another kelly scowen original photo.The 'cause and effect' philosophy. One action or event will encourage a certain response in the form of another event. The second event is the consequence of the first. This is causality. The fact that tsunamis are created when the tectonic plates under the ocean shift, causing an underwater earthquake is simply 'cause and effect'. We endure cause and effect everyday, sometimes not this purely.
However, on occasion we label these causes in error. This sneaky concept called coincidence steps in. But because of our humanity (or maybe it's just me), we feel the need to find reason behind everything. "I am this, because of this" etc. I mean, granted there are the obvious examples, like drinking your body weight in alcohol will inevitably make you feel like shit the next day. Or going to bed at stupid o'clock will make you feel tired and ruin your early start (can you tell I'm a student?). But these situations are on part controlled either chemically or physically. Alcohol is a drug and your body needs sleep.
What about the social actions we take and the effects that result? This feels much more ambiguous. Sometimes the line between 'consequence' and 'coincidence' is not so obvious. A part of me refuses to believe that everything must be consequence; it feels too deterministic. I do believe, on some level that incidents happen for a reason but maybe the idea of coincidence gives a little more room in the free will area.
Like reading someone's emails. Let's call her Confused. One day Confused leaves her emails open, in a place that I am unavoidably going to walk past. There's a monitor on, Yahoo! display on 100% brightness. Naturally attracted to it I'd wander over. Now what I read (yes, I should have probably walked away) are personal matters that I refuse to believe I should 'consequently' find and feel the need to deal with. If this was a 'consequence' of a previous action either myself or Confused had made then surely that means I now need to take action on this to form another. Are you with me? So even though the social situation involved has nothing whatsoever to do with me, the next move is mine.
Take this as 'coincidence' and I am not forced to or feel much obliged to do anything about it. I am not part of this; regardless of the fact I now know something private and arguably wrongful. 'Coincidence' remarks sequential events that have no apparent causal connection. At the same time Confused went out leaving the computer on, I walked into the house and up the stairs. Something that occurs everyday at some point. It just so happened that it was my unlucky day, that eventually ended in writing about it. Maybe I'll choose to get on with my life, love it and stop worrying.
