No such thing as need.

[Raveren]

Let me begin with how I came across the idea.

I was speaking with a friend of mine, who stated that "they needed music everyday". I thought quietly to myself, thinking "You don't really NEED music...you just desire it". I asked them "What makes you think you NEED music? Won't you still be alive tomorrow if you don't listen to any?" They replied "I tried to go a day without it...I just couldn't do it."

This left me pondering. In these modern times, where do people draw the line between need and want? Let's look at some basic definitions of the two words.

Need:An obligation, necessity, or requirement.

Want: To desire, crave, or demand.

Most will say that a need is something you have to do, or have no other choice than to perform that need (will now be referred to as 'the common view of need'). Let's combine that with the definition above. The common view of need states only the first part of the definition, "an action that must be taken", but it's the second half of the definition that gives it the twist, "to avoid consequences". Where do you draw the line that something has to be done, and no other option is available?

This is where I have skepticism, these consequences are only things that one wants to avoid. The consequence is an option, just an undesirable one. Let's look at a few situations.

"I need a new pair of socks."

My reflection: No you don't, you only want a new pair of socks because you don't want to deal without them or deal with the condition of your current socks.

Let's look at a more serious situation.

"I need to breathe."

Though the consequence is much more severe than not getting a new pair of socks, the same principle applies. Death is still an option, it's only a consequence one wants to avoid.

Need is not what it appears to be to us. Need is just a play on words for what we want not to happen.

Now I'm not looking to obliterate the word, it makes sentence making much simpler. You get to say "I need a new pair of socks" rather than "I don't want to continue being without an adequate pair of socks." The purpose of the word is to simplify and clarify speech, but there is no such thing as an need in the sense of the common view due to the fact that you always have another option, though perhaps undesirable.