Luxury is the beginning of the end of all things. Luxury begins its use as the Latin luxus which was a word to convey excess. Excess has been the twin-edged sword which has hung above man like the chilling curtain of time itself. It is constantly threatening to end our paltry attempts to stifle the unbearable sanguinary of desire.
The word, luxury, as we see it, is a boon upon the owner and a point of envy or admiration to the outsider. But as it was two thousand long years prior, having luxury showed a love of that which was luxus and was a carnal sin, for luxus represented excess taken to the point of debauchery. Luxus was a masculine noun representing the concept of terrible excess.
Translated by the Germanic peoples as valuables which we in English now call luxuries, the meaning changed heavily. But I postulate that it is the meaning of the end of all things. This is because luxuries still represent excess and to some extent debauchery. Our society, like the Germanic tribes before us, have simply evolved beyond the trappings of a system by which the weak but opulent are cursed, and the strong and austere are praised.
The outlook on a luxury, in large part, defines the strength of character and the values of a society. Old Roma people valued, if anything, two things: willpower and dedication to a path. We, today, value one thing-- wealth and the power it bestows.
From here, we see luxury as a cause to the start of every fall. Luxury is the result of having too much, luxus meant too much of anything, but for us it means too much power, so much power that one is willing to spend it frivolously and with vanity. This is the finest expression of hubris.
From the Darkest Dungeon video game, the narrator says, "Yet triumphant pride must precipitate a dizzying fall just as the sun must rise before it sets."
--Written by Constante "CJ" Bautista, 11th grade
The word, luxury, as we see it, is a boon upon the owner and a point of envy or admiration to the outsider. But as it was two thousand long years prior, having luxury showed a love of that which was luxus and was a carnal sin, for luxus represented excess taken to the point of debauchery. Luxus was a masculine noun representing the concept of terrible excess.
Translated by the Germanic peoples as valuables which we in English now call luxuries, the meaning changed heavily. But I postulate that it is the meaning of the end of all things. This is because luxuries still represent excess and to some extent debauchery. Our society, like the Germanic tribes before us, have simply evolved beyond the trappings of a system by which the weak but opulent are cursed, and the strong and austere are praised.
The outlook on a luxury, in large part, defines the strength of character and the values of a society. Old Roma people valued, if anything, two things: willpower and dedication to a path. We, today, value one thing-- wealth and the power it bestows.
From here, we see luxury as a cause to the start of every fall. Luxury is the result of having too much, luxus meant too much of anything, but for us it means too much power, so much power that one is willing to spend it frivolously and with vanity. This is the finest expression of hubris.
From the Darkest Dungeon video game, the narrator says, "Yet triumphant pride must precipitate a dizzying fall just as the sun must rise before it sets."
--Written by Constante "CJ" Bautista, 11th grade