Against Aspiration

Aspiration is a helluva drug. And some philosophers have, sadly, bought into it uncritically.

I’ve been thinking, this week, about the concept of aspiration, and how unbearably middle class it is, in ways not always adequately appreciated by philosophers. Capitalism loves to make us yearn for what we can have, at a suitable price point, notoriously. A bigger house, a “better” car, a more prestigious (as opposed to better) education for our child…