Marina Abramovic, a Serbian Artist, born in 1946 was very well-known performance artist. Her most radical and thought provoking work of art was in 1974, The Rhythm 0. She decided to test the tolerance level of the body. What she really learnt with the experiment is that the body has limitless tolerance level, because it is the mind that controls it. In her words, “It’s not about the body; it’s the mind who will push you to the limits that you could never imagine.”
Her desire was to learn more about the actions of human beings if they had the freedom to do as they
wished without fear of consequence. She gave them freedom without condition to do whatever they desired for 6 hours and she would take whole responsibility of their actions, while she stood passively. She decided to stand continuously for 6 hours without mobility and allowed the public to do what they wanted. On a table next to her she placed 72 objects which included many tools including a knife, a pistol with a single bullet, and flowers. The initial reaction was peaceful; the people contented themselves by standing near her and watching her. But this did not last for long, after a while the public became more aggressive. They wrote vile words on her body, put flowers in her hand, kissed her, touched her. Then the aggressiveness increased, they tore her clothes, stuck rose petals on her breasts, took photographs of her in the nude and made her hold them, one even put a gun to her head, but someone intervened and took the gun from him. Having completed the committed 6 hours, Marina moved without taking any hostile reaction toward the people. Yet, the people began to flee when Marina started walking, fearing some form of repercussion.
This experience proved to the Marina that people no matter what race, age or backgrounds are capable of heinous acts, provided the opportunity without fear of retaliation arises . Don't give people greater freedom than they deserve!
We do this every day in our lives. We end up giving others the opportunity to bend us according to their will. We do not set boundaries and this makes us be taken for granted. Often we do this without realising it, initially bending a bit, letting go of some trifle matter for the sake of peace, or because our consideration and regard for the person overweighs the desire to resist. But gradually the bending reaches breaking stage, and you can bend no more. At times you have bent so much, you break. Till every day you plod along, somehow dragging one day to the next and the next, till someday along the way you realise that you have lost yourself. Life that was once clear and seemed full of hope, becomes vague and fuzzy, disillusioned.
If Marina had at least retaliated or shown she was capable of retaliation, she probably would not have been deviled to the extent that she was. Her exploitation (for want of a better word) was more physical. But as she learnt, our minds have great capacity for tolerance. It can push us to great limits. But for each individual there will be a breaking point. The wiser know exactly what that boundary is and are saved from being completely broken.
Whereas, those who constantly put others ahead of themselves push those limits more than the wiser, the mind often thinking the body can handle it, till both mind and body break.
