You may think that a person who has a quiet life and is not involved in any activist organization cannot be rebelling against society.
But what if I told you that rebellion is not only about participating in activist campaigns and holding protest posters? In fact, there are more subtle – and no less effective – ways to influence the world on a long-term basis.
When you do any of the below-described things, you are rebelling against modern society in your own, quiet way:
1. When you accept yourself as you are
“In a society that profits from your self-doubt, loving yourself is a rebellious act.”
Every single day, popular culture and mass media keep telling us in direct and indirect ways what we should be like, what we should look like and what we should behave like.
In movies, music videos and TV shows, self-confident outgoing men and slim doll-like women are presented as some kind of ideals we all should strive for. But are they really that perfect and should we all try to conform to this mold?
The truth is that modern pop culture has created and glorifies a cult of fakeness and superficiality, which is being promoted in different ways, including subliminal messages. I often catch myself thinking that all these ‘perfect’ people we see on the screen seem to care only about their looks, social life and status. And it does make sense why.
Consider this: what would happen if we suddenly stopped caring about the opinion of other people and the way we look? That’s right – the consumerist society we live in would soon come to an end. Why buy countless self-care products, pieces of clothes and get a new iPhone every year if you don’t give a shit about what others think?
Nature is busy creating absolutely unique individuals, whereas culture has invented a single mold to which all must conform. It is grotesque.
U.G. Krishnamurti
Which gets us back to the point made at the beginning of the article. If you accept and love yourself exactly the way you are, without mimicking someone else or trying to prove anything to anybody, you are rebelling against modern pop culture. Being real in a fake society may be difficult, but it’s certainly worth it.
2. When you follow your passion
Along with self-acceptance, going beyond the borders of a nine-to-five job and following one’s passion is another form of rebellion in modern society.
We have long been convinced that the only right way to live is by following the pattern: school – college – nine-to-five job – retirement. It’s a way to be “normal,” productive and successful (yeah, those notorious productivity and success no one can’t live without in today’s world!). But the question is: productive and successful for whom? For yourself or for the system?
Just like in the case of physical appearance and personality, modern society understands success in one particular way. To be considered successful, you should be a top achiever who stays motivated and productive all day long. Your priorities should be goal reaching, prosperity and recognition. Kind of a money-making robot, don’t you think?
So what happens to those who seek meaning and moral satisfaction in the first place? Unlike what we are being told, there are still many individuals who are not obsessed with money and just want to fulfill their life purpose by doing what they love.
If you choose your own unique path in life and don’t care about how prestigious your dream occupation is, others may treat you like a loser. “Why would she quit that job in the bank to become an unemployed artist? She must be crazy,” they say. But by walking this path, you are truly rebelling against modern society and its values.
3. When you read books and think for yourself
Reading can seriously damage your ignorance
-Unknown
Sadly, book readers are slowly becoming an endangered species. And here I want to clear it out – I’m talking about quality book readers. Just answer these two simple questions and you will see what I mean. How many of your friends read books? How many of them prefer classical literature to modern bestsellers like “50 Shades of Gray”?
Today’s society promotes superficiality of all kinds. Nowadays, it’s not “cool” to read books (especially classic ones). You must be a nerdy loser if you like this pastime more than some really fun activities such as watching TV, partying, shopping, and gossiping with your friends.
And guess why? Because quality books make people think critically, question everything, and eventually grow mentally and spiritually. Something that is really undesirable for the system, which needs citizens who believe and obey whatever they are being told.
Remember that a herd of dumb and narrow-minded people who are concerned only about their physical needs and selfish desires is much easier to control.
4. When you have no interest in pop culture, politics and everything the majority of modern human population likes
To distract us from the things that really matter, they create artificial and unhealthy ways to entertain our minds with. Those numerous TV shows that promote the further intellectual and spiritual decline of the population, lame pop stars who sing tasteless songs with no meaning, and all the other attributes of the shallow pop culture we already discussed above serve the same purpose – create new generations of stupid people who are unable to think critically.
Another tool the system uses to evoke primitive emotions in us, such as fear, anger, and hate, is called politics. They convince us that the enemy is out there and make us hate other human beings for their color, nationality, and religion.
This way, we are distracted from the things that are really going on in the world and our own countries. So if you refuse to participate in political life because you understand that it’s all just another example of society’s fakeness, you are rebelling in your own, quiet way.
5. When you have a healthy lifestyle
And finally, your lifestyle and nutrition choices can be another subtle way of rebelling. Today, we are constantly being made sick in numerous ways, starting with the processed foods we eat and ending with the polluted air we breathe.
This serves the purpose of forming a population of sick people who need the system in order to maintain their life functions. How else are they gonna make money on you if you are a perfectly healthy individual who is not dependent on the public health system? For this reason, those who eat local organic foods, exercise, don’t have bad habits, and avoid junk food and soda are true rebels.
As you see, rebellion is not only about being a passionate activist and taking real actions towards changing the world. True rebellion starts with your way of thinking and consists of the choices you make every single day because, as Mahatma Gandhi said, “you must be the change you wish to see in the world.”
Rebellion is not what most people think it is. Rebellion is turning off the TV and thinking for yourself.
-Unknown
Are you rebelling against modern society in any of the above-described ways? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!
Hy, I don’t have cel phone, and I refused to have one. I think it’s a need created
Brilliant post! This is the reason I am coming back to this site. Thanks for the enlightenment, this post makes me feel I am not the only one thinking like this. We must start meditating more and be less robotic otherwise we are feeding the system created by those in power to get more power over us and enslave us.
thank you Gilberto, indeed it’s such a comforting feeling to know that there are other like-minded people out there!
This whole site is amazing. It is the first one for me that makes me eager to wait what will next post be. And this post so beautifully defined ‘the rebels’ that many of us are, but we didn’t even know. I always felt I should do more to rebel against, at least now I feel I am doing something. I am going to forward the article to my teenage kids, it is very important that we make them aware of what is going on. Thank you for writing this.
thank you very much, Sanela, it’s really great to know that there are other people out there who think the same way 🙂 and I hope that your kids will be inspired to become quiet rebels too!
Hey Anna,
Such a good post. Good to see like minded people around.
Would appreciate few more post for Such kind of Personalities (Rebellious)