

It's happening in the way people are moving away from religion as we collectively discover that those ancient narratives which so long transfixed our ancestors are not necessary or helpful for finding meaning, morality and fulfillment in our lives, and as we collectively notice that doctrines about eternal reward for obedience and eternal damnation for disobedience sound made-up.

It's happening with the rise of cryptocurrencies as people figure out that money is made up and we can change the rules whenever we want. Money is nothing more than an agreed-upon story that's only as true as we all continue to pretend it is, a collective narrative that we can collectively rewrite at any time.

It's happening as people figure out that a romantic relationship doesn't need to look the way they've looked throughout most of our recorded history; that it's only narrative which says one man and one woman must love and have sex with only each other throughout their lives, or even throughout their relationship. That those rules have only ever been made of empty narrative fluff and can be replaced with an entirely different set of guidelines.

It's happening as people figure out how much narrative overlays things like gender and sexuality, that there's nothing inscribed upon the fabric of reality which prescribes our longstanding models of men and women and what their roles are and how their sexualities should express. Rearranging societal narratives that deeply entrenched in our culture is causing a lot of chaos and confusion, and the arguments it's bringing up are very upsetting for a lot of people, but it's gradually working itself out as people pick through the narratives and sort out fact from story.

Indeed each issue I'm describing here has brought in its own set of quandaries, challenges, bad faith actors and abuses that had previously been avoided under the old models, but it's not like the old models have been free of those things either. And as we all discuss, argue, push and pull and muddle our way through these obstacles with each other, we are collectively sinking into the real important insight which underlies all those more superficial areas of contention: that our society is made of narrative, and we can change the rules whenever we want.

Reading by Tim Foley.

Humanity Is Learning That The Rules Are All Made Up And Can Be Re-Written At Any Time

Readings of all Caitlin Johnstone's articles, usually by her co-writer Tim Foley.