Individuality & Idiosyncracy

“It fascinates me how differently we all speak in different circumstances. We have levels of formality, as in our clothing. There are very formal occasions, often requiring written English: the job application or the letter to the editor–the dark-suit, serious-tie language, with everything pressed and the lint brushed off. There is our less formal out-in-the-world language–a more comfortable suit, but still respectable. There is language for close friends in the evenings, on weekends–blue-jeans-and-sweat-shirt language, when it’s good to get the tie off. There is family language, even more relaxed, full of grammatical short cuts, family slang, echoes of old jokes that have become intimate shorthand–the language of pajamas and uncombed hair. Finally, there is the language with no clothes on; the talk of couples–murmurs, sighs, grunts–language at its least self-conscious, open, vulnerable, and primitive.”
(Robert MacNeil, Wordstruck: A Memoir. Viking, 1989)

I came across this piece of literature as I was doing some regular work related tasks, and as always, I find it amazing how much depth a simple yet beautiful paragraph can hide within its lines. People are often expected to conform to societal standards to be accepted and respected. While being an integral part of a group is vital to our humanistic nature, furthering and maintaining one’s individuality is crucial to attaining self fulfillment and existentialism. The true essence of our being is inside each one of us, our lives are defined by what we make out of every little experience of ours. To be human, is to exist as a unique individual, to live one’s very  life and be one’s own self. To exist is to be , and to be is to sing your own song, dance with the world and love until eternity.