The Fools Guide To The Perfect Life: A Second Essay On Existential Therapy

By Jack R Ernest

This is a follow up essay to the original essay: "An Essay on Existential Nihilistic Therapy." In this second essay I discuss how labelling determines the individual. I also look at the consequence of labelling, chiefly narcissism.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Oct 13, 2022
• ISBN: 9781471028090

Book preview

Part 1.1

Language is the light of civilization. It is the core reason why we experience the world as we do. Without it we would still be climbing the trees. But for what language gives us, it also takes away. With the weapon of language combined with eyesight, we can label - which means we can laugh, humiliate and degrade others. This haunts the individual to the pit of their conscience. The thought of being made fun of stirs something inside of them, a will to conform, because they understand all too well that conformity negates the power of stigma. Thus, to put two and two together, language leads to conformity and without it, conformity would not exist.

That we conform we hunger to find meaning in our existence. And through finding meaning we can become addicts, solely because we wish to experience anything other than boredom. In the 21st century that addiction is consumerism. Consumerism is the drug that sedates us, that keeps us content. It is a drug that is more powerful than an opiate. Consumerism in this day and age is not just buying more and more things we don't need; it is also our presentation to society, it is the job we work, it is the person we marry and so much more. We attempt to accrue all these things to look good in front of our peers. They control us, as do we them. Our lives become commoditized in a sense. Everything is treated as a commodity including our happiness, which is why it must be the same as everyone else's version of happiness. In essence we have become addicts - addicted to approval in every facet of our existence and it makes us mad and sad.

Part 2.1

To be known is regulation. This is why we are programmed to conform. Being seen by others adjusts our thought process. This is why there are so many narcissists, both male and female, because they are trying to determine how they are labelled by society. So men must be having sex with lots of women and women must be physically attractive - both then assume that they are liked because of it, that they have attained approval. This is the power of labelling within society. By simply being seen one is motivated by procuring approval. It dominates both adults and children, black and white, heterosexual and homosexual - when we are visually recognised, we desire to be liked than be disliked or ignored. When we are seen, a phenomenon I call the Labelling Anxiety takes place. Being seen produces a momentarily anxiety within our minds to which we respond by behaving in such a manner that we will be approved by those that see us. This includes those that dont know us personally as much as those that do. Thus we become image conscious beings who need to be showered in likes in order to function. And it is this very obsession with approval that makes us suffer and be