The Tyranny of Merit

My review of "The Tyranny of Merit" by Michael Sandel.

The Tyranny of Merit: What's Become of the Common Good? (English Edition)

 A meritocracy is usually regarded as an ideal society without prejudice or discrimination and has been promoted in recent decades, but the author Michael Sandel, who studies and teaches political philosophy at Harvard University, points out that an implicit meaning of a meritocracy has brought about hubris among winners in a global, market-driven economy and that this arrogance has been deepening the divide between winners and losers. A meritocracy is a society that rewards people’s merit but has an adverse effect on attitudes toward success and failure: it tends to lead winners to misunderstand that their success is their own doing and, as a result, look down on losers by saying such things like their failure is their own fault and that they have nobody but themselves to blame. This harsh side of a meritocracy forsters conceit among winners and humiliation among losers. Michael Sandel does not completely deny the merits of a meritocracy; however, he suggests that to repair the deep divide, winners should humbly accept such matters as "There but for the grace of God, the accident of birth, the mystery of fate, go I". He believes this kind of humility can make it easier for winners to realize their winnings are not just their due but the luck or fortune they happen to have and, in doing so, bring back solidarity to us.

 This book has made me think about two things: the role of religions and a humble Japanese expression, おかげさまで(okagesamade), which means thanks to others including those who the speaker do not know and is used when you are praised for your achievement or accomplishment.

 First, as our society has become more modernized, what role religions play is forgotten while the importance of technology is always emphasized. However, considering what Michael Sandel points out – winners’ hubris has been eroding our civic life and what we need now is humility –, I think religions are important in the following sense: they keep humans humble by comparing them to the omniscient and omnipotent god or gods. Every religion has god or gods and describes how imperfect humans are. That is why religions show us how to live – live with humility. Indeed, the ancient times and the middle ages are not a utopia, but advanced technology in the current world may make people misunderstand they can do everything they want. This, other than the meritocratic ideal, may lead to the arrogance mentioned in this book. Although we have been focusing more on advancing or developing technology than on learning about liberal arts including religions and philosophy, it is now time to reflect on what role religions should play.

 The second thing this book has made me realize is that おげさまで is a wonderful expression in terms of reminding us that we should be humble and that I hope this expression spreads all over the world like もったいない (mottainai) became well known when Wangari Maathai was awarded the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize. Although Sandel introduces an expression reminding native English speakers of humility, it is, I guess, not commonly used. On the other hand, Japanese people use おかげさまで in everyday life, whether they are really humble or not. In other words, the Japanese language has such a spirit of humility.

 To sum up, The Tyranny of Merit is a must-read book and will bring you a significant opportunity to consider whether a meritocracy is an ideal society we should try to obtain, how we should live and what kind of society we would really like to live in – one where we are hopelessly divided into winners and losers or where we help and support each other as a member of the community.