Perfection – Humanity’s Everlasting Chase of an Impossible Utopia

Perfection. We tend to throw this term around in a relatively light way. Whether it be striving for all A’s, throwing a no-hitter, or rebuilding the structures of society, perfection is our motivation for success. We want to achieve an ideal lifestyle, but does that scenario really exist? Let’s talk about it. 

Beginning with the opposition, perfection can never be truly achieved. Off reasoning alone, it’s evident that humanity only holds a minuscule amount of information, hence why our systems of society will never be perfectly optimized. No matter what we do, there will always be a galaxy full of untapped potential that likely outclasses our current ideals. This in itself clearly disproves the argument, but I believe that the warranting stems deeper than external materialistic perfection. 

Even in its purest and most abstract form, perfection is simply a facade. The crux of its inherent value lies in the idea that it’s a concept that we can reach, hence why it’s so powerful. If we were to achieve perfection, the results would be disastrous. Humankind has one commonality; we all want to progress in some form. Without that shared interest, we are no longer a unified collective. Therefore, we look at perfection as an arbitrary concept which shifts as we move throughout our lives. Without this idea that there’s always a next step, where does that put us? We want to be the best, but we also don’t want to adhere to dormancy, regardless of whether we’ve fulfilled our initial goals. For that reason, perfection is not only unachievable but not real at all. There’s no shared object that we can all look at and say, “wow, that’s perfect,”  meaning that our ideals are subjective to the human brain, and therefore don’t technically exist.  

Even when we have empirics that represent perfection, they aren’t things that we can achieve. A common concept is 1+1=2, yet when an engineer measures 2 inches, can he measure it precisely? No. While we may have an idea that represents perfection, our execution can never meet the standard. 

Moving onto the affirmation standpoint, perfection is subjective, and that makes sense. When talking about idealism, there won’t ever be something that all humans can agree to look at as an end goal. That doesn’t necessarily mean that perfection doesn’t exist; it just means that everyone looks at it differently. In a sense, that’s more logical, as a lawyer wouldn’t have the same perception of perfection as a 3rd grader. 

While I do concede that our goals change throughout life, the model of idealism is a concept that continuously evolves as we experience the world. Momentary perfection does exist, and it’s incredibly flexible. What if the embodiment wasn’t a set solvency? Only after we achieve our perceived perfection can we look to improve. I understand that this idea sounds contradictory, but let me explain. 

When we throw around this idea of a perfect world, we’re basing it off of our mindset at the time, which is limited to our current experiences. I’d like to define perfection as a momentary goal which shifts upon its achievement. Let’s look to an example of a lawyer working his way through a corporate structure. When he starts his career, he believes that perfection takes the form of a CEO title. Once he becomes CEO, he realizes that he can pitch for an ownership stake in the firm itself. While he did achieve his original idea of perfection, he will continue to progress up the company ladder. 

Secondly, let’s take a look at the U.S constitution. It’s looked at as a benchmark for what our perfect society should look like, but we continue to add to it as our societal standards change. In that sense, true idealism is flexible. Perfection is our goal, but it shifts as we meet it, for humanity aims to progress. While our idea of perfection may change over time, we can still meet the original requirements, creating a brief moment where we achieve our ideals.

I’ve given you two rational and conflicting arguments. In that sense, maybe we’ll never know whether a utopian idealistic realm is possible. Perfection is inherently dependent on perspective, and that makes it difficult to talk about it with empirics. If you have any thoughts, send us a DM on Instagram!