In Georg Simmel 's philosophy of life , which represents the final phase of his work, the fundamental contradiction underlying individual and social existence emerges. Drawing on Nietzsche's division between the Apollonian and the Dionysian, and Bergson's notion of the Élan vital , Simmel argues that life—having transcended the level of animality, and thus with human self-consciousness, which has become the Life of the Spirit —is necessarily bound, for its fulfillment, to express itself in forms.
The spring of progress
The process of reification is followed by the crystallization of products, which become part of a conflictual dynamic after being emptied of the contents that gave rise to them. This conflict arises from the intrinsic logic of life, since for Simmel it is both more life, and therefore a continuous flow and "self-transcendence," and more than life, otherness, the immanent need to transcend forms on which it depends and can only express itself, yet at the same time are incapable of adapting to its essence and fully comprehending its totality, and therefore cannot be exhausted within them. Thus, it abandons them and moves on, giving rise to other formations destined to overthrow the previous ones, and to be eliminated in turn by the subsequent ones. This is the tragedy of culture , as well as the driving force behind progress and the succession of civilizations, until, according to Simmel, we reach the stage of modernity where the contrast is no longer between various forms, but rather takes the form of life's desire to reveal itself as pure life, breaking the limits within which it is contained and rejecting any identification that does not represent its direct and immediate emanation. However, Simmel is well aware that this absolutely cannot happen, as the formal principle cannot be eluded. How, then, can we escape this contradiction? If life cannot renounce assuming a form, is it therefore destined to remain unexpressed, to fluctuate continually without ever settling?
Empty forms and pure forms
In his essay " Sociability ," he presents two types of forms: on the one hand, empty forms , which mortify the essence of life, breaking all ties with it and opposing its flow. In contrast, the so-called " pure " forms, although they abstract vital contents, as sociability does—defined as the playful form of socialization—maintain a sincere relationship with them, providing life with a channel of genuine, albeit partial, expression. This liberating form, which presents itself primarily as art, exists in every sphere of the spirit; where a current manages to express itself, and not degenerate into mere objectivity devoid of any content, one is able, if not to eliminate the contradiction, to circumvent it and annihilate its burdensomeness.
Self-expression
Simmel's teaching is more relevant than ever, as we live in a society dominated by increasingly ephemeral and powerful forms , capable of mortifying life and all its sincere expressions, determining their own overriding objective values that aim to dominate individuality until its complete leveling. Thus, the only possibility for maintaining one's integrity lies precisely in the ability to express oneself , in the fight for one's individual freedom, moving beyond those fallacious desires and those images of momentary happiness that are continually grafted onto us by those who hold the chains and those who kiss the ones that tighten their wrists.
Ivan Lauro
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