Man’s Inhumanity to Man

Lack of empathy is a timeless scourge

Vicelin Distributing Bread Among the Poor by Christoffer Wilhem Eckersberg, 1812 (Nasjonalmuseet for kunst, arkitektur og design - public domain CC BY 4.0)

“Man’s inhumanity to man
Makes countless thousands mourn!”
— Robert Burns, 1784

There is nothing new about inhumanity and imbalance, our topic earlier this week. The human race has been dealing with classism since the first time one man made another serve him.

The phrase “man’s inhumanity to man” originated in the Robert Burns poem “Man Was Made to Mourn: A Dirge” in 1784, giving us a glimpse of the struggle of man in a feudal society.

In just 11 stanzas, we find themes that are just as fresh and raw today, amid billionaire oligarchs and the great unwashed masses, a startling parallel to the 18th-century classes of society:

When chill November’s surly blast
Made fields and forests bare,
One ev’ning, as I wander’d forth
Along the banks of Ayr,
I spied a man, whose aged step
Seem’d weary, worn with care;
His face was furrow’d o’er with years,
And hoary was his hair.

“Young stranger, whither wand’rest thou?”
Began the rev’rend sage;
“Does thirst of wealth thy step constrain,
Or youthful pleasure’s rage?
Or haply, prest with cares and woes,
Too soon thou hast began
To wander forth, with me to mourn
The miseries of man.

“The sun that overhangs yon moors,
Out-spreading far and wide,
Where hundreds labour to support
A haughty lordling’s pride; —
I’ve seen yon weary winter-sun
Twice forty times return;
And ev’ry time has added proofs,
That man was made to mourn.

Today’s working class, employed by companies like Tesla, Amazon or the like, is supporting the space-bound dreams of the CEO — just as Burns gave us with: “Where hundreds labour to support / A haughty lordling’s pride”.

“O man! while in thy early years,
How prodigal of time!
Mis-spending all thy precious hours—
Thy glorious, youthful prime!
Alternate follies take the sway;
Licentious passions burn;
Which tenfold force gives Nature’s law.
That man was made to mourn.

“Look not alone on youthful prime,
Or manhood’s active might;
Man then is useful to his kind,
Supported in his right:
But see him on the edge of life,
With cares and sorrows worn;
Then Age and Want — oh! ill-match’d pair —
Shew man was made to mourn.

Age and Want: the need to work while older is present even today, as many are working past retirement age and require additional income in their later years, savings depleted or pensions non-present.

“A few seem favourites of fate,
In pleasure’s lap carest;
Yet, think not all the rich and great
Are likewise truly blest:
But oh! what crowds in ev’ry land,
All wretched and forlorn,
Thro’ weary life this lesson learn,
That man was made to mourn.

“Many and sharp the num’rous ills
Inwoven with our frame!
More pointed still we make ourselves,
Regret, remorse, and shame!
And man, whose heav’n-erected face
The smiles of love adorn, —
Man’s inhumanity to man
Makes countless thousands mourn!

“See yonder poor, o’erlabour’d wight,
So abject, mean, and vile,
Who begs a brother of the earth
To give him leave to toil;
And see his lordly fellow-worm
The poor petition spurn,
Unmindful, tho’ a weeping wife
And helpless offspring mourn.

There’s the old man who needs to work to support his family (no pensions in 18th century Scotland), yet he is callously turned away by the lord.

Today we still have rampant ageism; and with healthcare benefits being tied to employment, those who are out of work are at a disadvantage. Without opportunities, the spiral of poor health and poor finances inevitably leads to bankruptcy and death.