Freedom From Want
Nightline just did a segment on Norman Rockwell's painting "Freedom From Want" and its significance in American culture. When I was younger and didn't know Rockwell's work, I thought the title "Freedom From Want" was intended to be ironic.
I didn't understand "want" as meaning "lacking" in the title. I thought its meaning was "desire," as in the Buddhist maxim "Desire is the cause of all suffering." And I imagined the scene was representative of more than just one family at one meal.
So "Freedom From [Desire]" would be an ironic title for a painting that depicts an outrageously opulent meal being served to an eagerly ravenous family.
I prefer my interpretation. The title as it is makes little sense to me. The family in the painting is so far beyond the threshold of starvation, that the idea of real "want," of being in need, would have a difficult time entering into their collective consciousness. Perhaps they do need to be liberated from their desire or their greed, or simply the institutional inertia that drives them toward consumption far beyond their needs.
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