Searching for the right word to describe a situation is not always an easy task. A dictionary, thesaurus, or online resource can be of help if I know where I'm going and have a vague idea of the concept I'm trying to describe. But by far the richest resource for discovering words like maelstrom is the massive world of literature. Probably nobody did more for the word maelstrom than Edgar Allan Poe whose dark and ominous writings left indelible imprints of doom and gloom on the reader. Visions of sinking into whirlpools never to be seen again could keep any youthful reader awake all night. In most of the use of maelstrom in literature like Poe's the word is used as a synonym for whirlpool...a vicious, raging whirl of ocean waters that sucks whole ships into a place of non-existence.
In more recent literature and other common usage, maelstrom has been expanded to mean a situation which is swirling out of control. While it is ideally suited to political commentary, it is also used commonly in such areas as family therapy, sociological analysis, and economic reporting. It could have been applied to the 2009 economic turmoil, for instance, although I have to admit that I don't remember reading a single report in which it was employed.
Maelstrom carries with it the implication that things are out of control. As in an oceanic whirlpool, the waters are surging, the winds are ferocious, and the force of downward spiral is unable to be avoided. Similarly, in a political, sociological, or economic maelstrom the ability of even the strongest leadership is incapable of averting disaster.
I am not inclined to use the word maelstrom to describe our current political or economic climate. To do so would imply a degree of fatalism which is neither accurate or helpful. There are those who seem to delight in doing so, however, and will spare no language to embolden the pessimism which prevails in some circles of American culture in 2010. The result is a self-referential weakening of the very correctives which are capable of pulling us from the storms which rage on Wall Street, in the economic markets around the world, and in the difficult settings of Main Street and County Road.
Dr. Norman Vincent Peale is best remembered for his book, The Power of Positive Thinking. While some dismiss his work as being simplistic, refuting the idea that one's embracing of a positive mindset can help in bringing about a positive result, there is much to be said about refusing to cave in to negativity and allowing it to affect the direction of one's life and one's energies.
The maelstrom which grieves me at this moment in 2010 is the swirl of negativity, gossip, name-calling, slander and embracing of gloom and doom among the most visible/aural people in our nation. It is destructive, just as a whirlpool can be destructive. I'm not suggesting that a twisting to naive wishful thinking will solve our serious problems. But I am convinced that our wallowing in negativity will only enhance the problems we face and further distance us from successful solutions.
Photo Credit: seekingalpha.com/article/108553-options-trade...
Definition Credit: Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
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