The Difference Between Need and Greed

By SWA

It is not uncommon for tourists to ask whether I feel a sense of pride in having been born into a place so steeped in historical legacy. My answer is consistently—and deliberately—no. While I acknowledge having grown up surrounded by ancient monuments—castles, cathedrals, and other architectural remnants of the past—I do not regard them with admiration, but rather with skepticism.

These structures, often celebrated as cultural heritage, are in many respects monuments to excess—symbols of vanity, power, and uncritical reverence. Their preservation is typically justified through appeals to national pride or cultural identity. Yet such narratives frequently obscure the human cost of their creation. The grandeur of castles and cathedrals may inspire awe, but that awe is often predicated on historical amnesia.

What is frequently forgotten—or deliberately overlooked—is that these buildings were constructed through the exploitation of labor. Artisans, masons, and laborers toiled under harsh conditions for meager wages, while the ruling elite, for whom these monuments were erected, lived in comfort and privilege, detached from the material realities of those who built for them. These structures served as instruments of dominance and spectacle, not of public service or collective benefit.

In the present day, the financial burden of maintaining these sites often falls upon the general public. Substantial resources are dedicated to the upkeep of architectural opulence, while the social and economic inequalities that made such construction possible are left unaddressed. Tourists continue to marvel at the aesthetics of these monuments, rarely prompted to consider the socio-economic structures that produced them, or the cost borne by those who labored in their shadow.

Rather than continue to venerate these buildings uncritically, it would be more socially responsible to reimagine their function. Many of these structures could be repurposed to serve contemporary public needs—as scientific research institutions, public universities, or healthcare facilities for aging populations. Such uses would not only honor the contributions of those who fund their maintenance through taxation, but also redirect collective resources toward addressing actual societal needs rather than preserving symbols of historical inequality.

In this context, the distinction between need and greed becomes unmistakable. These monuments were never necessities; they were displays of wealth, authority, and control. To celebrate them without critical reflection is to perpetuate a legacy that privileges spectacle over substance and power over people.

 

© 2000-2025 Sieglinde W. Alexander. All writings by Sieglinde W. Alexander have a fife year copy right. Library of Congress Card Number: LCN 00-192742 ISBN: 0-9703195-0-9 

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