Many of us are even advocating for veganism. But to what end? Tens of billions of animals are sent to slaughter, year after year. But, even if veganism never becomes the norm, we can take some solace in knowing that we acted with integrity.
Vegans are idiots.
This isn’t a conclusion that I arrived at lightly. On the contrary, I formed
this thought only after slogging through a 633-page novel.
So what’s the connection?
I don’t think I need to issue a spoiler alert before telling you that the
novel is based on a fascinating premise:
What would happen if an ethical, naive, guileless man – who cares not a whit
about societal conventions – dives headfirst into mainstream society?
Not surprisingly, it doesn’t go well for this man, Prince Myshkin. In fact,
the novel’s naive, ethical, guileless hero is derided as an idiot.
As an ethical vegan, I found myself identifying with Prince Myshkin more and
more as I turned the pages.
Consider the following:
I could go on. But you get the picture.
We vegans, we’re idiots, are we not? Sure, we’re ethical, but we’re also
naive, guileless and indifferent to societal conventions. And, sadly,
society is indifferent to us.
Like Prince Myshkin, we’re setting a good example. Many of us are even
advocating for veganism. But to what end? Tens of billions of animals are
sent to slaughter, year after year.
So, am I going to put an end to this futility and order lunch from the drive
through at Arby’s?
Hell, no.
Prince Myshkin, after all, is the hero of the novel. A tragic hero, but a
hero nonetheless.
We are heroes, too, we vegans. Idiots, but heroes, too.
Even if the world doesn’t turn vegan in our lifetimes, we at least are being
authentic to our true selves, to our better angels, societal norms be
damned. There is real nobility in that.
If doing the right thing and cutting against the grain makes us idiots, then
so be it.
And maybe, just maybe, we’re not idiots, but merely early adopters.
It’s interesting, even encouraging, that the marketplace is moving in our
direction. The proliferation of plant-based products in stores and
restaurants is an enabler, and possibly a precursor, to the spread of vegan
lifestyles.
But even if veganism never becomes the norm, we can take some solace in
knowing that we acted with integrity. Dostoevsky’s novel ends in sadness,
but I’m sure the writer felt the world needs more idiocy, not less.
Just for the record, I didn’t “slog” through The Idiot. It’s a
wonderful novel. And it’s ripe for a modern adaptation, sort of like what
Barbara Kingsolver did in rewriting David Copperfield as “Demon
Copperhead” and setting the story in rural Virginia, circa 1995.
If some gifted writer does adapt “The Idiot” for the 21st Century, you can
bet the main character will be ethical, naive, guileless … and vegan.
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