The Improbable

Dorothy L. Sayers wrote a theological essay called “Why Work” based on her experiences and opinions of work and the vocation that partners with it. Sayers commented “we live in order to work.” I hate to admit the truth behind this statement. We live in a capitalist society that ranks you by how much money you make. The more you work the more you make, ideally, thus in order to live the life we want we work. Therefore we end up spending our lives trying to reach and achieve the impossible or improbable. Sayers also portrayed work as the thing that “he finds spiritual, mental, and bodily satisfaction.” I believe that this is an extreme view to most who implore people to love what they do. Sayers wants our jobs to be our everythings, but I believe that a specific job will be troubling to fit all of those categories. Reading the quote also reminded me of the Hamilton song, where he sings of never being satisfied. Within the song, he describes his life and how even in a work that he loves and is passionate about he still wants more. I believe that is a tricky line to walk. Work, or life in general, will never be perfect and able to satisfy all of one’s needs for an extended period of time. Sayers has a beautiful point and I love that she wants others to be as passionate about their work as she is but unfornuantely that is not reality or achievable for everyone.