At one second past midnight on January 1, the day will change from Saturday to Sunday, usually an unremarkable transition of no special significance. But somehow we’ve decided that this change, which will end one year and begin the next, is different. This unique tick of the clock has always prompted us both to celebrate and to step outside the day-to-day activity we’re always so busy with—to reflect, to look back, take stock, assess how we did, and resolve to do better going forward. Save perhaps for our birthdays, no other moment in the year gets this sort of attention.
Why does the start of the new year carry such special symbolism? And why is its celebration so common around the world, as it has been for at least as long as there have been calendars? Behavior this ubiquitous must surely be tied to something intrinsic in the human animal, something profoundly meaningful and important, given all the energy and resources we invest not just in the celebration but also our efforts to make good on a fresh set of resolutions (even though we mostly fail to keep them ). It may be that the symbolism we attach to this one moment is rooted in one of the most powerful motivations of all—our motivation to survive.
The celebration part is obvious: As our birthdays do, New Year’s day provides us the chance to celebrate having made it through another 365 days, the unit of time by which we keep chronological score of our lives. Phew! Another year over, and here we still are! Time to our raise our glasses and toast our survival! (The flip side of this is represented by the year-end obituary summaries of those who didn’t make it, reassuring those of us who did. )
But what about those resolutions? Aren’t they about survival, too—living healthier, better, longer? New Year’s resolutions are examples of the universal human desire to have some control over what lies ahead, because the future is unsettlingly unknowable. Not knowing what’s to come means we don’t know what we need to know to keep ourselves safe. To counter that worrisome powerlessness, we do things to take control. We resolve to dietand exercise, to quit smoking, and to start saving. It doesn’t even matter whether we hold our resolve and make good on these promises. Committing to them, at least for a moment, gives us a feeling of more control over the uncertain days to come.
Interestingly, New Years resolutions also commonly include things like treating people better, making new friends, and paying off debts. It’s been so throughout history. The Babylonians would return borrowed objects. Jews seek, and offer, forgiveness. The Scots go “first footing,” visiting neighbours to wish them well. How does all this social “resolving” connect to survival? Simple. We are social animals. We have evolved to depend on others, literally, for our health and safety. Treating people well is a good way to be treated well. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” it turns out, is a great survival strategy.
Enjoy New Year’s Eve and the plans you make for yourself this coming year.
