Best of Week: The Truth

            If you walk around Glenbrook South High School on one of the passing periods and look at the ground, you will notice that every male is wearing Jordan sneakers with high socks and every female is wearing Tom’s shoes or Ugg boots. Do they actually like Ugg boots or are they wearing it because society tells them to and they are afraid to be different? Consumerism has taken control of our individuality making it hard to define our truth and be ourselves.

Truth is a word our society has lost a firm grasp of.  The idea of being honest to ourselves and expressing our uniqueness has really diminished. As a result of social media and the highly competitive nature of society it is very hard for people to be truthful. Many people are not expressing their own individuality and often creating an illusion of his or herself. The growth of social media and consumerism gives people an illusionary view on life and principles while the highly completive nature of society makes people dishonest.

            As a result of social media and consumerism, we have lost hold of our own individuality. People today are creating an ideal illusion of the person who they want to be and not expressing their own uniqueness. Social media like the internet have increased the process making it harder for people to get a hold of the “truth”. Magazines and websites of beauty products portray beauty and idealism in a single mathematical way with a certain ratio of body, face, rack, and ass that no real human can acquire. A golden ratio of what makes someone beautiful. Especially teens try to portray and become these ideal people. They do not act their own uniqueness, but by how society wants them to be. They create an illusionary view that all people have to look and have the golden ratio in order to be beautiful. People try to create an illusionary persona of the person they want to be.

            Not only does social media and consumerism make it hard for people to grasp the truth, but also the competiveness of society makes it difficult. Do people actually like joining Key Club and Interact to get the satisfaction of helping others or are they doing it because society tells them to help people? I believe, most people do it their own selfishness and do it in order to add on a college resume. I am sure if you ask someone to join Interact in order to help feed the needy they would most likely not join the club. If you tell someone else to join Interact because they will be able to write on your college resume they are more likely to come. The competitive nature of society makes a lot of people dishonest. People should want to help the people who are struggling for the benefit of putting a smile on a strangers face instead of doing it for the college application.  

            The growth of technology and the more competitive the world is becoming is resulting in a more difficult journey to find truth in ourselves. Many people are creating delusions and ideal personas of themselves to satisfy what society wants. They are also taking action not out of sincerity but for own selfishness. If people find the truth and are honest to his or herself, more people will stop living for themselves and start living for others. You only truly live if you live for others.