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COMMUNITY ON THE LONG RUN
Abstract
Being part of a community gives a sense of belonging, determining rules, values and the meaning of a given relationship (Corvino 2021)[2]. Today the use of the term is much wider than before and ranges from “classical” communities to virtual gatherings (Cavalli Sforza, Padoan 2013; Maffesoli 1988)[1,9]. This is hard to handle, but can be read as an interesting indicator of a deep social need that requires focusing and a better understanding. Moving from the first non-sedentary communities to contemporary web communities, the common factor could be identified in the search for the fundamental relation that is one of the essential components of our being human. Conflict and cooperation theory showed how this relation could be figured out, depending on the perception of risk and otherness. One way or another, for a long time humankind made use of long-term strategies to substantiate the bond as real: one of these had to do with large-scale enterprises and the common goal they offered, supported by robust values. This worked fine as long as such great realizations took more than a lifespan to be achieved and required some “passing of the baton” between generations. With the scientific revolution and the advent of techno-science we know today all this was put under a considerable strain: on the one hand projects began to be completed at great speed, without any reflection about possible consequences of this acceleration and with an increasing valorisation of speed itself (Virilio 2008)[14]; on the other hand, an economic instrumental perspective affirmed itself that denied any qualitative sense in human action and relation. This paper aims at analysing the changing meaning of community and relation through time. In particular it focuses on reintegrating within its idea the qualitative, relational sphere that a too abstract way of thinking did away with too hastily. This complex approach is in accordance with the most recent developments of research on humanity and a new appreciation of the sheer scale of our evolutionary history, which makes it hard to keep on believing that human beings are on their way to free themselves of corporeality and emotions to become all-rational virtual entities. The main result of the study aims at pointing out how with the changing perception of time as the shared path with the community in flesh and bones has changed the sense of relation, of gift and exchange.
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References14
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