As far as I can tell, life isn’t simple anymore. There probably was a time when your stereotypical clique set up of high school worked, but it just doesn’t anymore—at least not that I’ve seen. And why is this? The authorities have been so adamant about telling us to be ourselves and be unique and individual, that it’s become cool to be a rebel. It’s become cool, to be a dork, to a certain extent. And all this has done is complicate matters by pushing the stereotypes “underground”, as it were, forcing the problems to create better masks to hide behind and getting everyone to be a “nonconformist”. So what, after all, does it take to “be yourself” in this maze of mirrors?
Beats me if I know. I do know what Emerson said—To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest achievement. (Don’t count on that being the precise wording, but that’s the gist of the idea.)
So what is the progressive point of this post? (Which could be a lot longer and a lot more complicated, concerning cause and effects and examples, but I’ll save it for another time; I’m pretty sure everyone knows what I’m talking about.) Wake up the fact that it’s happening.
When you’re “accepted” and “cool” because you’re being a “rebel”, you’re not being a nonconformist—you’re conforming to nonconformity. I should know; I was sucked in for a time as well. It’s just very important that people snap out of the innocent routine (“But I don’t buy into cliques and stereotypes, honest!”) and take a good hard look at their lives and actions. It’s preps and wannabes and losers with different names. The obvious divisions are still there, are of course—walking into any high school will reveal that. but how we look at them, what we do about the problems, and our attitudes have changed. A little for the better—but in many ways, for the worse, as the conforming to nonconformity movement shows.
We’re all a little prejudiced. We’re all a little cliquish. It’s easy to get defensive and overlook it and sugarcoat it and deny it and say “Well I hang out with everyone”—and oh, the many time I’ve heard that line—but it would be real nice if people just took a moment to realize that the problem hasn’t gone away because we’re all being “educated” about it, and other character issues—it’s just gotten deeper, and darker, and a whole lot harder to solve.
(This was the subject of my sophomore health class paper, but it was rather long, and I don’t have a copy saved anymore and don’t feel like retyping it—so you, lucky readers, get this, the short version. Hurray for reasons to count your blessings.)
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
Hmmm... although your thoughts are completely valid, I wouldn't assume to know everything. Your last paragraph comes off that way. Just because you may not be capable of something, doesn't mean others aren't. I don't go around boasting about hanging out with "everyone" because I certainly don't. I am pretty shy, and I have only a handful of close friends. But they are all QUITE different. You could ask anyone that knows me and they wouldn't be able to stereotype me. They would probably call me a liberal, if anything, but even that is doubtful.
I guess you could say that I am judgemental in a way: I am intolerant of the intolerant. Haha. People that are racist or bigoted drive me crazy and I have little patience with them.
But other than that... nothin'.
The title of your post reminds me of something... the whole punk-rock movement and scene kids crack me up because they all scream non-conformity, but if you go to this town near mine called Deep Ellum--a punk-rock hottspot-- they are all dressed exactly alike, with the same haircuts and everything. Haha. One of my friends is a punk-rocker and I tease her about it all the time.
When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace. --Jimi Hendrix
My apologies--I certainly don't claim to know everything, and didn't intend for it to come off that way. And my claims in that paragraph come from my own experience. The same people that I hear saying things like "I hang out with everyone" and "but I'm nice to everyone!" are the same people who made my life miserable not all that long ago. To me, that says "hypocritical" in large capital letters.
Intolerance of the intolerant is actually something I had in mind when writing that post--as well as the punk rockers. At my school, the incarnation of that is the "unique" goths. Even the anarchists have leaders.
I'm not denying there are some people that generally don't fit a stereotype (though more often than not, they get the "unlable-able lable" from people. I'm not saying that fits you--how would I know, I don't even know you!--but, it does happen.)
--
~I know you believe you understand what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.~
By thw title of he post I thought you were going to talk about how there seems to be a certain way certain people have to "conform" to noncomformity. Like, even though noncomformism is suppose to be individualistic, there still seems to be stereotypes and norms people follow to even be a nonconformist.
<-_->. I'll just have to make the topic myself:p.
Ahh...nevermind cause you have touched on that a little.
Hmm...I was thinking about how some people who, for example, sincerely do not want to follow racial or gender stereotypes, may even fall under this trap of pseudo-nonconformity. Like, even they follow stereotypes and norms as a nonconformist.
I fear no man(Nazgul)...i'm no man(Eowyn) -LoTR
That was, in fact, the point. My writing is often not as clear as it should be. I know what I mean, but have a hard time wording it...
As for the second bit: exactly! That's the trap I fell into for a while...
It just seems to me, there's stereotypes everywhere (and I'm using that word rather loosely). It's practically impossible to get away from them. And those that claim to... are generally just blind to what's really going on.
--
~I know you believe you understand what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.~