How conflict can give rise to greater artistic expression and the need to seize this opportunity whenever disharmony arrives at our door.
Loosely speaking, a conflict can be described as an event where misaligned actions collide. What this involves ranges invariably from a prolonged stand-off to a heated debate about individual rights, but what underlies all possible cases is the need to avoid violence at all costs and carry out some form of respectful, lasting exchange. Generally speaking, conflicts can be seen to be happening all the time: the range of sounds resonating in our aural spectrum when in a busy environment; chemical reactions within our bodies fighting against foreign bacteria to combat infection; the differences in values that determine the daily exchanges between opposing political parties.
More often, what is associated with conflict is the belief that it precedes some kind of crisis; that the potential disharmony it brings will only lead to more negative consequences. However, the Japanese word for ‘crisis’ reveals something rather more significant: combining the characters for both ‘danger’ and ‘opportunity’. The combination of these two characters points to a more profound appreciation of what forces are at play when a crisis or conflict occurs. Focusing on the dangerous aspect, it is all too easy to focus singularly on the destructive element whenever a challenging conflict arises. The second element, by contrast, introduces the idea of seizing the opportunity to take something broken and reconstruct it into something of greater value and meaning, recognising the potential it may hold.
This attitude to transcend violent or negative reactions to problems can be expressed no better than through Indian lawyer and activist Mahatma Gandhi, who promoted the belief that the battlefield of non-violence ultimately resides within the human heart. This effort to undertake a level of self-mastery exemplifies the attitude for using conflict to create new possibilities for change. Without first doing this ourselves, we cannot be expected to effectively lead other people and inspire them to do the same thing too. The desire to co-operate with those we are in conflict with may at times prove challenging, but by being willing to listen attentively to the other’s perspective, the foundation for building a new level of mutual appreciation and understanding can be established. Beyond this, what matters is not necessarily a designated endpoint or closure, but the creation of a culture of ongoing exchange that encourages more differences to be explored and collectively understood.
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But what does this imply from a creative standpoint? Discovering things in our lives that are seemingly out of joint can potentially present new artistic possibilities. Without tackling them head-on, we are avoiding the opportunity to connect with something that is both relevant to our artistic voice and connected with the fundamental values that drive us to want to create in the first place. Becoming aware of any incongruences in our lives is a direct way to further understand ourselves and iron out any creases that could be hindering our true artistic voice from being expressed. Being introspective in this way not only helps with understanding our own problems, but also the issues that connect us all so remarkably and profoundly with each other, meaning that coming to a realisation about one of our own problems could be the first step towards healing a conflict in our close society or community. This process forms the tapestry of our creative work, adding to the fabric of original ideas and possibilities that can potentially move society in a positive direction.
Turning to the arts, dramatic conflict is central when it comes to effective storytelling. William Shakespeare’s ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ is full of interweaving character conflicts that culminate to great comedic and dramatic effect. However, it is when conflict gives rise to greater realisation and understanding that it can be seen as having a truly positive function. Rick Deckard, the protagonist in the story ‘Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?’ by Philip K. Dick, undergoes a series of inner conflicts that open the way to a greater sense of responsibility in his relationship with the replicant castaway Rachel. While documenting conflict may allow for great analysis and allegory, exploring what goes beyond this can be instrumental in moving the world forward in its collective understanding of the human condition.
In the words of the American Philosopher and Psychologist William James ‘The great use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it’. It is in this fashion that we can strive to master ourselves, sending out the best possible message along the way to those also seeking to achieve the same thing. Regardless of how challenging it may be, deciding to turn a conflict into a cause for greater universal understanding is a sure-fire way of leaving a positive example to future generations, encouraging a more considered, inclusive and creative world. And there’s no better place to first observe this happening than in the battlefield of our daily lives.
