Labeled

9.10.14

Prompt: “If your culture doesn’t like geeks, you are in real trouble.”- Bill Gates

            With the relatively modern rise of geekdom as a socially acceptable and often praised clique of sorts, tension can and does arise over the idea that being a geek is not only positive but better than belonging to alternate groups focused on beauty or sport. Bill Gates, a geek by standard and self-admission, asserts that society should accept and “like geeks”, presumably because of their major contributions to technology, intellectual advancement, and culture. Still, to decide whether or not geekdom is distinctively positive, negative, or otherwise, one must first question the nature of belonging alongside the contemporary pursuit of human interaction completely.

            It is an innate tendency of humankind to group together, to gather, to share, to survive with one another. Human interaction is said to be one of the most vital components in the total health of mind, body, and spirit. Looking to modern civilization, many (if not most) go one-step more in their venture for contact, joining together under the umbrella of labels like “geek”. But one has to wonder whether or not labels help or harm- Do they join people together, or isolate many completely? Does everyone need a label, or is it enough to solely be oneself without outside identifiers?  While belonging is most definitely comforting and important, it is a difficult thing to stomach- the idea that one must put themselves into publicly understood boxes to be recognized and admired by others.

            Moreover, what does identifying with others do to a person’s internal knowledge? In the space between ones identifiers- between “agnostic, daughter, feminist, student”, or “Chinese and chef and lover of dogs”- what is the inner voice and spirit saying? It sounds flowered and whimsical, but the reality of the situation is that a person is not who they are on paper- a being cannot be exclusively molded in words. And in a society where it has become more important to make oneself understandable to others than to focus on truly understanding oneself, identity crisis is inevitable.

-Ally Gorder