Being Humbled

Abstract

As it has been established thus far, humility is commitment and dedication to something. Examples of that something include human dignity, liberation, and education (Harriet Tubman), public health science (Dr. Stewart and George Kneale), “God” in a traditional, religious sense (Lewis, King, metaphorical reading of Griselda), or a dedication to one’s duty, to relationships, to the truth, and to speaking the basic word, I-You (Cordelia). In addition to these objects of devotion or worship are other gods, like a defensive and dismissive pre-occupation with self (Cadmus’ figure of pride), dedication to being a self-sufficient “great souled-man” (Aristotle), commitment to power (Machiavelli and Dr. Bledsoe), to unreliable institutions (narrator of Invisible Man), or to sexist, patriarchal versions of marriage (non-metaphorical reading of Griselda and de Beauvoir). One’s dedication generates confidence, a sense of identity and worth in relation to the object of one’s devotion. That confidence may be securely placed and well-founded or poorly placed and unreliably founded. The nature of one’s humility affects how one perceives others; it can render them as Its to be dismissed, manipulated, appeased, or controlled, or it can bring them to life as friends with whom genuine dialogue is possible. That worship also brings with it enthusiasm, and that passion, combined with discipleship, transforms one in accord with one’s God. Finally, such a transformation can make one powerful, but here again, such power functions in harmony with whatever one is devoted to. Commitments that are actually forms of self-worship generate the sort of power that are attempts to control and manipulate others, where other forms of humility generate courage in the devotee and empower others in the most positive and healthiest ways.