Conformity Is The Expression Of Individuality

Mass public schooling has created a divide amongst the foundation of whether to prioritize individuality or conformity. If we as a society choose to base schooling off of the guidelines of conformity, the individuality in each and every student will soon be lost due to being forced to comply to the school system, therefore hindering student’s sense of individuality. Prioritizing individuality in the schools allows students to be free of constraints, and to increase their want to learn through being able to differentiate and personalize their schedules. An education system based off of forcing individual and different students to all follow the exact same course standard should be outlawed due to this being an outdated guideline of teaching.

I strongly believe that individuality should be valued over conformity. Today I will tell you how precious and rare individuality is, and why we should value it over conformity.

Many individuals is faced with the decision of conforming or choosing personal desire, and it is not an easy decision. It is hard because being shunned by others for being different is not a good feeling. Choosing to conform over personal desire, often leads to loss. On the other hand, personal desire is what sets others apart and gives them joy. In the poem, “The Jackhammer Syndrome”, Al Purdy discusses the good and bad memories he has experienced. He goes through his memories of when he had fun and made mistakes, but he reflects on what he could have done better. The author of “The Jackhammer Syndrome informs against choosing the welcoming joy of conformity over the long-term gains of personal desire. Making the decision to pursue conformity over personal desire may seem easy at first, but if the choice is to conform, the joy it gives will not last. Making the decision to pursue conformity over personal desire Conformity may seem to give joy at first, but it does not last. When Al is playing pool with his brother, he wants to win badly, but losses. However when he did not care to win, Al wins! Conforming can lead to loss but personal desire has much to gain. If the choice is to conform, personal identity may be lost. In my life, I recognize several instances in which I found several similarities between Al and myself. I have made decisions that were not always good ones such as swimming across long distances with friends.

As Dr. Seuss once said, “Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don 't matter and those who matter don 't mind.” Through this quote, the foundation of conformity is uprooted from its murky hovel and is disputed with. Despite, though, how many people preach these words, they still succumb to the mind numbing effects without even realizing it, because they are not fully aware of the causes of this topic. That is why one needs to understand the causes of conformity before preventing the effects. The three causes of conformity include: changing how one acts to avoid the rejection of their peers, depending on other people 's’ opinions because they are oblivious to a certain topic, and conforming to something based on social characteristics.

Throughout history, many have tried to break away from society's norms in an attempt to live life more fully, one example would be Rosa Parks when she stood up for her rights and didn't move to the back of the bus like society has shaped the laws back then. As a result of this incident, Parks ended up getting arrested and sent to court for not following the law. In contrast, some may choose to follow the rules of others thinking that’s their best decision. An example of this figure would be Boxer from the book Animal Farm, when he adopted his first motto “ I will work harder” (Orwell 18) after the first harvest following the Rebellion. Boxer never knew about the advantage Napoleon was taking on towards him,

We’ve all know what it feels like: walking down the halls in middle school or high school while you feel like you’re being watched…analyzed…critiqued. It would almost seem like every person you passed would be silently judging you for what you’re wearing, how you applied your makeup, how you did in the last soccer game, or what they heard you did with Jonny. The passerby’s in the hallway would place you on the high-school-hierarchy-of-coolness scale based on superficial characteristics even before getting to know you. Adolescence is a time of learning and forming an identity but it’s also a time where you are constantly being watched and evaluated by your peers, sometimes even put down by physical or verbal means. Bullying has always been

As readers, we see how the analysis of conflictive themes has been taking over literature scenarios. When reading between the lines of certain books we can perceive themes such as conformity and rebellion. Mostly these themes can be seen in writings from times of social upheaval. According to The Oxford Dictionary, the word conformity means “behavior in accordance with socially accepted conventions or standards”, while rebellion means “the action or process of resisting authority, control, or convention.” These terms create a constant battle among societies. A certain amount of conformity needs to exist in life in order to avoid disorder. This is the reason society has laws, rules and expectations. Literature represents life, and these themes can be found at the root of many literary works. Conformity can also be considered as silence. This silence is based on the restrictions of real feelings and thoughts in some literary pieces. During the sixteenth century, the emphasis on conformity was at its height. Works of literature from this time period have often reflected a fascination and frustration with this particular characteristic. People do not want to be restricted in terms of expressing opinions and developing certain activities. When facing oppression, denial of their freedom, they rebel, and that contributes to the part of the process of change in society. Not all kinds of rebellions are rationally fundamental, but when they are, it can transform society for the

Willa Cather's "Paul's Case," displays the conflict between conformity and individuality through the main character, Paul. On a number of occasions, Paul is forced to lie and steal to escape the conformists who wish to control him and stifle his unique imagination. However, his lying, stealing, and attempts to escape the conformists, only force Paul into isolation, depression, and feeling a sense of shame for his individuality. Throughout the story one might see Cather's constant contrast of individuality versus conformity, as well as Paul's lying and stealing. Cather seems to draw the conclusion that extreme individuals, much like Paul are simply misunderstood, and not offered the acceptance they desire

Conformity and obedience are both social behaviors that are influenced by those around us and determines our behavior in social situations. When we change our attitude or behavior based on those around us, we are conforming to their behavior. When we obey what we are told, by what we perceive to be an authority figure, we are being obedient. Conformity and obedience can have positive or negative results on our lives, depending on the situation and the individuals involved.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” Becoming yourself while not conforming is the greatest accomplishment. Whether or not we think we do it or not, we all have done it at some point in our lives. In 1964, a young woman named Kitty Genovese was murdered outside of her apartment. Many people heard this innocent woman being brutally murdered and just assumed someone would help. So why do people just assume someone will help? Why are we so scared to stand up for what we believe? Why are we so terrified to stick out? Stop conforming and be an individual.

I formally agree with most of what Feys conveys as his ideas of conformity and why in our society it is a big deal of whether or not people should conform by the will of others. Feys main argument against the normality of conformity is when he states, “ Living in society, we are under constant pressure to surrender our individuality to the will of the majority.” Most people of society have agreed to this statement without replying to this direct comment but everyone knows the idea of peer-pressure in which an individual is emotionally pushed to do something that was not wanted of them. We see the issues of peer pressure in a number of places, for example, in a study by Thomas J Berndt a professor of developmental psychology conducted an experiment

Conformity is a concept that has been heavily researched in the field of social psychology. Conformity is defined as a change in behavior, beliefs, and attitudes due to group pressure perceived as real (encompassing the presence of others) or imagined (encompassing the pressure of social standards) (Myers, 2010, p. 192). The concept of conformity is a powerful influence on the tendency for people to arrange their thoughts, perspectives, and ideas with others, especially when in a group. This takes away from a person’s individuality because they want to feel accepted by others and therefore, a person will accomplish this basic need of approval through conforming.

I think almost everything about this article is true. From social conformity leading to depression to it leading to thoughtless, dangerous acts. The one repeated story that has social conformity at the center of it is the teen that drank because he felt pressured by everyone. Social conformity is a real problem and needs to be solved. I shouldn’t be afraid to be who they are naturally. We should feel comfortable with expressing our opinion, and yes there will be some that won’t agree with what you have to say but that is your opinion and you should be proud you voiced it instead of keeping it inside. We shouldn’t be getting overly stressed about trying to fit into a “popular” group. Just being who we are is enough and if more people start to

3. Merton identified rebellion, ritualism, innovation, retreatism, and conformity as adaptions of strain.As a conformist, I value working hard in every aspect of my life. A typical conformist, as myself, is willing to achieve their dreams through an college education and through rigorous work. I strongly value my relationships with family, friends, and other significant others and my goal in life is to make them proud. I tend to achieve success through hard work. In high school I said no to parties and instead spent my nights studying hard in order to get accepted to a notable University. My hard work payed off in the end since I got accepted to various Universities across the state.

Social psychology is the scientific study of how social groups affect an individual’s behavior, way of thinking, and feelings. There are millions of people in the world we live in and those people impact us at every stage of our lives. Babies look to the adults which influences their actions and even personality. Adults have to interact with others on a daily basis. Conforming is an example of how this works. When someone or a group of people do one thing, there is an urge in the individual to do the same thing. Now, whether that same thing is as simple as looking up at a cloud or joining the rioters who are smashing windows and beating people, can have varying degrees of conformity. Women seem to be more apt to conform than that of their male