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Humans as masochists on an island of one, rights as sadism at large
To frame rights as narratives of hospitality I propose two thought experiments. The first is that on an island of one a person does not need rights because they will not oppress themselves unless they are a masochist. This idea of the masochist runs deep through our sense of rights, namely why would you willing give up a personal right for the sake of other’s liberty, especially when others may perceptively not wish to abrogate their own freedoms in a like manner. On our mythical island you are free to do as you wish, spend your time as you wish, there is no-one else clipping the edges of your right to exist as yourself in the world. Yet, with that personal freedom also comes the personal responsibility to procure food, water, shelter, healthcare, and the array of other basic needs you have to exist in the world. Your skills frame the existence of your reality, which in turn bounds your ability to project your self into the world. The paradox of living on an island of one is that while you have no need for rights, you are essentially limited by your own ability to shape and move through the world. You may not be masochist to yourself, but the existence of one invariably becomes an ordeal to survive if you do not have the skills to thrive.
Contrast to the person in a community and society at large. They are of the world and they…
