Yes, he is an actor. Hence, a professional liar. Some of my most favourite lies enacted by him were his parts in V for Vendetta and The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. But these are not the lies I speak of. I speak of the egoic lie. It happens, I lie to myself all the time. I tell myself I'm NOT one with everything, every moment! That's a big one. Or I tell myself I'm 'this' but I end up being 'that'. He reveals this lie in his frustrated outburst about people on American TV who 'whine' about wanting for themselves. Well sure, why not be annoyed about that! How dare they! Well. Maybe. It's irritates me a little, sometimes. It's a grosser form of egoism. But does it make it any less wrong or right than Mr Fry's more subtle form of egoism. Probably not, depends who you ask. In any case, I ask you this Mr Fry: are you really 'abnegating yourself'? How much do you abnegate yourself when you promote being interested in others just for YOU (cough cough "I") to be liked? Just so opportunities can be open to YOU (ahem "I")? Just so I - opps I mean YOU - can learn something from them? Self is harldy being adnegated here. Good! Great! Thank-you Mr Fry! Self is starting to be abnegated, at least more so than the American TV whinger. It's a start. But Mr Fry I urge you to move through such sublties. Admit your lie, repent, claim everything is for SELF! Everything I do is for SELF, for there is no other.
STEPHEN FRY: WHAT I WISH I'D KNOWN WHEN I WAS 18 from Peter Samuelson on Vimeo.
