The Village is Dead Because it's All About Me

Social media has [un]intentionally bred a generation of narcissists that have taken positivity to the very edge of toxicity, in the name of self-love and self-acceptance. We love ourselves so much that we have become overtly self-absorbed and the pandemic has only driven this further.

The self and the internet killed the village when we allowed social media to take over our lives. The village has been abandoned and replaced with the safety and comfort of a keyboard and a screen. Children now grow up in their own orchestrated prison (gifted by their parents, who too are in their own contracted prison) filled with false appearances, fake realities, and otherwise fantasises not ever realising that they are being raised and slowly manipulated by adverts and algorithms.

Then there's the question of pronouns, identifications and labels. To put it plainly I really don't care. These mean nothing to me. Your pronouns and labels don't tell me who you actually are as a person. What is your favourite meal to cook? What games did you play as a kid? What's the most embarrassing thing you've ever done?

Your labels are only what you want the world to see you as, and sometimes, as much as it's painful to acknowledge, the world doesn't perceive us in the way we feel. After all, we all play different characters in someone else's different story. It's a Btrechan nightmare.

"Inside the imagination of every person he comes across exists a different version of himself—a version that’s a mismatch of his own self-image."

One, No One and One Hundred Thousand by Luigi Pirandello.

In other words: there are infinite versions of you because a different version of you exists in everyone's mind. I'm sorry to break this to you and hurt your feelings like this; most of us are NOT the main character and sadly not everything is about YOU. I know sweetie... but the reality is, you're only the main character of your own story, not everyone else's.

Chances are you're probably more likely to be the villain rather than a hero, and that's why villains never perceive themselves as villains because we are all our own heroes.

Social media feeds into the image of the self and encourages narcissistic behaviour, attitudes and open judgement. We have become too comfortable saying what we please behind our screens and in turn, have become obsessed with our own identities and the self that we don't even know the people who live next door to us. The village is dead because it's all about me. Me, me, me, me, me and all my labels.

I will always recognise someone by their preferred pronouns however, as it's just common decency and basic respect, but ultimately I want everyone to know I really don't care, and you know what? Neither should you. You shouldn't have to feel the need to declare it.

You are not a sheep on the way to the aviator to be made into mutton, so why are we label-obsessed? We happily put ourselves into little groups like a high school cafeteria, simultaneously gatekeeping our seats, yet wanting all the attention, so people beg us for a place. After which we feel depressed, unaccomplished and ultimately robbing us of our own joy, trapping ourselves in a continuous loop of fifteen-second dopamine hits.

We feel the need to document every moment, every second of our lives, whether it's a post on Instagram or a live stream on Twitch. Yet can anyone say for certain that their social media is really a true reflection of the life that they are living or could it be an illusion? Or are you just living your life through false expectations that have been set but other false illusions, thus creating a never-ending cycle of deception? When we must remember we are all gatekeepers here as -

Appearances are a glimpse of the unseen.

Quote from Anaxagoras (500 - 428 BCE) - Greek Philosopher.

Our imagination can do far more damage than reality ever can, but when that reality is false or perhaps a complete fantasy, we become stuck in a loop of never-ending illusions, trapping us in a cycle of unrealistic expectations and depressing comparisons.

You can have all the followers in the world, but that doesn't mean you are a decent human being. Followers, likes, views; blah, blah, blah. They aren't a measurement of your self-worth, in fact, it's isolating and turn life into a competition that is just plain cruel and unachievable. It all means nothing. It's just a bunch of untouchable numbers.

Although the internet has indeed connected us all and has made everyday life simple, efficient and instantaneous, as a society, we have become disconnected as people, and our morality is if not dead, it is dying along with the village. Society must find the balance between existing in the real world - the village, and the digital - the self. Society has become obsessed with the self and fantasies that we have lost ourselves, in which we are quickly losing touch with our reality.

Sigmund Freud urged a balance between the mind and heart, and Fredrick Nieche urged the balance of forces between apollo and Dionysus. The balance between the village and the individual is the call for the balance of the twenty-first century.

You are important, your identity is valid as is your self-expression. Your pronouns should be respected and people should accept you for who you are and vice versa. You do belong in the world, there is plenty of space for us all.

You are a part are one of many, which is why every vote counts. But it’s not all about you. Everyone has their turn, and everyone has their moment. Enjoy your life - it is yours to live, but share moments with others also, and celebrate others' accomplishments. There are many ways where one can be rich.

Accept yourself and accept others, but also accept that the world will most likely not perceive you in the way you think and feel. Embrace being misunderstood, because ultimately humans are flawed beings. Just remember that you are more than your labels, you are more than just pronouns, don’t reduce your humanity for self-absorbed identities, in the name of acceptance. You are human, nothing more - nothing less and that’s all that matters; we should just accept it.

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As always - stay safe, stay hopeful and stay blessed :)

References:

https://iai.tv/articles/the-curse-of-the-ego-auid-2228

https://www.abebooks.co.uk/Hundred-Thousand-Pirandello-Luigi-Weaver-William/30646296103/bd?ref_=ps_ggl_2039220669&cm_mmc=ggl-_-UK_Shopp_Tradestandard-_-product_id=UK9781943679072USED-_-keyword=&gclid=Cj0KCQiA6rCgBhDVARIsAK1kGPKvwmMT5ySOOMVRcqqK_mBYBqriQHCeBENXxKzLUhMq1ZyZzcmgaDgaApCAEALw_wcB

https://ericgerlach.com/greek-philosophy-anaxagoras/