Definition
Man Is The Measure is a philosophy of physical agency and scale, asserting that human distance, ownership, and value are fundamentally rooted in the capacities of the human body (feet, hands, senses) rather than the affordances of a technological system.
Why It Matters
The ‘Measure’ reminds us that humans are biological entities, not just nodes in a network; decoupling our sense of value and agency from the physical body leads to a ‘hollow’ existence where technology swaddles us into irrelevance.
Core Concepts
- Near vs. Far:
- Near: A place to which one can get quickly on their own feet.
- Far: A place to which one cannot get quickly on their own feet, regardless of technological transport speed.
- Body as Benchmark: The human body is the measure for all that is “lovable and desirable and strong.” Ownership is defined by what the hands can reach, not what a button can summon.
- Sense of Space: Recognizing that technology “annihilates not space, but the sense thereof.” True spatial awareness requires physical movement and effort.
- Resistance to Atrophy: The deliberate cultivation of physical strength as a “protest against corruption.”