Patrick Bateman, the serial killer protagonist in literary cult classic American Psycho, was originally seen as a satirical embodiment of the moral bankruptcy in a hyper-capitalist society. But he has somehow been given a new – completely unironic – lease of life as an archetype of the “sigma man”, a lone wolf type whose focus is on self-mastery.
Unsurprisingly, a character who denounces social norms to the highest degree seemed to be the ideal anti-hero for the Blueprint crowd.
MEASURING PURPOSE
In another question similarly grounded in Johnson’s belief that AI, particularly Blueprint, will save humanity from ourselves, he asked the audience if it was possible that we “don’t know what to do”.
The subtext was that if humans don’t know what to do, the ethically and morally right decision would be, clearly, to obey tech-driven systems that were tailored around optimising every aspect of our life. After all, Blueprint seemed to represent a cardinal Silicon Valley style of management mantra: If you can measure it, you can manage it.
Yet, there are things that contribute to longevity which can’t be measured, like spirituality, creativity and happiness, some in the audience argued. “You can live a long life but have a poor quality of life,” one said.
Although it is possible humans don’t know what to do, I don’t believe automatically knowing exactly what to do should be the point of life. The idea of not having to constantly decide how to attain optimal health levels may sound like a lazy girl’s dream, but I felt a stronger pull to exercise my free will. Being able to choose, even if it’s the “wrong” choice, was crucial for my sense of purpose, I realised.
This might be what Don’t Die advocates would term “self-destructive behaviour” – a judgement that, I was quickly learning about myself, I was absolutely fine with.
