Week 6

I like this picture because I feel like it expresses Emerson's "Self Reliance" pretty well. The men walking in line all have robes on. They are probably all religious men with the exception to the man in the back of the line. The man in the back of the line is wearing a robe but it is not a religious robe. This man is expressing his uniqueness by showing his individuality in a place where all the other men are pretty much unified. I can only imagine the kind of looks Darth Vader is receiving from the other religious men wearing robes. They are probably wondering why this is dressed so weird and I can bet they are probably annoyed by him. Perhaps they think he is mocking them by wearing a completely different attire than what is "appropriate". This brings up an interesting point. How is appropriate clothing determined. In my opinion, society draws the rules of what you should where and when you should wear it. One of my biggest pet peaves is ties. Why in the world would anybody ever think that something you tie around your neck and let it dangle would be a fashionable thing to wear? I never understood the logic behind ties. They are uncomfortable and annoying to eat with. Yet, I fall prey to them everytime I have to coach a basketball game because it is the rules of the school. All coaches must wear ties. And if I were to ask the school why they would probably tell me that ties look good or professional. But who's opinion is that? I think it is society's opinion that ties look good therefore we must all conform to society. Very interesting to see how individualism is lost in society when it comes to clothing.
Another area the Emerson's piece reminded me of was a passage in the Bible. Romans 12:2 states "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is- his good, pleasing, and perfect will." I want to focus on the first part of that verse. It is basically summing up what Emerson is stating. I like how the verse says "the pattern of this world". The world is one big pattern. We are born and sometime in our growing up we learn to do things or think about things because we have either been taught that way or we have observed others and copy their behaviour. It is very interesting the way the mind works.

There is a part of me, however, that believes that one must conform to the society they live in in order to live a happy life. For example, if one is continually breaking the law and being thrown in prison, their life will be wasted within a 15x15 foor room and watching their back in the showers! Not fun. If you have ever been driving and suddenly seen the flashing red and blue lights in you rear view mirror, that is also not fun. I think we can look at Emerson's piece with a realistic perspective. We must conform to a certain extent in order to live as individuals in society. But that brings up an interesting point, if the government we live in eventually gives us such a short leash where nobody can live as an individual and everything is uniformed, then I think that is when it becomes time to revolt or stand up against the governement. Just think about this type of government makes me think about a movie I once saw. "Equilibrium" with Christian Bale is a good example of a government which would not allow for any kind of individuality. All the citizens were forced to take these pills which removed human emotion. Human emotion was said to be the "disease" of humanity. Also, any type of art was forbidden. Everyone wore a black or grey uniform. This was a completely opposide world from what Emerson is describing. Eventually Christian Bale joins the underground movement of humans who would not take their pills but would collect art. Bale eventually kills assassinates the government leader and the world is made individualistic again. Such a happy ending. :)

Favorite quote: "Insist on yourself; never imitate. Your own gift you can present every moment with the cumulative force of a whole life's cultivation; but of the adopted talent of another, you have only an exemptoraneous, half possession."(1177-1178)