Make Us Insane
“Have you ever had an original thought in your entire life?”
I sat there at the table. I’d heard her question, she wasn’t upset, just exasperated. She was standing in the doorway between the two rooms in which we were carrying on our conversation. It didn’t bode well for me. After a pause, I answered.
“Have you?”
She looked at me. My response did not improve the atmosphere as I had thought it would. I’ve always been a bit distant, pensive. I didn’t hear her question in the way she thought I did. I, wrongly, was being more philosophical. It was only after the words had left my mouth that I noticed the discrepancy between our thoughts. I thought of explaining myself, apologizing, but stopped caring immediately. I figured that I’d just continue right on with my conversation.
“Think about it, the futility of understanding the human mind. Put in the simplest form, it is to ask to the truest sense: why do people do what they do? Why does anyone do anything? Studying the subconscious motives of a person, even the self, is as impossible as attempting to understand something larger than the self with no verifiable, empirical facts on it. There is even a fear associated with knowing. What if we actually knew what other people were thinking? Would we even want to know? Do we enjoy, or, prefer, rather, our delusions, our ‘images’ of people? Often times, we could find this preconceived notion of who someone is more enjoyable than the actual person, so much so that is placed over that real person. Then we can no longer see them for who they are, only who we want them to be.
A frame of mind can be a powerful thing. It can change one person’s entire world. One can alter what may be, what is, and what was, change the point of reference. Then, in doing so, manipulate death, show that there is no truth, and that there are only different possibilities to be mused upon.
Here’s food for thought: we’ve all seen The Thing, They Live, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and a ton others. There is no actual way to trust anyone. It is impossible. What if all of these things exist, what if there are people being controlled by things out there with some sinister purpose? What if you or I are one of these things, or your friends. Anyone could simply be waiting for the moment to turn you to them. Heck, even, maybe, we’re already being controlled. What if we were just supposed to be like all the other stupid animals on this planet, but some parasite or alien virus infected us, changed us, made us receptors for some grand cosmic plot? That’s how the animals know we’re different. You see them, all of the animals, they look at us differently from any other animal, they treat us differently. What if all of our drives and ambitions are just arbitrary tasks to support some grand infrastructure to make us slaves to terraform this planet?
Random synapses firing? Success can be gauged on how well one can ‘connect’ on a global scale, tap into the culture. Those who are the most popular or make the most money are the ones who are the most connected, and so then, we are programmed to like them, for whatever reason. Think of fame, and the ‘guilty pleasure’ shows that are popular, there could be something bigger going on, and the current accepted reality is too afraid of knowing about it to admit it, it would freak too many people out. But maybe people need to be freaked out. The possibilities of the world are truly frightening and mind-boggling if you think about it.”
“Thank you, Jake, thank you; for you have, once again, proven my point.”
She left.
April 28, 2010 at 2:33 am
I really like how “an original thought” became a programming populous system… and pass by question on life’s purpose… Thank you for sharing a different perspective on it…. Similar to the worship of money… They instaured the green paper to lead.
May 11, 2010 at 2:32 am
Thanks! I tried to cover a lot of separate things, I had to, since they were there, within my mind. I think you understand bits and pieces of what was said, which is more than me, in separate ways, so congrats on that! The way money works as a form of ‘currency’ (notice the word used, take in the etymology) is a merely a form to gauge different people’s perspective on it, if people stopped caring about money, it would simply cease to have worth. It’s an idea, just like any person, place, or thing can become, and can lose.
April 28, 2010 at 9:57 pm
I feel that you could have provided more context as to what the characters were discussing as opposed to automatically “pegging” the female character as the “narrow minded enemy” versus your character as this “righteous soul.”
Second, there are always several paths to an answer, so congratulations on emphasizing this.
May 11, 2010 at 2:27 am
I know you had a lot more to say, most of it negative, which is fine for criticism, but I feel you’re coming from your own frame of mind, and since I did neither of the things you mentioned, I must write it off, as you’ve constructed you own interpretation. I could even argue the exact opposite of your position.
However, the truth is that it’s neither. It’s merely a story meant to demonstrate some thoughts I had straying around that needed to be combined, and a hilarious hither-non-there framing device.
May 11, 2010 at 4:25 am
True; I like that your stories can even be interpreted in so many ways. You did say you’d quite like it if your stories were read and analyzed in classrooms someday. Much more appealing then those ginormous novels you’re forced to read. Anyways, I came across this and it describes the style of writing which you often engage in: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gonzo_journalism
May 11, 2010 at 4:27 am
Oh, also, I was only being critical because it was truly how I interpreted the story. I suppose you’d give me an F if I was your student o.O
May 2, 2010 at 6:57 pm
Oooooo, really like this one. Thought Provocation Achieved!
May 11, 2010 at 2:23 am
Yesssssss.