Transformity Vs Conformity

Many individuals will often experience the initial judgments of others due to their innate unconventional behaviour and actions. However, despite their strange, unfamiliar actions, they are able to embrace this individualistic nature that vastly differs from others. In the excerpt from The Orchid Thief, Susan Orlean suggests that when individuals decide to embrace their eccentric beliefs and values, they are capable of instigating unexpected positive change within society and affect other people’s initial perception of them. Furthermore, because of their desire to retain their own unconventional behaviour rather than succumb to the mainstream society, the individual is capable of developing a unique, distinctive identity and earning the respect

In the short story “The Glass Roses” by Alden Nowlan. Nowlan portrays the idea that adversity is part of our lives, and this adversity shapes us as individuals. But in the face of adversity an individual must either strive to fulfill their individual self-interests and ideas or abandon them to conform to authority. Nowlan suggests this idea through the character, Stephen and his struggle to conform to authority or pursue his ideas which suggests that humans often bring about changes to themselves in order to adapt to the environment they live in.

Society’s conventions teach that immoderate desires are unappealing manifestations of basal instincts that individuals must learn to control. However, a certain sense of liberating freedom is also attached to the idea of living in uninhibited by the guidelines that society imposes. “The Jackhammer Syndrome”, a poem by Al Purdy, and Susan Orlean’s The Orchid Thief present two different narratives concerning the pursuit of personal desire and deal with the consequences that ensue from this behavior. Their characters’ experiences suggest that the unchecked pursuit of personal desires, at the expense of conformity within society, does not produce lasting gratification.

The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself. I will keep the law given by God; sanctioned by man. I will hold to the principles received by me when I was sane, and not mad — as I am now. Laws and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation.” (Bronte 342)

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.

The act of people conforming is seen every where. Any activity performed by someone that is “in the ordinary” is them conforming to the norm. In the crucible, all the girls conform to the norm, set by Abigail Williams. When Abigail faints, the girls faint, when Abigail screams, the girls scream. They mirror her in her every action due to their fear of what would occur if they did not. Same concept is seen today, for example, when you shower regularly you are conforming to the norm. You shower in fear of judgement if you were not to shower, and you shower in following the actions of others. This common action of following in others footsteps affects us by causing people to become identical and influencing people to ignore their personal morals and follow the mob of society blindly. People force physical change upon themselves due to fear of being that one

This analysis have shown me how important is to be faithful to your own principles, even when the world takes you to unknown. The knowledge of the society in which each one has to life is what shows that opposed positions that seem irreconcilable are part of a whole and as Collin’s suggests, each individual has to decide what is right or what is wrong in the society and then take a position and try to change what is wrong. (Hentrhone,

Every society has a ‘social norm’ that everyone is expected to follow. Whether a person is a female who is expected to cook and clean for their husband while he relaxes from a hard day of work. Society believe that it is okay for a man to sleep around while it is a horrible thing for a lady to do. If a person does not follow these unwritten rules they may be shunned by people all around them, but conforming to these ‘social norms’ may mean suppressing themselves in order to be accepted. In The Bell Jar, Plath shows that if a person is to be normal they must suppress their true selves; Plath demonstrates this by showing how Esther conforms herself to act socially acceptable when she is with Marco and Irwin.

People may view conformity as easier to partake in then rebelling. When a person conforms they do not need to explain their different viewpoint to close opposers like their family and friends. There is no opposition, there is only peace. However, this peace can be seen externally to friends and family. Internally, the person who is reluctantly conforming to keep the amity is racked with guilt and pain. This can be seen with Langston Hughes’s written piece, “Salvation” (1940).

Humans have a natural tendency to conform to each other; they strive to fit in with their community and to blend in with the crowd, undoubtedly because modern society seems to have put everyone on a leash. Its harsh judgment and constant pressure forces everyone to follow each other around like sheep — compliant — staying in line in fear of the repercussions. Likewise, in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, and “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr., conformity is an ongoing theme that causes the entire community to isolate Hester in The Scarlet Letter, believe in witchcraft in The Crucible, and discriminate against African Americans in “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. Hawthorne, Miller, and King all show the effects of the pressure and corruptions in the community, as well as the punishments the individuals receive as a result of conformity. In all three pieces of writing, the authors describe the community as a powerful oppression that forces people to be obedient, simultaneously asserting that conformity ultimately leads to consequences in both the community and the individual.

Characters are often unsatisfied with their the place they find themselves in society. Discontent is what drives them to gain ambition in their ability to radically change their situation to one that is most favorable in their perspective. These changes differ from character to character, including alterations in their moral conduct, mental capability, or in something as easy as his way of dress. The ambition to change rests deep within the character’s soul, regardless of how simple their actions may be. Fathoming a false image of oneself not only damages the individual, but creates trouble for the people around them, such as family and loved ones.

Should I conform? Should I rebel? This has and always will be, a constant battle struggled individually, or as a society. A certain amount of conformity needs to exist in life in order to avoid disorder. This is the reason we have laws. Take those laws, rules, control, or even expectations, to an extreme, and some form of rebellion is probable. Struggle with these opposites, and you have a catalyst for war, or perhaps, being fired from a job. Literature represents life, and this theme can be found at the root of many literary works.

As conformity becomes ever more common within a society, individuals isolate themselves, but only because the conformists have lost their ability to reflect on their decisions. Similarly, while Bernard and Lenina watch the sea in peace, he makes comments about individuality and its benefits, which startles Lenina, who exclaims, “And how can you talk like that about not wanting to be a part of the social body? After all, every one works for everyone else” (Huxley 91). Here, Lenina is absolutely shocked that Bernard would not want to be with everyone else. However, the sole reason why people only want to conform is that they cannot begin to express their own thoughts and feelings. A person’s individuality is what sets them apart from the rest of society, and when taken away, they become generic. Even though conforming can cause a lot of problems in a person, they are able to agree with a group of people and are able to convey ideas clearly as well as not feel left out. Furthermore, in the story The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas by Ursula Le Guin, there are many examples of conformity when it comes to witnessing the child that is responsible for the “happiness” in

Individuality vs. social conformity is demonstrated in Robert W Krepps short story “Pride of Seven”, as it is more courageous and heroic to chose non-conformity over conformity, when individuality will most likely overcome social conformity in the

In order to better understand the conflict, first we must define what conformity and self