Human creativity varies in form and intention. It builds and destroys. Like much of our nature, creativity is morally neutral--a fact of existence, not a good or bad force but an unyielding, ever-present part of the landscape. Intellectual and artistic flourishing requires innovative thought, which is nurtured, influenced, and expressed in an extant environment. What sort of environment best serves our progress, our achievement?
On one end there is stability. In a peaceful, prosperous condition, society grows like layers on a solid foundation. I think of Pax Romana as exemplifying this side of the spectrum. For two centuries around the birth of Christ, from Octavian to Marcus Aurelius, Rome held the Mediterranean basin under its imperial rule. Its provincial system encouraged development in the peripheries, leading to the legendary road network, aqueducts, temples and arenas that constitute the empire's legacy today. It was an era of great literature and art, a time for people to write history and poetry. In hindsight, Rome's prime.
Similar developments occurred across Asia under Mongol rule, during which the Silk Roads thrived. Post-war America has acted similarly, its hegemony ushering unprecedented technological advancement, material improvement, and widespread connection. Conflict and war surely existed during these times, but it was at the peripheries of these empires and at a limited scale. Huge numbers of people lived in guaranteed peace.
But the cyclical, impermanent tendencies of life means these stable times are squashed between years of turmoil. And our prolific creativity is there during these chaotic years, too.
The Warring States Period (475 BCE-221 BCE) is one of my favorite times in history. For one, it leaves me in awe regarding the scope of Chinese civilization; this was a relatively short stretch of political fragmentation in China bookended by thousands of years of dynasty, yet it lasted longer than the US has been an independent country. China is so old, its history so vast. This period in particular gives me a refreshing perspective on how short European/Western dominance has reigned.
Though Warring States is notable for its tumult, it was simultaneously a time of landmark philosophical thought, agricultural innovation, and improvements in metalworking. Sun Tzu and Confucius lived and wrote, Daoism and Legalism entered the fray, social mobility was available like never before. Out of the chaos emerged the Qin dynasty, one of the shortest but most influential dyansties in Chinese history. Qin Shihuangdi created the centralized, bureaucratic state that runs China to this day.
I don't know whether instability is the most fruitful environment for creative flourishing. I picked two circumstances that seem nearly opposite to me--I'm not sure what the data would show if one tried to correlate human achievement to social/political terrain, or if data could capture this abstract idea I'm circling around. I grew up in a very stable place; my home, school, friends, and interests were consistent and calm throughout my childhood. I think this has been integral to my disposition and development.
Everyone deserves to live in peace and prosperity. Unfortunately this isn't the reality, nor will it ever be. The hallmark of our species, though, is our remarkable adaptability, and people find a way to thrive under the harshest conditions. As Ibn Khaldun noted centuries ago, history is a cycle of order and chaos, and every Pax Imperatoria was built upon the novel ideas and inventions made during the preceding instability. There is always hope in the bottomless expanse of human ingenuity.
