Into the Wild is probably one of my favorite movies. Whether its the flawless cinematography, spot-on acting, or oddly inspirational, based-on-a-true-story plot, this movie never ceases to hypnotize. However, it is the hauntingly accurate melody of Eddie Vedder's "Society" that leaves me weaving an endless web of divergent thought.
Society. It's something that molds the way we think, the way we act, the way we look, dress, walk, talk, eat, sleep. It invades our subconscious, whether conscious or unconscious. Inescapable. It is a utopia designed to feed insiders with false information in order to prevent them from pulling the curtain and finding out that the great Wizard of Oz is nothing but a man.
The story of Into the Wild focuses on how society held in by a materialistic cage. Our human nature is to think that what we want is what need. And what we do have, materialistically, whether it be needed or wanted, affects the way society makes others see us.
"There's those thinking, more-or-less, less is more
But if less is more, how you keeping score?
Means for every point you make, your level drops
Kinda like you're starting from the top
You can't do that..."
These are my favorite lines in the song. Vedder complexly addresses the paradox of less being more, but also more being more. We need to break society's measurement of worth. If we look at one another with a materialistic lens, we are programmed to look down on those who have nothing, those who go against society's idealistic "norm." For every man that goes against the societal concept that having more material equates with being on top, "for every point you make, your level drops." This is society's defense mechanism to protect itself against a threat to its order. Society refuses to allow us to be happy if we do not have quote-unquote "stuff." Should we every make the unthinkable, the intolerable, the blasphemous choice to be content with what we have, to accept that what we want is not what we need, we are to be punished and to punish others.
But how do we fix this? How do we dispose of the notion that material makes us happy? That those who have more are worth more? If we are bound by such a tight rope around our subconscious, how can we escape? I believe we need to to measure worth in terms of one's immeasurable, emotional possessions. We need to start "keeping score" on the basis that less is more in terms of material, and more is more in terms of mental, intellectual, emotional, spiritual, and philosophical worth. Those who are blinded by their ultra-thin iPhone 5 or energy-efficient Toyota may have more materialistically, but lack the most valuable measure of worth, and therefor really have nothing. To refuse to allow society to make you who you are, to have immense amounts of spiritual and intellectual knowledge, to live without wanting what you do not need, that is priceless.
This post does a fantastic job of illustrating society's unrelenting grasp and influence on the minds of us all. Society manipulates, shapes, and at times even controls our thoughts and emotions, like "a tight rope around our subconscious." However, I do not believe that society is a completely terrible thing. There is another aspect of society that molds human behavior and thought: the cultural aspect.
ReplyDeleteAs human beings, we live our lives under the guidelines and rules established through centuries of culture and civilization. All of this rich history has molded society into what we experience today. Yes, this does include patriarchy, a lust for material goods, and racism. However, it is also responsible for music, friendship, arts, and the other beauties of life. I cannot imagine a world without these wonders, and if society is influencing my thoughts at this moment, then so be it.
For this reason, I embrace society instead of reject it. In a way, society influences all of our minds, but in very different ways. As contradictory as that sounds, it is true: society nurtures individuality.
-Minho Park
KALERS!
ReplyDeleteHow are we so alike? I love this blog post because I agree completely with it! You put my thoughts into words! Not only is "Into the Wild" one of the best movies ever made, because it portrays such a powerful story, but Eddie Vedder's moving music fits it perfectly as well. I think part of the reason I love this song in particular so much is because I connect it with the movie, and everything it stands for.
This blog post really got me thinking, because what you are asking is simply, How do we escape something that is all we've ever known? Society is life (duh). It is hard to wrap your head around the idea of living in a way that really no one has ever lived before. We just don't know what that way is. I love that you suggest that we start "keeping score" in terms of mental, intellectual, emotional, spiritual, and philosophical worth. I love that you're optimistic enough to even suggest that.
Call me a party pooper, but I just can't see a world like that.
People are naive. People are so naive that they can't fathom a society where material goods aren't important. For as long as we can tell, people have always measured, paid, and traded based on a good's worth. Personally, I'm like you Croke, I don't like it, but these days people really don't seem to care about people's intellectual worth. It's ridiculous to think a little piece of paper can be worth 20 or 100 dollars. Christopher McCandless probably thought just that; he felt it so strongly that he ran away. However, you can't pay for something by giving the cashier a few fun facts or proving that you're smart.
These days life has got a price on it, and you're right Kalers, we have to stop measuring, because the true value of life is priceless.