Want vs. NeedFiled Under: Social

This is an issue which bugs me personally. In modern society, I feel that these two words have become almost interchangeable. Almost like the greed that drives the wants somehow becomes one of the same with the necessary, or required…needs.

First we should be able have a mutual understanding on the context in which I will use each word.

1. Need: a requirement, necessary duty, or obligation.
2. Want: to feel a need or a desire for.

Over the past couple hundred years, the evolution, or gradual change in society is one that is a quite disturbing trend from a moralistic and ethical standpoint. The focus has become completely egotistical and individualistic. The goal for most humans has become to build up material wealth, regardless of the innocent people who get hurt in the process. This current pursuit of happiness often involves the indirect economic subordination of nations. The level of poverty in such nations is unfathomable. Nations in which the bulk of the population work in inhumane conditions and wages equal less than a dollar a day. Of course the blame of such conditions can not be solely placed on the people themselves, for they are likely ignorant to the happenings of the world. However, the world is in need of change and with the rapid developments in technology, ignorance can no longer be an excuse.

The larger issue of want and need intertwine very often in modern society. People believe that they absolutely need certain materials, which would under any other system be considered luxuries. Why do we allow materials to define our happiness anyway? These superficial details of life only hinder our progress as intellectuals. Why must our neighbors view on us be the ruler in which we measure our self worth? I am personally of the belief that the only opinion that matters is that of your own, the rest have their own selfish wants.

To end this blog off with some food for thought; Henry David Thoreau once said; “Our life is frittered away by detail. Simplify, simplify.”