Authentic Orange

Submitted by: Madilynn Gerritsen

To be authentic means being true to yourself. Doing what you want to do and living your live in accordance to your happiness and fulfillment. To me, authenticity means being happy; doing what you believe in and not caring about what other people do or say. It means recognizing your uniqueness and what makes you, you. Authenticity can mean different things for different people. As for philosophers like Heidegger, he saw authenticity as looking at your live in a different light, to think about our unavoidable death and realizing if you are making the right decisions. As for Nietzsche, he saw authenticity as not conforming to society and the unjust herd that pushes you in a direction that might not be what you intended, but it might be easy. For Kierkegaard, the meaning to life and truth was through god, and through finding those truths and meaning, authenticity will become a part of you.

As a student at OSU, becoming an individual in the community may be challenging because as Kierkegaard said, you become part of a crowd (lecture 5/5/15). You’re just another face in a lecture hall or stadium. Maybe you just go to the bar or a sports game because that’s what the crowd or your friends are doing. Being authentic in these situations may be difficult for some. One thing that I would encourage is to think. Think about what is going on. Think about how you feel. Think about if what you’re doing is what you actually want to do. Recognize your feelings, beliefs, and morals.

Take a step back. Slow down and look at the bigger picture. There is a concept known as da-sein, or thrown projection (lecture 4/16/15). Throwness meaning we are thrown into the world as it was before we got there. Things we do, tasks, values, beliefs, etc., are thrown at us and we are expected to catch them. Meanwhile, we forget being because of all the things being thrown at us. We lose ourselves and we become absorbed by them, for example, social media. I encourage everyone to take a step back. Put down your phones and technology and take a look at the world around you. People are becoming lost in technology, when they need to be open to reality to see your projection of how you could be living. Da sein; be in the moment.

Lastly, there are pressures from all over directing us in one-way or another. These pressures could be social, political, or economic. These pressures effect how we express our freedom. Freedom is one of the main concepts of the third existential theme, humanism that we discussed in lecture (lecture 5/7/15). One of the main points of this theme is the pursuit of freedom and identity, which is important for finding yourself and becoming authentic. As a college student, it is important to explore your freedom while you still have it before you take on more commitments and responsibilities of being an adult (lecture 5/26/15). I encourage everyone to embrace your youth and freedom. Go out and explore. You have the freedom to do almost anything with your lives, so find your passion and what you love and hold on those things.

To me, being authentic is a huge part of being happy. Following your heart and beliefs can make your life more rewarding and authentic. Think about the way you’re living and the way you feel. If you’re not happy, change something. Take a step back and look at the bigger picture. Are you where you want to be? Are you exploring your freedom, or are you trapped in routine like in Kafka’s metamorphosis (Kafka’s Metamorphosis)? Gregor was working at a job he hates to support people who didn’t appreciate him. He went through a change, but not a change of the self, a change of the body. If you are living inauthentically and are not happy, make a change of the self.