I constantly find myself changing my “loves” to “likes” when writing emails, texts, tweets or any other updates. It’s just hard to love things right now when what you love is the strongest indicator of what – not who – you are.
I think the recent “Superwholock” debacle explains this well. (When you write about Superwholock, you can use the word “debacle” and hope Steven Moffat is somewhere smiling down on you.)
Superwholock is a collaboration of the storylines of “Supernatural,” “Doctor Who” and “Sherlock” which played out originally on Tumblr, a social media website that, though little different from Facebook, has attracted hordes of young people.
Odd as it may seem, it’s interesting to see a time traveling Sherlock solving clues to avenge the most recent death on Supernatural. At first, the collaborative Superwholockians responsible for the crossover content were well liked. Then, as soon as Superwholock really took off, its fans became the bane of the blogosphere.
Now, if you even hint at Benedict Cumberbatch’s cheekbones or reference Supernatural’s “Moose,” you’re automatically a Superwholockian. With that comes the connotation of rabid fangirling and the need for every “ship” to be validated. The group’s name isn’t simply a fan base for three wildly popular television shows anymore. It’s an insult.
This is a great example of the hidden dangers of liking things. Three years ago if you liked vinyl, you liked vinyl — that was the only meaning. Today, if you like vinyl, you’re a flower-crowned hipster waiting to wear your vintage Chucks to the next ‘Roo.
Do you like wearing Polo shirts and khaki shorts, guys? Too bad. You’re now donning the attire – and, thereby, the stereotype – of the rich fraternity brat waiting to take over daddy’s business. Heaven forbid you add loafers.
Same thing goes for you, everything-on-my-body-is-monogramed girl and I-only-wear-Under Armor guys.
You’re a copy-paste now – the epitome of every stereotype ever given to what is perceived to be “your kind.”
Society doesn’t see who people are. We see what they present, and then we make assumptions. Then, if anything validates that assumption, it’s the truth.
Suddenly, it’s difficult to enjoy anything without worrying over how you are silently labeling yourself.
Do your glasses look like you’re trying to be a nerd? Is “hunch punch” only a freshman’s drink?
Why and how do these sudden animosities to certain proclivities crop up?
I have a hypothesis.
We have a concurrent deep-seeded sense of elitism, and we feel threatened by those who are more knowledgeable than we. This allows us to take the appearance or likes of people we see and categorize them. Unlike the clever Sherlock, we have neither the faculty nor the right to do so.
For example, let’s use the nerd problem.
There are people who are so passionate about what they love that they have infinitely more knowledge than the everyday fan. They know things like how feasible the new lightsaber hand guard is in “Star Wars VII” and have definite opinions on the likelihood of the girl in the “Avengers: Age of Ultron” trailer being Shuri, princess of Wakanda and sister to The Black Panther.
Arguments arise that certain nerds are somehow less “nerdy” because they only play certain games, watch certain shows, or haven’t read the “Odyssey” in its original ancient Greek. These Loki-loving “fake nerds” must be inferior, right? And, if so, do certain likes diminish your “true fan” status?
The problem is, neither of these groups are the “true nerds.” Rather, they are all just passionate people. How avidly you show your love of something does not weaken your love of it.
At its heart, nerd is just another stereotype – just another way to dehumanize individuals and make them the embodiment of your assumptions. Nerds are, in all reality, people who love something.
Why, then, did “nerd” have a negative aura for so long?
Perhaps, we’re jealous of how deeply someone is committed or how well he or she does something. Perhaps, the word meant that “nerds” loved something that wasn’t socially acceptable.
And why does the word now convey self-appreciation?
We want to be the expert. Or, maybe, we’ve accepted nerd status because it’s an excuse to love something we don’t believe is within the societal norm – a free pass to being yourself.
From these examples, we see the way two mindsets develop. One is the love of pop culture for its inherent popularity, and the other is the disdain for pop culture for that same popularity.
The former is stuck with likes as fickle as public opinion.
For the latter, this brings about the never-ending circle of loving something until everyone loves it and hating it until everyone hates it again.
What we seem to be missing is that taking personal enjoyment from a hobby or inclination is, in fact, personal. If you are deterred from your love of something because of what other people think, you love it for the wrong reasons.
Two truths remain: you have every right to love something, and you will likely be judged by what you love. This isn’t going to change until we give up stereotyping and give in to putting societal norms aside to enjoy whatever it is we may appreciate.
So, love the thing.
If you love the Taylor Swift daiquiri at Funky’s, drink it. How girly someone else thinks it is won’t affect its taste.
You are going to get judged by every proclivity – from your Tardis Toms to your hipster beard – but if you love it, enjoy the singular, life-giving rewards of loving it.
Clara Turnage is a sophomore journalism major from New Hebron.
