VIDEO World Cup Celebration Downtown
Auburn students find unity downtown for the World Cup watch parties.
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Auburn students find unity downtown for the World Cup watch parties.
Nothing says "help, I've been possessed by an evil wax statue" like a selfie. It's hard to ignore the lifeless onslaught of puckered lips, expressionless gazes, and submissively tilted heads that stare from the profiles of many women's social media accounts. Even more frightening than the creepy selfie pose is a prevailing attitude that seems to affect many of my female acquaintances and even, at times, myself. Many young women seem to struggle to develop original and autonomous identities. Instead, they form identities that echo their boyfriends', friends', or sororities' interests, ideology and characteristics without independently developing their own. Although intellectual autonomy is difficult to attain, narcissism is easily achieved and demonstrated through sharing constant streams of personal updates and photographs. Unfortunately, egotism isn't a substitute for individualism. However, the culprit of this phenomenon doesn't seem to be the fugitive spirit from Madame Tussauds's wax museum attempting to clone lifeless imitations of individuals. Instead, I think many of us Plainswomen have inadvertently absorbed American culture's lack of appreciation of, and dedication to, originality. Many of today's best-selling movies are remakes or a part of franchises, while television show spinoffs and book series flood the market. Many of the storylines feature mishmashes of old storylines (vampires anyone?) instead of innovative and original concepts. And, of course, many of our female pop culture icons aren't necessarily originality role models either. It's all too common for a woman to receive fame and attention for her good looks and sexuality instead of her talent, artistry or wit. To compound the phenomenon, traditional women's culture often emphasizes inclusion instead of competition. This emphasis isn't inherently bad; however groupthink and "sameness" aren't necessarily discouraged. Surrounded by our culture's creative and intellectual stagnation and its idolization of over-sexualized women, it's understandable that many women struggle to form their own identities. Luckily, the solution doesn't require an exorcism. Although easy to consume the vapid products of our pop culture in our free time, such behavior is counterproductive when forming an independent identity. Producing something, rather than consuming, forces one to think. You must consider what you're going to do, determine how you are going to do it, and then critique yourself after you've finished. It's a process that allows for self-exploration, understanding and acceptance. This type of, often creative, thinking is an essential component of de-clonifying yourself and forming an independent identity. Learning, when paired with deep, analytical thinking is likewise helpful in the de-clonefication process. Although it's fun to read an informative book, it's also important to spend time reflecting on what you think about the given topic and why you think it. Although our culture may not encourage self-discovery, creativity or intellectual independence for women, that doesn't mean we should allow ourselves to stagnate. If each Plainswoman worked to think deeply and creatively in order to understand herself, we could use our rich senses of self to change our entertainment industry's vapid, mindless pop products and create a better, smarter, more innovative culture. Until then, it would be nice to see women possessed only by their sense of self.
A new class allows Auburn students to play with and socialize puppies.
Check out this year's celebration of mother nature.
Students perform for judge panel and special guest, Teddy Geiger, to showcase their songwriting abilities.
I've been cute-couple kicking for at least a decade now. I don't remember when my aversion to cute couples began, but something about the blissful titters, amorously glazed eyes and surreptitiously flexed biceps has always driven me bonkers. Luckily, I discovered a few flinty kicks on the back of a flirty couple's seat was usually enough to snap a couple out of their amorous trance. Those were the simple days before we all had smartphones in our hand and the latest Twitter update only a finger tap away. It's increasingly difficult to find cute couples so entranced with one another that they've forgotten the world and, consequently, how impossibly annoying they are. Instead, they've been replaced by couples whose eyes swivel constantly from the face of their partner to the siren glow of their phones. Their laughter sounds absentminded despite the agility of their busily tapping fingers on smartphones. It's sad to watch these preoccupied couples who are too distracted to become properly enraptured with one another. There's nothing cute about them, nothing kickable. There were a few moments this semester that made my feet tingle with hope. For instance, last Friday a couple in the Student Center loudly discussed what love meant to them while I was trying to study. They seemed like a perfect candidate and I could practically feel my foot twitching. Peering over my classwork, I peeked at them and could see the girl glancing at her phone as she spoke. Disgusted, I left to study elsewhere. Feeling a little nostalgic, I remembered the loud giggles and nauseating smooches of the "adorable" couples of yesteryears. It was annoying, but their excessively starry-eyed delight with one another also happened to be the very thing that made them cute. They were so joyfully mesmerized with each other they forgot to take those around them into consideration. Unfortunately there is nothing adorable about individuals so self-absorbed that they're discourteous to both their partner and their peers. Similarly, a few weeks earlier the upcoming reunion of an acquaintance and her long-distance boyfriend gave me concern. She planned to introduce us, but I worried I would feel uncomfortable witnessing the two exchange gooey regards when they reunited. But, after the initial greetings, sufficiently sappy embraces and my introduction had finished, each partner began to thumb-fiddle their phone. I was dismayed. The guy had traveled three hours to visit his Auburn sweetie. With that kind of time commitment, I assumed he would have wanted to make the most of their fleeting moments together. The incident reminded me of my own frustrating experiences visiting friends who live far from Auburn. Though we only see each other a few times a year, some of my friends only half-listen to what I'm saying. Peeking at their phones, I can see them looking at Instagram, Twitter and texts from other friends. These meetings are always uncomfortable and irritating. It's hard to believe someone values my friendship when they only dedicate a fraction of their attention to me when I'm in the flesh. When this first happened while visiting a schoolmate after my move, I was deeply hurt. I had thought they cared a lot; after all, they texted me all the time. Love, both romantic and friendly, seems to be suffering from our culture's endless technology obsession. An incoming text merits more devotion than a loved one or a moment of genuine intimacy. As Valentine's Day approaches, maybe it's time to reassess our values and how much uninterrupted attention our loved ones deserve from us. As for my twitchy feet, I'd gladly return to the days of careless cute-couple kicking but, frankly, I'd be so relieved to see them return, I'd probably give the sport up for good. Until then, I'm considering kicking habitual phone users. You never know, maybe it will cure their technology addiction and give them the time to truly love and appreciate someone special.