My Non Conformity Day

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For one day, a little over a hundred students were all unitedly defying the expectations of them set by society. As I portrayed myself in a more unseen, intimate persona, most people reacted with their own comments and feedback. In the morning, my friend remarked on the cuteness of my dress and was slightly in shock (mixed with perceptible excitement) over seeing a new version of myself. A selected few of my friends took notice of the swipe of mascara I was wearing and mentioned it in disbelief. The most prevalent of responses were the varying degrees of skepticism. Multiple peers were doubtful that I could carry out my nonconformist behavior for the day, specifically the portion where I cannot complain. They even attempted to break …show more content…
There were a myriad of times I caught myself from acting out my regular persona (as it makes me feel safe). I incessantly felt the desire to complain about whatever situation at hand (not about Nonconformity Day, but overall school work, weather, etc.) and each time I upbraided/scolded myself. The most prominent sentiment throughout the day was vulnerability, which was to be expected as I am displaying a more privy side of myself. As I explained in my analysis, I do not feel uncomfortable about wearing dresses. However, the compliments people issued about my outfit or slight makeup stirred up uncomfortability and in a sense, they were undesired (although they were positive). It was as if addressed awareness toward the different shades of myself made the situation more genuine; their comments were not about the facade, but the real …show more content…
To be a nonconformist is taking the less traveled route and venturing out alone. This idea was expressed in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Self-Reliance, as he stated, “It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude,” (542). I feel as if I can relate the most to this quote/concept. In my experience today, I learned the challenge of being myself among my peers. Another notion of Emerson I can connect to is how the expectations of the people makes us consistent. I do not want to show the complete version of myself because in a sense, I am breaking the constant behavior people have known and expect of me. For people to have new opinions/judge me is not what I wish for. Nonconformity has been a valuable experience. Although I do not believe I will ever show the inner me to everyone, I will attempt to not conform to other people’s opinion, just for the sake of appeasing them or
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