Nonconformism

American writer and feminist Rita Mae Brown once claimed that “the reward for conformity is that everyone likes you but yourself” (“Famous Quotes”). In this, May addresses the moral dilemma of conformity. If one conforms to become accepted by society, they may end up abandoning their individuality, as well as their beliefs. Oppositely, while non-conformists retain their unique characteristics and values, they are susceptible to persecution. Because their potential effects, one may struggle to discover moderation between conformity and nonconformity. This struggle is an idea that can be explored in Sophocles’ Antigone. In this Greek tragedy, Creon, the king of Thebes, wrongfully sentences his daughter-in-law Antigone to death and eventually suffers for his actions. Additionally, the clashing forces of conformity and nonconformity are highlighted in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher In the Rye. In the novel, a teenager named Holden Caulfield struggles to fulfil his dream of preserving childhood innocence while protecting the younger generations from the corruption of the adult world. Through the ironic behavior of Creon and Holden, Sophocles and Salinger display how, due to external pressure, it is impossible for one to be a perfect nonconformist, and that a lack of moderation in one’s ideals eventually leads to tragedy. Salinger exploits the ironic behavior of Holden to portray the idea that external pressure makes it impossible for one to be a complete non-conformist. After Holden…

Conformity V.S Non-Conformity The world needs conformists and nonconformists in order for society to agree on choices. Without conformity, society would never agree on anything and we could never solve any conflict. Without nonconformity, society would never have any diversity and life would be boring and there would not be any changes in us humans if there isn’t any differences around then just being the same. The conformist “Boxer” was a naive and ignorant horse who is willing to follow…

Nonconformists Are Extinct! “Nonconformists” believe that they do not conform to society in any way or form. This conclusion is false because it is not possible to not conform to society. Society controls individual's thought processes and makes them believe that if they are not following the “norm,” that they are then considered outcasts from society. Nonconformists separate themselves from conformists and society to express their own beliefs based on their own morals and opinions; however,…

What is nonconformity? To understand it, we must first understand that conformity is to follow social standards and practices. Nonconformity is to avoid conformity. But plenty of people want to be different, so does that make nonconformity another type of conformity? I say it does. Lots of people try to be different which just makes them like everybody else who tries as well. Now you might be thinking if there even is such thing as nonconformity, but trust me it does exist. Like I said, people…

Are non-conformists rebels or people trying to progress the world? Non-conformists reject mainstream culture and join a counter-culture. There are many non-conformists groups like the homosexuals, artists, Goths, and cat people who are thought of as rebellious by other people that don't agree with the ideas of the counterculture. However stories of nonconformists helping society have made it clear that non-conformity is helpful and enhances society. When people reject mainstream culture, they…

Nonconformist is defined as a person who does not conform to generally accepted patterns of behavior or thought. Basically, I took this understanding to mean doing something out of the normal. At first I was confused as to what type of behavior I was going to express. I am not one who typically acts out, or does things out of the normal. However, I took this approach as more of joking around and having fun. I did not notify my husband as to what was going on and simply asked him if he wanted to…

What must be understood to achieve a level of clarity in this matter is that it is not what we believe in that makes us righteous humans, but it is our actions and intentions that define us. To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart, is true for all men -- that is genius.... Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist.... What I must do, is all that concerns me; not what the people think.... Nothing can bring you peace but yourself; nothing, but the…

Trend. Fad. Blind leading the blind. Mainstream. A lot of names that mean one thing: conformity. Many people, including myself, aim to go against and question these ideals. These people in our society are usually titled nonconformists. The nonconformists that I see are just obsessed with being apart from the norm and tend to question and criticize anything popular and counteract it. I’ve also noticed they admire other people’s individuality or style and try to model it for themselves, because…

to order, albeit in different ways. While both protagonists are treated as threats to the social order, the threat of Emily comes from within while the old man provides a threat from the outside. Miss Emily is characterized as an institution, a pillar of the old that seems to be preserved. The Old Man is described as a person who just washed up onshore to the discovery of the couple, and was also thought to have come from another land. Emily is that internal threat, like a cancer to society…

Whether people are in uniform for a job or simply brushing their teeth they are all conforming to some common idea. To answer the controversial question that is conformists versus nonconformists we must first understand what each of those words mean. According to Merriam-Webster.com, someone who is a nonconformist is “a person who does not conform to a generally accepted pattern of thought or action”; while when it comes to Google, a conformist is someone “who conforms to accepted behavior or…