Take away my work, and my personal value would read as “nothing”.
There is no denying that social expectations and others’ perception of our worth spur us to meet certain bars
that are preset for us. In order to fit in, to save our hearts from being hurt, to stop information about our deepest
darkest selves to be bared for the world to see, we put on facades. More importantly is the mindset that is deeply
ingrained in us ever since the appearance of an increasingly competitive society that we need to feel confident
about our abilities, accomplish more than whatever whomever random person in the world has been able to
achieve in their little episode on Earth. For a more tangible perspective, National Public Radio once had a
student contributing to the forum, claiming “It seems that all students try to get into the university with the
highest ranking, regardless of whether they are interested in this university and in this major”. This quote not
only demonstrates how students are compelled to reach “the next highest bar”, but also throws into light the
“true selves” that are buried away as a sacrifice for our facade--to appease unquenchable desires to create new
records and write more sparkly histories, regardless of the origin of its seed as social culture or expectations of
self, interest and individualism are forgone.
Safety mechanisms aren’t forever. In the article quoted right at the start of this essay, it continues to say that
“little of it [the Great Wall] remains”. Through war, rain, harsh use and a variety of other factors, China’s once
glorious territorial protection structure fell to the ground. In the same way, our facades aren’t perfect, and
because at the crux of all of it is human want and universal desires which mankind share, it’s quite easy to see
through by the right person at all the wrong times--my essay itself is evidence of such. However, the importance
of this result isn’t in the fact that it fails to protect as much as we aim for it to, but rather the “little” that never
dies--the side effects:
with the elegant ladies, they develop intensely insatiable competitive mindsets
with the autistic kids, they fail to emotionally connect
with the working grandmothers, they develop near no self esteem for whom they are
When crucial bricks are knocked on the wall to Diagon Alley, it changes. In a non-magical world, it
collapses. The irony lies in that the better our facades seem to be, and the more protection they seem to
guarantee, the more momentum we gather when we fall, and the harder it is to nurse the pain and get back up
again. The fall of the Great Wall not only symbolised the fall of China’s security mechanism, but also the
intense work needed for China to overcome other barriers that the Wall once stood up against--continental
powers before and during WWI.
To conclude, I propose we rethink our facades. Are they really the best way to ensure survival in our world,
or do they simply create more loopholes and generate flimsy shields against wars which our Great Walls cannot
fight? Do they truly make us happy, or do they sacrifice the identity we sculpt for ourselves? I’ve met friends
who manage to put down their insecurities and face life and questions with the most straightforward and crude
way possible, uncensored truth dripping from every single answer, even when it comes to personal issues such
as religion or abortion; they’re the people who never need worry about any lie or twisted truth they factor into
their modeled exteriors simply because they don’t have one.
The question I ask of all of us here is surprisingly simple. Is the best security mechanism simply a lack
thereof?
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