Wow, the traffic here has been staggering in here as of late.
Wait, was that a tumbleweed? And will someone shut up those crickets?
*sigh* No one has bothered to comment. But, really, what is this but an outlet for creativity, a release? I should not let the fact that no one really reads this to get me down, although I come to my blog with a smile on my face, only to lose it when I see that the total number of comments is still at an amazing 1.
Which gets me to thinking.
Do we do things, take actions, just to please other people? Not even something for ourselves, but to look good for others? Are we conceited? I like to think so, as we even have a term for people who try to please a specific group, "posers." A person who wants to be in the group and tries too hard, so it's to the point where it's obvious that they are just trying to be part of the group, not even for their own pleasure anymore.
Do we really have a need to reach out to others, to gain approval? I know I do. I ask my girlfriend a lot of things, even if I know I don't need her approval, just to have a reaffirmation. Almost as if I doubt myself, but checking with someone else, anyone, makes it OK.
I dunno, maybe it has something to do with group mentality, which I have seen more than my fair share of. People want to feel they belong, especially to a group. The group does things together, travels together, etc. The group I was in freshman year did EVERYTHING together. Homework. Free time. Eating meals. It felt as if I had lost the individual to a machine, as if I was simply a gear or a cog. I was a part of the whole, not independent. Not even thinking.
And then it happened.
The "leader" of our little group attempted to do heinous things, thus creating a large rift in the group. My girlfriend and I broke off from the group. We became individuals again, with our own schedules. Yes, they usually included each other, as couples are wont to do, but they did not revolve around anyone but us. We no longer sought approval, so to speak, from the group to even go to dinner. We began living life on our own terms.
When the group saw this, it realized the fallacy of its own group mentality, that it had stripped the individual for the group (ok, maybe not quite a fallacy, but I like the word, so I'm using it). It was then that the rift was once more cleaved open, breaking the group down further. Half the group is now on our "side" and acting as individuals. The other half are still in a group mentality, doing everything together (one wonders if they even must breath in sync for the sake of the group).
So, what does this this nice story mean?
Pssh, yeah, like I'm just going to spoon-feed it to you. Besides, I was proving a point I already said at the top of this post. Stop being lazy and go back and read it.
That's it for now, see all you people who aren't actually reading next time.
No idea what the next post is going to be about, it'll be a surpriiiiise!
Edit: Fixed a spelling mistake. And I call myself a writer...
Can't stop the signal, Mal.
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Your best post yet.
ReplyDeleteThough you're certainly not the first one to think about individuality and what it means to people, you talk about it in a slightly skewed perspective people don't normally think about.
Right now, you're asleep on my couch, though. So you won't see this until later.
Almost 12 hours later, yes. And yeah, it's definitely my most thought-provoking.
ReplyDeleteOkay this is slightly off topic but I was thinking about something similar to this group mentality the other day. I was at a very BIG university where everything revolved around the schools standing, its recognition, the mascot and colors. If you went to that school you became apart of that schools brand. You were no longer an individual, you were a Terrapin or a Trojan for that matter. It made me appreciate going to a school that does value the individual and the power that it holds to be one. I don't know about you, but I don't want to be part of a brand.
ReplyDeleteNo, I wouldn't want to be part of a brand, either. And, really, that is not off-topic, it's still the same group mentality, like you said.
ReplyDelete