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Ethical Episodes

Some Like It Hot

Joel Marks has an amoral moment.

I have been living by myself for several years and, as a result, I have got things in my home to be just the way I like them (apart from being alone!). On the whole this has seemed to me welcome, not only because I obviously like things being the way I like them, but also because I have come to appreciate how much there is to be aware of and how such awareness can enhance one’s power to make things better. The big disadvantage, however, is that I am making myself less and less adaptable to any future cohabitation, since the more fine-tuned to my personal preferences my living quarters become, not to mention my life in general, the less I could tolerate the different preferences of someone else. But is this inevitable? Why wouldn’t the increasing general ability to be aware of things make one a better potential partner? I think it obviously can.

But the ‘trick’ is to have a certain attitude.

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