Eccentricity: unconventional and slightly strangeEccentricity, I would argue, is a quality of being American. Modern American culture values eccentricity and celebrates it. I honestly believe that eccentricity has been given a stricter meaning than what it originally meant. I believe that it has evolved to mean crazy. In the original sense of the word, eccentricity is almost intrinsic to Americans.
We're dreamers. We're doers. We're innovators.
We're eccentrics.
Eccentricity is encouraged in the world of business and the world of science. Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, Peter Thiel: eccentric in every sense of the word. That's what it takes in America to become part of the American Mythology. That's what we celebrate: those who were willing to dream big and had just enough panashe to see it through. Eccentricity is not inherently productive, but I believe that a lot of the time it goes hand in hand. I believe the biggest problem with eccentricity is that the productive is not focused enough to be seen as "productive" as we usually think about it.
How am I eccentric?
I'm eccentric in the sense that I enjoy the idea of gambling it all.
The idea that sometimes in order to get ahead you need to be willing to risk security.
I firmly believe everyone is eccentric in their own way.
Whether that be collecting something odd, going another direction with your life, or just a certain perspective in life that most people don't have. Not all of us are eccentric in the sense of an industrial visionary wanting to put us on Mars or a mad scientist that wants to give the world free energy or build a death ray. But, inside us all, is a bit of thought that separates us from the chaff.Question: Why did so many teenagers decide to leave their homes to ride the rails?
Answer: To look for seasonal or part time jobs in major cities or for adventure.
Source: http://erroluys.com/frontpage.html
Credibility: Best selling author of books pertaining to this exact subject.
Passage: "We learn of their struggle to survive on the streets of America and know their bitter disappointments, their sense of loss of childhood, their frustrations at the lack of opportunity. “When I think of all this traveling across the land, searching for the things we had lost, there is a place inside my chest that still hurts,” recalls one rider."
I like how you've compared being eccentric to being American, as I don't think many of us see it that way. It's a good way to go about defining it with such a vague prompt. Also, I don't know if you meant to do it this way, but I like how the paragraphs and sentences are broken up, it makes for a more interesting read.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with you that eccentricity is often not focused enough to be seen as "productive" in the way that society sees as productive. I'd like to argue that this doesn't mean the eccentricity isn't productive at all, it just means it's not productive in the means of making money or obtaining status or any of the things society values. However, what society values differs greatly from what individual people value. Some people, like Bean from Holding On, may value other things (like dinosaurs) greater than what society values.
ReplyDeleteDo you think that the teens told their parents that they were leaving to find a job and adventure or do you think that the kids left their home without giving the parent any type of notice
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