Pop-Culture Paralysis

A contemplation of an existential crisis and a reason for roaming.

I have a hard time believing in anything anymore. The complexity of life seems to hard for anyone to really understand, so how can anyone make sense of it?

I wrote this earlier this morning, proceeded to sink into a half hour of despair reading responses to the question "Does anything matter?" on Google, and then delved deep into readings on resilience.

Eventually, perhaps not totally unpredictably, I stumbled onto the following words from Bell Hooks,

"...society needs to rethink the images of love that now pervade popular culture, and learn to mix various ingredients including respect and trust, to have lasting love in our personal and communal lives."
   

Then it hit me. Of course I feel like life is hard to believe in and understand right now. I've still been largely basing my hopes, aspirations, dreams on pop culture's shallow symbolization of what life should look like...

-Self-validating awards and degrees
-"Instagram-happy" relationships, marriage
-If I am right, others must be wrong
-Independence from others 
-Having money means you're stable and responsible
-Nature is disorder, there once was climate, forest, etc. stability
-Pristine trips as a "wilderness" adventurer
-The beautiful environmentalist ideal
-An "educated" person, aware citizen
-Instant gratification contributes to happiness
-Fun people drink and party with lots of people
-Binging is treating yourself

Pop-culture paralysis is induced by reframing timeless issues in ways that instill compliance,
as if anything has ever been stable?