October 2, 2000 ~ I Can No Longer Speak in My Native Tongue ~or~ Life in the Bubble

I haven't watched television for three years, and, for two years before that, I only watched one hour a week (I was addicted to X-Files). By saying that I haven't watched television, I honestly mean that I haven't watched any at all. Nada. Zilch. Zero. None. I haven't seen a commercial, I haven't watched the news, and I haven't seen a television show in three years. Three years.

So I was utterly shocked the other day when I walked through a dorm lounge and happened to hear the announcer talking about the Olympics. The Olympics!?! What? The Olympics are going on??? I was shocked. How could I have missed that?

I usually get my important world news fairly easy. I am attending an activist school, so, if anything important happens, I always hear about it. It makes a great filter, actually. I miss all of the sensationalist reports about the President's most recent affairs, or the latest Hollywood scandal, but I manage to hear about the most recent conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians (about 500 people were injured the other day, and 24 killed when automatic weapons were fired into a crowd) or the human rights atrocities in Central America.

As far as American commercial culture goes, however, I am utterly at a loss. I have no idea what TV shows are popular right now. When someone talks about a recent funny commercial, I'm bound to get a blank, confused look on my face. I don't even know what clothing styles are popular right now, for not only do I not watch television but also I never go to the mall or other mainstream public places, either.

According to adbusters.org, the average American is exposed to at least 3,000 commercial messages (advertisements) per day. Honestly, I usually only see, at the most, 100 advertisements a day (this would be a day when I do a lot more Internet surfing than usual and make my once-every two or three week trip to the bank and perhaps the grocery store, thus seeing a few billboards on the way). That's one hell of an exposure gap right there.

Quite frankly, I think I'm a little too proud of my disconnection from commercial culture. It is wonderful to know that I am not as influenced by people who only want my money for things I don't really need, but, at the same time, I no longer speak the same language as the average American. I can be talking to a friend and she will mention a brand name of something that is current and popular, and I will have to ask her to explain. I cannot even talk normally with my very own family.

I remember one incident in specific that really brought to my attention my lack of current communication skills. About two years ago I visited my family, and we went to a local burger joint. At that time I was a vegetarian, so I ordered the mushroom burger, and they all gave me weird looks when I said that yes, I actually did like the taste of it (when I became a vegan a year later, they really didn't understand). When we sat down at our table, I was looking forward to catching up with my family and understanding what was happening in their lives. I soon realized, however, that we had no common basis of metaphors to draw from. Let me explain.

Humans understand one another through the use of metaphor to convey meaning. In order for metaphorical communication to work properly, however, the individuals involved must have a common mythology to draw from. America's common "mythology," today, is television. The average American has a plethora of characters and fictional situations to draw from based on a common story-base of television shows and commercials. In theory, everyone who watches television has, at least, a basic understanding of popular characters or situations in the various well-known shows and commercials. Anyone who does not participate in this common cultural mythology, however, is unable to understand metaphorical communications.

As I sat with my family, I came to realize that my ability to pick up on most literary references wouldn't do me a bit of good when communicating with my family. When attempting to keep up with the conversation I was soon utterly and totally confused. After the thousandth reference to either The Simpsons, Seinfield, or Friends, however, I just gave up, for when I had asked for the situation or character being referenced to be explained, I would usually just be laughed at, with a few incredulous looks thrown in my direction. The conversation, to me, had about as much meaning as this:

"Yeah, so when I went to my soccer practice, it was kind of like when so-and-so did such-and-such to so-and-so on such-and-such-a-show."

Everyone around the table laughed and I just looked confused. When I asked what was funny, I believe my brothers exact, blunt words were, "You've never seen [insert television show here]!?! Whoa... you're... stupid!"

These type of situations happen to me ALL-THE-TIME, and I am always left grasping at air. I do not understand normal American conversations anymore, even with my own family.

What does it mean when I disconnect myself from my own cultural heritage? I have what I believe to be very good reasons for not watching television or not eating animal products, but when I am put in the context of my very own culture, symbolically, I drown.

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