The error of philosophy

The error of philosophy has been to assume that man, because he is a social animal, should belong to some particular society. And yes, no doubt many people do feel most at ease with a home and a homeland. But what about the others, who find home oppressive and foreignness liberating? Foreignness was a means of escape - physical, psychological and moral. In another country you could flee easy categorisation by your education, your work, your class, your family, your accent, your politics. You could reinvent yourself, if only in your own mind. You were not caught up in the mundanities of the place you inhabited, any more that you wanted to be. You did not vote for the governments, its problems were not your problems. You were irresponsible. Irresponsibility might seem to moralists an unsatisfactory condition for an adult, but in practice it can be a huge relief.

Foreignness is intrinsically stimulating. Like a good game of bridge, the condition of being foreign engages the mind constantly without even tiring it. John Lechte, an Australian professor of social theory, characterises foreignness as "an escape from the boredom and banality of the everyday". The mundane becomes "super-real", and experienced "with an intensity evocative of the events of a true biography". Nowadays, you might rather say that the more you know of other countries, the more inclusive of all humanity your values will become. You educate yourself, beginning with anthropology.