The Creative Act vs. Timely Silence
In the context of the presented arguments, one can assert that the creative act—the creation of something fundamentally new—is a more complex task for a person than timely silence. Creativity, as emphasized in one source, is linked to stepping beyond the mundane, to performing an act that is not predetermined by any previous causes, which makes this process, in its essence, “the greatest mystery of life”: “Creativity is the greatest mystery of life, the mystery of the phenomenon of the new, the unprecedented, that cannot be derived from anything, that does not flow from anything, from which nothing is born. Creativity presupposes non-being, just as Hegel’s becoming presupposes non-being.” (source: link txt)In contrast, the ability to remain silent at the right moment is viewed more as an aspect of self-discipline and ethical restraint. Silence in certain life situations is recommended to maintain modesty, to avoid participating in judgment, or to prevent overburdening a conversation with excessive words. For example, another source states: “In several life situations silence can be particularly recommended or even considered necessary. Thus, we need to remain silent when our interlocutors are condemning someone, and we should be careful not to be complicit in that condemnation.” (source: link txt)Thus, while silence requires a certain skill and self-control, it is a more “routine” practice, whereas the creative act demands not only freedom of choice but also the ability to go beyond known patterns and create something fundamentally new. It is precisely this ability—independent of preceding conditions and arising from an “absolute profit”—that makes creativity a much higher and more complex form of human activity. “When we speak, in our imperfect human language, of creation from nothing, we are talking about creation from freedom. From the viewpoint of determinism, freedom is ‘nothing’; it emerges from a predetermined sequence... Human creativity from ‘nothing’ does not mean the absence of resisting material, but merely an undetermined absolute profit.” (source: link txt)In conclusion, while timely silence requires discipline and wisdom, it is the creative act of bringing forth something new that demands from a person extraordinary courage and the exceptional ability to transcend the familiar, making it more difficult to achieve.