Who is this elusive, usually exclusive everyone?
How can we achieve individuality?
How do you define something like that?
You can't.
Everyone has their own 'look', their own attitude, personality, but still we hear:
"Oh she's a carbon copy of so-and-so" ;
"He's a dick, look how he's dressed" ;
"She looks like a dumb barbie, what a bitch".
But they're not, if you strike up a conversation, everyone, EVERYone has their own fears, hopes, secrets and dreams.
Someone asked me, last year, why I had turned out so different from the rest of my siblings, why my career path was so markedly different from what they 'expected of the family', why I interact with my parents differently than my little sisters do. I just said - "Because I'm not my sisters". Because I'm not. In that case, the everyone was clear. My sisters, and my family as a whole, was that everyone. You can't group people together as an everyone, because it isn't. Sure, it may be a majority, but to have a majority, there has to be those that don't conform, or disagree, and even in that majority, you don't have to agree completely to take a side.
But we're still grouped according to that "everyone", and now that there's so many little niches for people to fit into, so many everyones to be a part of, there's nothing that's really individual anymore. Even now, Alternative genre is considered mainstream music; abstract art is one of the most popular art forms (?forms) and there are many shows and museums that have a majority taken by what was once seen as an oddity and not even considered art.
But then, is it just society, us in general that are becoming more accepting or tolerant of everything? Are we going to lose those old-fashioned tastes and values? Are they not good enough for us anymore? We're continually encouraged to push the boundaries but are there some boundaries that aren't meant to be pushed? So we can be expressive but outside what's already been done? But then if it's all been done, what then? Has it all been done before or did we push boundaries a couple of decades ago and have just followed their paths and not discovered something new for that long? Have we just bashed at the sides of the path, widening it for others to make their way through but not forging ahead? Since when have we been able to pinpoint one single person that's done something in the last 10 years that hasn't been done before, isn't building on something that's previously been discovered or isn't named as just a part of a company or scientific, artistic, or political group. Just one person, doing their own thing, something original. Something new. There's not really, that I know of, but someone correct if I'm wrong.
Someone asked me, last year, why I had turned out so different from the rest of my siblings, why my career path was so markedly different from what they 'expected of the family', why I interact with my parents differently than my little sisters do. I just said - "Because I'm not my sisters". Because I'm not. In that case, the everyone was clear. My sisters, and my family as a whole, was that everyone. You can't group people together as an everyone, because it isn't. Sure, it may be a majority, but to have a majority, there has to be those that don't conform, or disagree, and even in that majority, you don't have to agree completely to take a side.
But we're still grouped according to that "everyone", and now that there's so many little niches for people to fit into, so many everyones to be a part of, there's nothing that's really individual anymore. Even now, Alternative genre is considered mainstream music; abstract art is one of the most popular art forms (?forms) and there are many shows and museums that have a majority taken by what was once seen as an oddity and not even considered art.
But then, is it just society, us in general that are becoming more accepting or tolerant of everything? Are we going to lose those old-fashioned tastes and values? Are they not good enough for us anymore? We're continually encouraged to push the boundaries but are there some boundaries that aren't meant to be pushed? So we can be expressive but outside what's already been done? But then if it's all been done, what then? Has it all been done before or did we push boundaries a couple of decades ago and have just followed their paths and not discovered something new for that long? Have we just bashed at the sides of the path, widening it for others to make their way through but not forging ahead? Since when have we been able to pinpoint one single person that's done something in the last 10 years that hasn't been done before, isn't building on something that's previously been discovered or isn't named as just a part of a company or scientific, artistic, or political group. Just one person, doing their own thing, something original. Something new. There's not really, that I know of, but someone correct if I'm wrong.
Until next time, take comfort in the fact that you're an individual...
Just like everybody else.
