The Easiest Way to Become Invisible is to Become Poor
The brilliant philosopher Simone Weil on why “the afflicted are not seen”
“Compassion and gratitude come down from God, and when they are exchanged in a glance, God is present at the point where the eyes of those who give and of those who receive meet.”
-Simone Weil, Love in the Void
Simone Weil was known for the quality of her attention, and for really being able to see those people who traditionally went through life unseen by society at large.
She’s actually one of the most fascinating figures in all of 20th-century philosophy — and maybe even history in general — and it’s nothing less than a tragedy that she’s largely forgotten today.
The Nobel Prize-winning philosophy Albert Camus even called Simone Weil “the only great spirit of our time,” and as I write about here, she actually lived her beliefs to their logical conclusion, no matter how uncomfortable or difficult, not just when it was easy and convenient.
This part of her life story is somewhat controversial, but she even died because she refused to eat any more food than the French soldiers were allowed to have at the front during World War II.
An argument can be made for why that was kind of a stupid reason to die, but no one can doubt her…
