Society by its nature forces people to fit into a mold. Without some cohesion on the part of its populace, a society could not exist for long. But without some flexibility, a society cannot function. Society does expect its constituents to conform to some extent, but a society which rules through a tyrannical need to control every action and thought of its people is doomed to failure. Or maybe I’ve just been brainwashed as a freethinking American. When America was formed, the governments of Europe said that we were doomed to failure because no society could even function with so little structure. We sure showed them. Now we’ve got structure out the yin yang. (You know… that particular phrase has always sounded rather painful.)
By the time we reach adulthood, we’ve gone through so much subliminal training in what is expected of us by our parents, by our schools and peers, and by the ever changing media of television, that it’s only a rare few who manage to resist the mold we are forced into blind. A-HA! But we have books. We have access to literature dating back hundreds of years. Despite the best efforts of abusive and neglectful society (and often parents, sad to say) if you can read, you can custom design the mold into which you are pressed. If you read about justice and chivalry, honor and integrity, great turmoil of the soul and inequity of experience, you will grow up to be exactly the kind of person that sets society on its ear. But hey, they made the books available, so in addition to the boring old sheeple who do as they are told and never question the status quo, in their secret hearts they must also want someone around who can shake *bleep* up. You may feel oppressed by the vast majority, but if you allow them to snip and trim away your wings, that’s all on you. Obviously if you choose to stand up against “normalcy” and be your own person, you’re going to get some funny looks. But on the other hand, if you keep your head down, you’ll never get to see the stars. What you should be is yourself and they can only oppress you if you allow it. There is no mold but the one you choose.
So congratulations! If you are reading this and nodding, they broke the mold after making you. 
Now get out there and show them how to live!
February 19th
This is the seventh day of Parentalia.
Comments (7)
Your post brings up a lot of good issues and it made me put some sustained thought into this response. I have a few thoughts on what you said. First off, I agree that people should seek out their own mold but not to the extent that they go out of their way to be a contrarian. Also, if you read the constitution, it may be brief but it is incredibly structured. And the founding fathers wanted it that way. They were afraid of rule by the masses and the imminent, as they say it, tyrannical majority that would emerge. Let’s go back to molds. I would ask, is it really so bad to be steered by your parents, teachers, and culture at large? Is it wrong to taut your traditional values while still maintaining a certain level of autonomy? Finally literature might be enough to stir thoughts of revolution but it isn’t enough for change; that requires leaders to stand up and apply said literature.
ryc. I agree wholeheartedly with you on only commenting when I have pertinent information to say. Thanks for taking the time to comment on my post.
Woohoo!!! I have a defective mold!!! I am just me… and I love it! Let them give me the looks or tell me how I should be behaving, and I’ll give it right back to them. That’s just the way I am.
I agree with you 100%. Yay books!
@Altered_Sight - Well, I am a contrarian and it’s not so bad. lol No, but seriously, it’s not so bad to be steered by parents or teachers, when they are willing to make the effort. But many parents think schools and (worse) television are there to shape their children, many teachers are just there for a paycheck, and as for (popular) culture, I don’t trust it. Popular culture does encourage people to fit into a mold, or rather, to follow along unthinking. Neglected by both my parents and the school system, I turned to books and self educated myself. It’s something I highly recommend. I learned traditional values and some might say antiquated values from the books I read, whereas many of my peers and the children of today learn no values whatsoever. How very few people say please or thank you or hold doors for one another or will stoop to pick up something that someone else has dropped. In times past, it was the responsibility of parents to teach their children basic courtesy, but most parents work full time at one or more jobs just to survive. They expect their children will learn proper behavior in school, but most kids slip through the cracks of over populated and underfunded schools. And the final source of aculturation, modern media, is warped toward entertainment, not education. It’s not surprising that ADD is on the rise when most kids are raised by the television. I don’t disagree with you per se, but parents, teachers, and society have largely failed to teach children anything more than think about their own wants/needs first.
As for the constitution, I was just using one of the criticism of the other governments during the Revolution as a facetious way to make my point and be silly at the same time.
@Broom_Service - People who obey the rules seldom make history.
(I think that’s a t-shirt. lol)
@heidenkind - If not for libraries, I wouldn’t have received any kind of education as a child. People who don’t read/like books are the bane of my existence. Not the least of which because I work in a bookstore and could use the income. lol
I like your point about books being able to mold us. I like the idea of having that control in that particular way. It truly is a gift.
Very well said. I’m going to go with a big fat “ditto” here. Wait, after reading your post that almost sounds like I meant it with sexual undertones. Ha..umm no.
Positively I should own up you must be best the same as permanently
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