Authentic Orange

Submitted by Angus Owan Jr.

One of the most complementary sayings that goes with almost every new encounters is, “Don’t worry, just be yourself”. Whether it be meeting a new friend, moving to someplace new, or shaking the president’s hand (maybe not the last one). However, within one moment of our lives we all have gone through encounters that make us nervous, terrified, and uncomfortable. The term authentic coincides with another common saying such as, “be yourself”. On literal terms authentic means not fake, verified, real, etc. So basically if a random person yells to you to “Be Orange,” in authentic terms they are implying that you should be who you truly are. Every time you do something, question yourself if this is truly what you would do. It could be what you wear, how you speak, or how you act. Anything related to yourself, question if (insert your name here) would do this. One of the most significant aspects I’ve learned about being here at Oregon State is that we are allowed to be authentic. We are allowed to be our own individual. We are allowed to truly express ourselves without any judgment or bias directed towards anyone.

When a phrase like, “Be Orange” is brought around to my concern I see it as being who you truly are, be authentic. Corvallis is a community where everyone matters whilst being welcoming to anyone and everyone’s individualism. However, there are obstacles in obtaining authenticity as many philosophers have different terms for this obstacle. Nietzsche calls it, “The Herd” which is basically the same as following what everyone is doing (Lecture 5/5/15). This can become an obstacle in being authentic due to the fact that “The Herd,” could be doing something completely opposite to what you would do. Yet, you will find yourself doing these things because you’re so caught up with “The Herd”. For example, you could be at a party finding yourself drinking and trying to blend in with everyone. However, in all actuality you could possibly hate beer and alcohol in general. Peer pressure adds to this obstacle as it makes us decide whether or not to be authentic. Another example of this obstacle is when Dan came in dressed in a suit (Lecture 5/28/15). I questioned myself as to why he would dress that way. He usually comes in with shorts and a shirt but on that day he came to prove a point. As he took off the suit he revealed that he had his normal clothes underneath them. He used the suit as a symbol to show how everyone (“The Herd”) expects people to come to work. Yet, Dan defies this obstacle everyday by dressing how he wants to because he is his own person, his own individual.

Being authentic is easy to say yet hard to do. Sometimes we become inauthentic in order to please other people. Perfect examples of this are college students. Some college students simply go to college to please others such as their friends or family. Rather than pursuing the future the student wants they could be doing a certain major just to satisfy their parents or others. Gregor in The Metamorphosis is an example of this (Kafka, The Metamorphosis, pg. 1). Gregor doesn’t enjoy his job at all yet he continues it everyday to support his family. In the case of Gregor, he is being inauthentic to himself. He is his own individual just like everyone else and should make his own decisions. Being inauthentic is also known as having bad faith (Lecture 5/26/15). The term “Bad Faith,” means that we deny our own transcendence and do actions just to blend in and feel accepted. Having bad faith in one-self is an obstacle that troubles basically everyone in their daily lives. It could be as complicated as playing a role in one’s job or as simple as procrastination. Overcoming these obstacles is key to becoming authentic here at Oregon State University.

How do we overcome these obstacles you ask? Be yourself. It’s as simple as that. Take risks or “leaps of faith” in order to reach your own state of authenticity (Lecture 4/23/15). No body has the answers except yourself. Do things you want to do and don’t let anyone influence your decisions. College is the perfect place to find out who you are because we have to come to the realization that we are adults now. If you want to party and have fun then so be it. If you want to study hard and get awesome grades than strive for it. You want to do both? Why not. As long as you make that decision with the confidence that you really want to pursue that path then you are being yourself, being authentic, being your own individual. Many paths open up once we become an adult yet no one is going to make the decision for us. You don’t need to follow the herd to be cool or accepted. “Being Orange” is all about being real to yourself here at OSU. Be your own individual. Existentialism is about finding who we truly are and who we want to be. So take this knowledge on being authentic and be YOU! (P.S. GO BEAVERS!)