Why Me?

Many things in society are influenced by public opinion. Companies renounce products, people buy bigger homes and faster cars, and city-states conquer one another just to prove something to the public or world, whether it be their monetary status, military supremacy, or marketing strategy. We all know it’s there; the question is, why? Why would someone try to impress peers, citizens, or even other nations? Why is there that desire to be approved of? Essentially, the way we act usually affects the way people think of us.

Most people have the desire to be wanted by other people. If someone were to feel unneeded, or even completely ignored, as William James described, he or she would feel as if his or her life were unnecessary. This means that people must find a way to feel needed. This usually comes in the form of having friends. Obviously, if someone thinks poorly of another person, he or she most likely will not become friends with the person.

Most people also find it difficult to not care what others think of them for the previously mentioned reasons. They want to be thought of as a good person, or sometimes even a great person. The sense of being respected gives one a sense of accomplishment; being shunned provides defeat and sadness. People have the instinctive desire to impress people they meet, hence the saying, “first impressions last.” People care so much about what others think about them because what others think is essentially what creates the “SOCIAL ME.”

How we act most definitely affects what others think of us; if this weren’t true, the whole concept of the “SOCIAL ME” would be obsolete. Most people perceive others’ characters by the way that they act. The SOCIAL ME is created by what others think, so what others think obviously affects the SOCIAL ME. If a politician were involved in an illegal music piracy ring, the public would most likely think of this person as sneaky and corrupted, or even criminal. Everything someone does in public adds up to the common perception of that person. Basically, what we do I public defines ourselves to other people.

An important aspect of people is one’s social perception; it can be a true and genuine representation of that person, or a façade created by that person or someone else. Generally, it is very hard for most people to not care what others think of them; what people think of them defines their SOCIAL ME. To ignore what other people think of themselves would necessitate the people to create their own SOCIAL MEs.

Why Opinion?

Many things in society are influenced by public opinion. Companies renounce products, people buy bigger homes and faster cars, and city-states conquer one another just to prove something to the public or world, whether it be their monetary status, military supremacy, or marketing strategy. We all know it’s there; the question is, why? Why would someone try to impress peers, citizens, or even other nations.
Most people want to be wanted. In order to be wanted, they need approval from other people. Approval is gained by improving the way others think about you.

Why Opinion?

Many things in society are influenced by public opinion. Companies renounce products, people buy bigger homes and faster cars, and city-states conquer one another just to prove something to the public or world, whether it be their monetary status, military supremacy, or marketing strategy. We all know it’s there; the question is, why? Why would someone try to impress peers, citizens, or even other nations.
Most people want to be wanted. In order to be wanted, they need approval from other people. Approval is gained by improving the way others think about you.

True Hope, False Hope...

Hope is a word that can take on many meanings—I hope we win the game; his only hope is surgery; I see some hope for the future—but its general meaning still remains the same—the desire for something positive to happen. Hope is something that most (if not all) humans experience at one time or another. Much of the time, hope is expressed when one’s fate lies in the hands of another person (or even oneself), i.e., “I hope John doesn’t drop that infinitesimally small grain of sand,” or “I hope I pass the test that I didn’t study for.” Hope is can also be a quasi-prediction of the future. Most people wouldn’t even have the audacity to hope to pass a test if it was never studied for. I know I wouldn’t. Ok, that’s a lie, but regardless, most people hope for things that have about a 50% chance of happening. Most people, that is…

(Ok, so I like to use italics just a little bit. At least I’m not ONE OF THOSE ALL CAPS PEOPLE, right?)

Some people, however, have the audacity to hope for things that have about as much a chance of happening as me getting an ‘A’ in Ancient Greece. Not much, eh? This kind of hope is called false hope. False hope generally (and usually does) misleads people; it can be manifested in several ways. False hope can boost confidence, usually resulting in overconfidence. Let’s say “Walter” is stranded on a deserted desert island. A cruise ship passes by at about one mile away. If he exhibits any form of false hope, he will most likely try to swim out to the boat. Now, you may be thinking, “But Kwame, I can swim one mile in 2 minutes! Surely the boat will still be there when Walter gets there!” But Walter is not an Olympic swimmer. He’s about 69 years old with a bad knee or two. He could have some twisted false hope that he would be able to swim out to the ship. He would get stranded, fall asleep, and drown, thus having the swim indirectly kill him.

Hope can also give strength, usually in the form of confidence. If someone were playing a soccer game (let’s say it’s Walter in his younger days), he could have hope that he could win the game. His hope could lead to confidence, which would lead to better plays. All in all, hope can do many things to a person.