Breaking Stereotypes

The glass is half full. Or is it half empty? The fictional world we create in our heads about the importance of petty things is commendable. We give meaning and authority to things that will otherwise have no affect on our lives whatsoever. Giving social and moral norms precedence over our own autonomy, it is us who ensure the propagation of this system that has been created. Breaking stereotypes is one of the most important matters that may be resolved, given the open-mindedness of individuals. Why must we associate certain things with certain emotions, why must we judge? What comes of it? Unproductive conversations, inefficient thought processes and a lack of personal autonomy are just a few of the byproducts of adhering to norms set by society and the world as a whole.

From what I have inferred, a situation seems much more foreboding than it actually is if you haven’t been exposed to it. Lack of knowledge about a certain matter is what instigates fear in our hearts. Associating Africa with famine, Middle-East and South Asia with terrorism, these connections are not our fault. The media plays a pivotal role in developing what we seem to think of as our own personal opinions. We are dictated by the mechanisms of “civilization” and we still seem to believe that we have individualistic concepts. At some point or the other, there is a common overlap between the mindsets of two “individuals”.

Coming back to the lack of information inciting fear in us, think about it for a minute. Let’s take an example for the purposes of understanding. Depending on what sort of background you come from, your opinions fluctuate accordingly. A person raised in the west may believe that consuming alcohol is morally fine, whereas someone who grew up in the Middle East may believe that consuming alcohol is palpably wrong and goes against their religion and social norms. Once again, by stereotyping the mindsets of people in their respective regions, I have proven that I am no different from the rest of the world. However, the point I am trying to make is that no individual is an individual. Our immediate surroundings define who we are.

The conflicting mindsets of the regions around the world subsequently result in generations to come to have conflicting ideologies. That being said, I still believe that we cannot have a Utopian world in which everyone is like-minded and doesn't fight about matters pertaining to fundamental belief. Through the ages, humans have evolved, not letting go of their beliefs. Co-existence, however, was lost somewhere along the way.

You have religious views, well; we all need a feeling of righteousness. What seems to be the issue with other people having differing religious views? By asserting your views and condemning other views are preposterous and incorrect, you don’t end up establishing supremacy. You just look like an insecure subject who needs to convince himself more than anyone else that his views are right.

We have planet Earth to live in. Nothing more, nothing less. Let’s downscale. Imagine that planet Earth is an apartment with 2 rooms and a living room which has an Xbox, LCD screen, and a really nice atmosphere to spend time in. Now you and your room mate both want to play Xbox and chill, right? What are you going to do? Beat him half to death, lock him in the bathroom, and then have a good time without feeling remorse? Or would you try to find middle ground in which no one is being oppressed?
Well whatever you may want to do, it’s too bad because presently the former is being implemented.

The oppressed will continue to be oppressed and may think that he has no real power over the oppressor. However, people are oppressed because they allow themselves to be oppressed. But then again, the idea of being weak is fixated in their mind similar to the way stereotypes are, and so there’s a slim chance they’ll ever be able to break the cycle.

Then there are those who overdo it. Being someone who believes in equality of all races, religions and both the genders, I couldn't help but notice a few things. When the oppressed begin understanding what “could have been”, they really overdo it. Individuals of an African-American descent have pushed so much for racial equality, and for this very reason they will never get it. There is a lawsuit filed every time a Caucasian individual gets something instead of an African-American one, if they are the only two eligible candidates for it.

Similarly, there are feminists. Sure, empower women, give them equal rights, stop sexual harassment, but where is the line drawn? Feminists push for all these things, yet demand special treatment. The concept they are pushing for, is reasonable, logical. However, overdoing it, wanting to be better, filing lawsuits left right and center for gender discrimination, it once again is a reflection of their insecurity and lust for supremacy.
My question is, if someone who is oppressed takes a stand based on moral high ground, how can they be so hypocritical as to take advantage of it and raise their stand one up and aim for higher than what even morality would agree with? Are they trying to turn the tables completely? Is it revenge? Or is it a way to strike a balance: the oppressed becoming the oppressor (and vice versa) for a certain period of time until the former oppressor gets what he deserves? Disproportional attacks will not stop this war.

Once again, we have proven that co-existence is but an idealistic concept. The psychological setbacks are too predictable, yet the world seems oblivious to them and how to tackle situations without being unreasonable.

Coming back to breaking stereotypes and what society has made us, I would feel purposeful if I managed to make people understand that whatever we think that we are ‘supposed’ to do, we really don’t. We feel morally inclined to do it because society has evolved in such a way that we were never given a choice to follow or not to follow. Being children, society’s views have been etched into our psyche, giving leeway only when we attain maturity. Question them, ponder over the reason that they are there in the first place, debate on whether you would be losing your genetic personality by adhering to it. Nothing ‘must happen’. Be yourself, don’t hesitate to disagree. Break the stereotypes that have been created, think outside the box, and be an individual.

Question everything. Apply logic. Infer.

P.S: There are exceptions to everything, everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

Stereotypical Emotions

Even the most feeling-less of people can have feelings. One can convince themselves that they feel nothing. But that's not true. They have just not been subjected to a situation that triggers their feelings, and that situation may be very unpleasant.
Impartiality. What is it? Driven by circumstances, one's mind subconsciously bars those thoughts from entering the conscious mind. Puts them behind a "wall". If the magnitude of the enclosed emotions is large enough, it leaves a void in the conscious mind. A gaping hole. The sudden transition of those emotions from the conscious into an enclosed section makes the person feel empty. Something they can mistake for 'feeling nothing'. Feeling 'numb'. A strong person may be able to handle those pent up emotions for a long time. A weaker person may succumb to those emotions and vent out negatively. The 'piling' up of emotions within the 'walls' can have many repercussions. The person in question deals with it in accordance to his or her emotional stability. Some may vent in a positive manner: exercise, music, art. Some may vent in a negative manner: inflicting pain on themselves or others, causing people harm, being reckless, committing suicide.
The void cannot be filled, unless the person in question wants it to be filled. This is not denial. This is a way of locking matters up when they get too much to handle. Granted, it’s unhealthy. But a strong defense mechanism does not allow the person to deal with it and makes them 'forget' it ever happened. The unanswered question is: what happens when they eventually reach the breaking point of all the 'forgotten' emotions? Not the ones they put on pending, but the ones their minds chose to 'forget'? Because information once plugged into the brain, does NOT get lost. It just goes deeper within, and becomes harder to access consciously. You never 'forget'. You just 'lose' the memory within the vast realms of your subconscious mind.

 

Everyone and everything has a breaking point. There is no ‘unbreakable’ material that we know of in our universe. It defies the laws of physics. We generally apply the same concept when we say ‘I’ve reached my breaking point’ and so on and so forth.

Here is where I’d like to go out on a limb and say that MOST of the time, humans do not just (emotionally) break or snap. They bend. I like to think of our emotional threshold to be of a malleable nature. SurrealSuperElasticTypeThing.  Keep applying pressure, it’ll keep bending, and MOST of the time, it won’t snap. (Emphasis on MOST, because sometimes people DO snap, that much is obvious)

Some people can find a way to deal with the emotional pressure and get back to the way they were normally. Some people take a long time to deal with things, some don’t. Some can be normal, some stay scarred for a long time. It all depends on what your mind –in essence, YOU- want to do. Mourn, rebel, vent, rationalise, ignore?

The ages-old question has been: What is the best way to deal with problems?  ‘Cause let’s face it, EVERYONE has problems.

To start off, stop CREATING problems for yourself. ß What have I said? Who would create problems for themselves?

Well, don’t be surprised. People, at times, ENJOY being depressed or angry. They enjoy the sympathy they get. They enjoy the misery they feel, and then they feel sorry for themselves.

There are those who state their problems to the world at large, portraying themselves as people who have been wronged, and enjoy themselves thoroughly as the sympathy comes pouring in.

There are those who do not advertise their misery but act depressed and wait for people to ask what’s wrong. They get an ego boost as well as a sympathetic companion.

There are those who cry about their issues, then pretend to be completely fine instantly and get both sympathy as well as praise for being so ‘strong’.

It’s alright to fall into one of these categories. I’m QUITE sure only humans will be reading this. :P It is deep-rooted in human beings to be attracted towards peace, towards sanctity, solace. One can find peace in sympathy, praise, support, understanding, or simply by sharing their burdens.

Let go of things. Try rationalising WHY they happened, nothing ever happens without a reason. Vent out, in a positive manner. Refrain from depending completely on people: it’ll become a never ending cycle of trusting someone, getting shattered, trusting someone, getting shattered- with the person changing every time you decide to trust or depend on someone. Sure, you can talk about your problems, but do so to SOLVE the issues, not just to share what’s happening.

We complicate our lives ourselves. Seldom have I observed people having a conversation about their problems that leads somewhere. Very rarely have I seen two people reach a consensus on how to go about a certain issue, and more often than not, the two are not completely convinced or satisfied.

Think about it this way: it’s YOUR problem… YOU hold the power to solve it. YOU get to choose the way you think is right. Why would you want sympathy? It won’t get you anywhere. But oh well, we’re all human. We regard sympathy to be as important as water is to sustain life. You disagree, don’t you? That’s because you’ve never thought about it. You’ve done so subconsciously. Typically, we function on a system of give and take, but I completely disagree with the efficiency of it. It takes far too long, and has too many hurdles.

Strive to fix things before they get too much to handle. Trust me, if you want a problem to be solved, it will be. You just need to be willing to compromise.

P.S: To everything I have said, there are exceptions. To every category I have stated, there is a lot more that can be said. What I have written is my way of trying to understand this better, to convince MYSELF of it. So if you happen to disagree with me, fair enough. Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion.

Thanks for reading. Ciao!