| View Blog
|
|
|
|
| Somebody Else |
While killing time waiting for my roomate today I rewatched Easy Rider. I'd like to write tonight about something that caught me off guard. It's a bit of a long one but I think it's a very important point so please read.
The movie itself is a quality picture, a classic as you would say. Not on my top ten but definatly one to see. I could write a peice entirely on the film but that's really not what I'd like to talk about this evening.
What caught me was not the bizarre cuts in the editing or the honesty that is portrayed in low budget films. It was simply one line which summed up something I had not been able to discribe prior. Its in one of the campfire scenes early in the film shortly after Wyatt and Billy had picked up the hitchiker. Writing it down makes it seem somewhat hollow and simplistic but it struck a nerve, its a point in the giant connect a dot puzzle which is my self obsessed journey of personal discovery.
Wyatt "You ever wanna be someone else"
Hitchiker "I'd like to give Porky pig a try"
Wyatt "You know man... I've never wanted to be someone else" (and peter fonda just kind of stares off into space for a while looking all deep and intraverted"
As much as I rant about people who say things like "I identify so much with those lyrics" or "That character is so much like me" (and believe me I do have a sincere and deepseated issue with those kind of comments, I am a firm believer that film and music should be judged on its artist merits not how similar the performer is to your image of yourself) I did however have a moment of clarity in which I understood exactly what Wyatt was saying.
An x-girlfriend of once told me my problem was that I was a Self-Loathing Narcissist, She said that no one who Self-Loaths should have a narcissistic self-obsession and no Narcissist should have such a low opinion of themselves. It should be said she was not saying I should be commited or anything quite so drastic. She was exaggerated terms to describe tendencies I have that have (and will likely continue to) cause occasional unpleasantness in my life. I do spend alot of time focusing inward at myself, and there are quite a few things which I come upon which I do not like.
To go further I would say in past there have been things about myself which I hated, There have even been points where I would go so far as to say I hated myself.
but you know man... I've never wanted to be someone else
Throughout everything I always had a strong sense of self. Even if I was not perfect, not to my exact specifications. I have never met or seen someone I would rather be than me. I (and you) have a unique perspective which I have spent my entire life developing. Thats not something I would give up easily. I cannot even begin to imagine or desire to see the world through any eyes but my own... even if they do need glasses.
I'm not sure if I'm successfully getting across what I had hoped to setting out tonight. Essentially I believe that we have been moving away as a culture from a sense of individual pride. We spend our lives being constantly baraged through T.V. and billboards and magazines with people who are "better than us" and we begin to develope this little flicker of an idea in our head which grows and grows the more plastic culture it consumes. The idea that these stars or musicians or plain old rich folk are better. The idea that we would be so much happyer if we were them. At first this doesn't seem so wrong at almost innocent but after dwelling on if for some time it slowely grew more incidiouse, like some kind of evil beast sinking its claws into us. If everyone was ashley simpson I really would kill myself.
Imitation does not breed innovation. I'd like to take you down a hypothetical road (one which as a society I believe we have already started down" If we all wish we were someone else, We will all start immitating others, We will start doing and saying exactly what others do and say. This problem would (or should I say will) get perpetually worse as time passes, the more you imitate your someone the further you will go to be "them" you will lose all sense of individuality. As a culture we would become progressively more and more uniform. Those in power would begin (If they havent already) putting forward celebraties to be imitated who are docile, unquestioning, consumers. and we as a whole will be docile, unquestioning, consumers. Those in power will be able to further and further corrupt political and ethical practices until we find ourselves in a totalliarian situation similar to 1984.
So my message tonight is don't just be yourself as so many school councelers and piblic service announcements told us. Want to be yourself. You don't have to like you but you do have to want to be you. It'll all fall apart if we don't desire it.
As always I welcome any comments critisisms or additions you have which will help me develope or rework this thought process.
We Blew It Man
Sid
|
|
Posted by SidTheDeviant on 2009-11-02 00:52:12 | Rating: | Views: 29
|
|
| |
|
|
Email This to a Friend 