No Man, or Woman Is an Island

Seventeenth century English author John Donne is well known for these words: “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main..” Donne meant, of course, that none of us is entirely self-sufficient. Each of us relies on others. We are all part of an intricate social web. Think about your own day to day life for a moment and you’ll understand how profoundly true this statement is. If you’re like most of us modern humans, you rely on other people in countless essential ways. You depend on others for your livelihood. You probably work with other people, but even if you work alone you still rely on others to use the goods or services you make or provide. You might share your home with others spouses, partners, kids, parents, or roommates. But even if you live alone, you surely rely on friends and family for all kinds of assistance and emotional support. (It’s hard to give yourself a good hug, hold your own hand, or cry on your own shoulder.) We even rely on strangers to get us through our day: the bus driver, the weatherman, the guy who makes our coffee at Starbuck’s. And we rely on professional acquaintances – doctors, tax accountants, teachers, mechanics- to help us negotiate the complexities of our lives. Without other people, life would be unmanageable-not to mention insufferably lonely.