Responsibility And Blame As One
Taking responsibility and blame as one rather than dichotomies.
This title may, or very likely, come across as oxymoronic and a willful play of words. But before we reactively jump on the bandwagon and collectively blame the title and its author, shall we take the time to pause and reflect if this is a mere reinvention or a repeated observation?
In the body of contents and media relating to responsibility and blame, this article, just by merit of its title ( let alone its contents ), already sits awkwardly with many of the rest…
Many, if not most, articles, essays, books, speeches and other media and contents on responsibility and blame seem to quite overtly, or maybe even proudly and unashamedly, relish in presenting these two as incompatible opposites; thereby self-righteously claiming the mandate in favor of the former, and the pejorative against those who resort to the latter. Consequently, in general culture, this dichotomy is so deeply and hopelessly entrenched.
I hereby honestly, clearly and unapologetically blame these blame-worthy contents and their perpetrators, whilst also taking the responsibility to fight against them; thereby proving my point with my responsibility-induced actions.
In Support For Self-Responsibility
While responsibility covers many aspects, blame is usually dichotomized with self-responsibility, and thus this essay would focus on self-responsibility more specifically.
Self-responsibility is one of the greatest virtues to have, not so much because it is socially desired ( though that also, as with social-responsibility ), but primarily and precisely because it is desirable for the self. Self-responsibility, as the joint compound word itself implies, is an agency from within, not without.
From this very definition, it is not too difficult to guess why it is so difficult.
As much as our inner agency is to be left untainted by external evils, life can always grind us hard, handicapping and even annihilating even the strongest of individuals. We ought not underestimate the power of life and of the external.
Yet, at the same time, we also ought not underestimate the power of ourselves and of the internal-we would otherwise be doing a great disservice to our species and evolution. The self has long been the subject of much fascination and exploration, but this essay would not delve into it, but rather on how we should view self-responsibility and to put shortly:
The basis of self-responsibility is the sense of self; it is non-negotiable; without it there is no “ self-responsibility”, or, for that matter, anything where the self is fundamental.
Thus, in a way, self-centered acts ( here relating to actions centering on the self ) kind of entails a little selfishness if I may. It can be individualism, individual identity or agency, or just downright, you name it, selfishness-which has many manifestations, of which one of the most common is blame.
Mutual Incompatibility?
One must, as much as possible, if not always, take self-responsibility for oneself, needless to say. However, what does self-responsibility actually entail? How does the act of blaming come into the picture?
If self-responsibility is desired and thus justified, is blame? But what we can also ask is, if blame itself is the solution, why do away with, or shy away from, it ? There has been huge discrimination against blaming ( at times, understandable ) , largely supported by the notion that if one blames, one is somehow not taking any form of responsibility…but is it really the case?
Yes, there are several examples of individuals who only just blame their external environment, be it society, system, family or others…but never themselves. There also are people who don’t blame much and focus on self-responsibility and self-improvement. And we may even assume some of them, given the benefit of doubt, just don’t blame anything at all. However, reality is at least a bit more complex than this dichotomy of responsibility vs blame which we need to look beyond.
As with any other linear spectrum, there are two ends, and there may be absolute cases which lie at these two ends, even for human beings. Yet, most people actually lie in between from time to time and situation to situation.
It is very much possible for one to both blame external factors and take self-responsibility, as what I am doing here.
In Defense For Blame
Even in self-victimization, there often are traces of, or even much responsibility taken that are not too hard to find, whether big or small; for the former, it cm be country or empire who blames another for its troubles, yet undertake tremendous efforts to build oneself up ( whether to defeat the other entity is a different issue altogether); Similarly for the latter, say an individual, can put blame on whichever other entity yet also self-improve, or turn perceived injustices into strength.
There may or may not be a need to blame and it is fine.
Blaming ( on whatever and whichever ) is a way to honestly acknowledge our scars, our unfavorable circumstances, rather than unhealthily sugar coating them, in turn using these comforting narratives to pacify ourselves away from taking the courage to address what is at hand. While all experiences are in some ways determined by us ( thus, we can change how we experience things by changing ourselves first and foremost ) , it is only in a state where we have control of ourselves when we are able to do so. Identifying the root cause of our issues ( which most likely have a mix of internal and external factors in whichever permutations and combinations) certainly helps.
At times, we need to blame external parties to get what we need or want. And even if we do not, if it is cathartic and makes us feel better, go for it, even as a short term solution. What we need to note here is that it should not be unhealthy- one that does not serve a self-improvement purpose. Of course, there are times we must not, or even appear not to, blame anyone or anything, for it will land us in trouble or simply give us an unfavorable reputation.
The baseline is this : It is ok to blame others as long as one is taking self-responsibility for self-improvement; and it is safe to do so.
Outro
The dichotomy between responsibility and blame is neither helpful nor fair. There are too many variables involved. There still remain the issues of pinning down agreed, concrete criterias of what is taking responsibility and what exactly is blame or actions tied to blame and thus, arriving at accurate assessments is difficult and making judgments is simply unhelpful, unhealthy and unwise. People have been suffering not just by the unfairness and traumas they have experienced but being unfairly judged by others if and when they react or try to cope by “blaming”. A more sensible and holistic approach is needed- and it all starts with our perception first. When someone blames someone or something else, it would be wise not to be too quick to judge, and even if one is not used to, at least try to, empathize.
With sufficient will, we can overcome this fixed mindset of responsibility vs blame, but rather take them as a whole. I think it is sufficiently fair to say with cautioned optimism that solutions can be found and improved upon as long as there is the necessary will and discretion.