Ming Dynasty and New Rome and Infinite Magic Machine

Chapter 1585 Choice
"Senior brother, don't you think this looks a bit like that?"

"like what?"

Shangluo blinked: "It's like that...that thing."

"Which one?" Zhu Xianxi still didn't understand.

Shangluo felt he had made himself clear—after all, there was only one person among them whom they couldn't casually discuss this with.

Grand Secretary Wen understood, but he couldn't say it directly, so he took a sip of tea to clear his throat and then began to recite:
Suddenly, I heard His Majesty proclaim "Long live the Emperor!" and my loyal minister arrived at the Meridian Gate. That day, as I walked down the main street, I happened upon a little boy crying mournfully. I asked the boy why he was crying, and he said that the old villain Yan Song had killed his entire family.

"Ah!" Zhu Xianxi finally understood. "You mean we're writing a kind of memorial, right? The higher-ups' intention—sorry, sorry, I can't think of it that way right now. But what you said makes sense. However, this is much more useful than a memorial, since memorials are just for burning paper money at graves to fool the ghosts."

Grand Secretary Wen was immediately taken aback. He glanced around and, finding no movement, breathed a sigh of relief—although everyone knew what was going on, it was better not to say anything in this situation.

However, this reminded him of something.

"I have a feeling that Master Sa is going to ask us to deal with some kind of problem."

"Oh?" Shangluo and Zhu Xianxi both asked, "What is it?"

"It's about change, the difference between generations. That's the film's intention, to build a bridge between the two versions of Wang Lingguan—you two should be able to guess that. But what I'm guessing is, specifically, what kind of change? I guess, anxiety."

"Anxiety? Why?" Zhu Xianxi asked. "I don't have a background in philology, so I don't really understand this. Does social engineering offer an explanation for this?"

"Yes, for example, the very famous book 'Coming of Age in Samoa,' you've all read it, right?"

Both of them shook their heads.

"This is a very famous anthropological work. It doesn't matter that His Majesty hasn't studied it; everyone has their own area of ​​expertise. Shangluo, this was on the reading list I gave you, didn't you read it?"

"Ah... I haven't seen that part yet." "Then let me give you a brief overview. It's actually quite simple. There's a small island in the Pacific called Samoa. The island's inhabitants live a very simple life, but like other Austronesian people, they possess quite advanced production techniques and a social structure. The island's lifestyle is mainly based on farming and animal husbandry, and resources are plentiful. That book focuses on Samoan marriage and upbringing—it concludes with an important point: pressure often doesn't come from a lack of resources, but from choices."

Samoan society is quite structured. From the age of fifteen, both boys and girls join communities. The communities for men are called Omaga, and those for women are called Olaruma. All social functions are performed through these communities; anyone without a family life is required to join to fulfill social obligations—primarily production, rituals, training, teaching, and diplomatic work, among others.

However, compared to their strict social structure, Samoan marriage is very open.

"Here I want to emphasize something. Openness in marriage means that there is at least one marriage, not that there is no institution of marriage. Samoans have marital relationships, but both men and women are more inclined to integrate into their own communities than into their partners'. This openness in marriage is most evident in child-rearing. You might not understand what I mean by that, so let me give you an example—"

"If Samoan children experience domestic violence, they will simply run away from home and stay with relatives. Parents can hardly force them to do anything because Samoan parents do not have irresistible authority; authority in the entire society resides within the family and community. Children belong to their family and community, not just their parents. Samoan children grow up carefree, usually playing with older children. They do not need to do any complicated work and can play until they are 15 years old before starting to take on some ceremonial tasks."

"Ah," Shangluo asked, "then aren't they having a very easy time?"

"It's very relaxed. Researchers did not observe any 'psychological problems' among Samoan teenagers. They were all very healthy, exhibiting extremely positive views on marriage and love, enjoying relative freedom while maintaining stable marital relationships, reminiscent of ancient times. Compared to our children, our children exhibit far more problems—academics, family, marriage, and so on. These problems are incredibly complex. Our society is clearly highly developed, yet our children are facing increasing pressure. Why is that?"

He said in a deep voice, “The answer is here—Samoan youth have no pressure because they have no choice. They all follow the same life trajectory: born into a family, joining a community in their youth, and joining a larger community in their prime. Their individual characteristics are not very important in group life; they all follow the same trajectory because their society can only offer this much.”

"And here, you can go to the supermarket and see—there are more than fifty flavors of potato chips alone, and 24 kinds of cola. There are 12 kinds of toppings to choose from when you buy a cup of milk tea, and even when you buy an apple, there are red, yellow, green, big, small, crisp, and mealy ones. When you walk into the supermarket and see so many choices, you will naturally hesitate. If the supermarket is like this, then the choices of primary school, middle school, university, and even your career will bring unprecedented pressure."

This pressure is not caused by scarcity, because the Samoans, who are relatively more lacking in resources, do not experience this kind of pressure.

Growth is an extremely complex issue in highly developed societies. But in relatively primitive Samoa, growth and development are quite easy. Because once they reach a certain age, they simply repeat the lives of the previous generation.

"But we're different," Elder Wen shook his head. "Look, we're only a generation or two apart, yet we have such a huge difference in our aesthetics—when I was a child, milk tea wasn't eight-treasure porridge, Wang Lingguan didn't fall in love with a monster, and cola only had two flavors. Back then, we had more pressure in life, but it was easier to relieve psychological pressure; watching Wang Lingguan could make us happy. You kids these days, tsk tsk, watching Wang Lingguan fall in love with a monster isn't enough; you also have to see Wang Lingguan seeking a harmonious balance between personal ideals and public interests in nature and development—my goodness, kids these days have it so hard. Is watching monster-fighting no longer enough for you?"

Shangluo suddenly spoke up: "So this is... the contradiction between the people's ever-growing needs for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development?"

"Yes, yes, that's it. I never thought of such an appropriate way to put it."

(End of this chapter)