At least once in our lives, we’ve had the thought: Why am I behaving in such a conformist way?
And why is that? This is a difficult question to answer in a few lines. But I think we obey because we feel we can’t disobey.
The question now becomes: “Why can’t we disobey? We may say that we are comfortable in our lives and we don’t want to lose this comfort; the law and customs are the ones that guarantee our lifestyle and general peace; etc… but most of the things that we obey are not related to these issues, and there are many people who live without comfort, without possibilities, who still conform.
Why do people rebel when the government says: “Take this vaccine”; “Stay at home,” etc… and don’t rebel when others are suffering, don’t have a secure job, don’t have money to eat or a comfortable life? Because today everything is about us and not others. Day by day, the world is losing its solidarity.
Our weaknesses and fears are our glasshouse. And we look at it, and we look at the stones that the world gives to us and to others… and we think: I have to survive.
But there are simple things that we obey day after day. They are not based on any relevant social issue; they are just convenience. When we are hostages of a digital life, which in most cases is under the control of large corporations that see each user as a coin in their pocket, we are obeying for the sake of convenience. We live in the conformity imposed by economic practices, by marketing. We build today’s normality.
What obedience for convenience has in common with obedience to survive is that it’s all framed by economic practices, framed by power relations.
So we obey because we can’t disobey. We have no power and we have to live the small life.
But there is one thing that we can do. First of all, we have more power than we think; if we are not alone, then we have more power together. If we can’t, we have the power of choice and the power to think. There are some uncomfortable choices that will make us more alone. Others will bring us joy and freedom.
Break down some walls of your house. Start with the small things; listen to all points of view and build your own.
Agostinho da Silva once said (not an exact quote): “A cat fulfils itself as a cat, why must man always try to fulfil himself as something else? Find yourself and be yourself. Build your own walls and forget about the big bad wolf. Find your balance within life. Happiness is not to be found in a bottle of coke. But most of all, be in solidarity with the world around you.
