If hope is indeed good, why would it be inside a box full of evil?
The Myth of Sisyphus
Once in the mortal world, there was a devious king named Sisyphus. Being witty and arrogant, he defied the Gods’ authority and kept outsmarting them. One day, he locked the Thanatos, the personification of death — so that no mortal could die, causing chaos and lots of suffering to humanity. Hades, the God of the underworld, tried to save Thanatos — yet additionally, ended up getting himself imprisoned too (really, Hades?). Long story short, Ares, the God of war, got angry and released them both. Then, Sisyphus was punished by Zeus to push a big boulder uphill in the underworld. Each time the boulder is almost up to the hill, it would roll back down and Sisyphus has to push it again and again. For with he could suffer from both physical and emotional gruelling in the meaningless task, eternally.
The Greek myth of Sisyphus ends here, but there are so many interpretations of how Sisyphus doing and feels thenceforth. Some narrate that, with his cunning traits, Sisyphus didn’t give up and tried many ways to flee, until he realized that there is no means for it to be shunned. Philosopher Albert Camus, in one of his essay, The Myth of Sisyphus, imply that Sisyphus has — in the end, found the meaning of his impotent task, as he accepted his fate and refused to be thwarted by it. “One must imagine Sisyphus happy”, Camus said.
The myth of Sisyphus embodies the struggle of mankind in seeking the substance of existence in life. Congruity with Absurdism concept views which inherent the irrationality of individual presence. It believes that, as nothing matters in the world, one should be detached from any kind of forms and just live in whatever life has offered. Sisyphus likewise, gave up on the idea of escaping the punishment — and instead, as his rebellious act against God, start to enjoy it.
The fault amongst the hope
When Sisyphus gave up his will, he gave up the hope.
We tend to perceive hope as the positive force of life, that perseveres hardship and brings the vision to the forthcoming. Though why is it matter? Why would we cling to the illusion of tomorrow and overlook the now?
In another Greek myth, where Aphrodite, the Goddess of love and beauty, gave Psyche the Pandora box to tempt her to open it. As Psyche couldn’t stand her curiosity, she peeked, and unfortunately unleashed all the evils to the world — envy, greed, sickness, misery, despair, and suchlike. She immediately closed it and was able to keep the last thing remaining, which is hope. But, if hope is indeed good, why would it be inside a box full of evil in the first place?
Some renders that what’s kept in the box couldn’t harm humanity promptly. Thus, it depends on one’s perspective for it to become a virtuous force, or a risk we should avoid. Absurdism sees hope as a denial form towards the harshness one suffered, but it doesn’t against it blatantly like that. Absurdism admonishes us to be more grounded and confront reality without being distracted by the illusion and false expectations of the future.
Hope is like a venomous gift, it is fun, tempting, and exciting. Yet, the longer you hold on to it, the more perished it can gnaw at you. It is both a blessing and a curse. Hope can be a vigorous force, it gives you the courage to keep going — only we have to stay in living our present and nourish the meaning in our struggle, embrace what life has offered and be aesthetically pleased by it, just like Sisyphus. In the end, we’re not just imagine Sisyphus happy , because he is happy.
