Welcome to Gaia! ::

Basically, what I'd like to hear is mainly about how you react to society and how society reacts to you. Are you an outcast whether you want to be or not? Are you accepted? Are you popular? And most of all why?

Wikipedia defines society as, "A society is a grouping of individuals, which is characterized by common interests and may have distinctive culture and institutions. In a society, members can be from a different ethnic group. A "Society" may refer to a particular people, such as the Nuer, to a nation state, such as Switzerland, or to a broader cultural group, such as a Western society. Society can also refer to an organized group of people associated together for religious, benevolent, cultural, scientific, political, patriotic, or other purposes."

That being said, is society for all or only for some?

I'm an outsider. But I didn't want to be.

When I was younger, I did everything I could to fit in. But I grew up in Brooklyn, NY. I was the only black girl who was quiet, fond of Japanese art and games, fond of instrumentals and other music aside from rap, and several other elements. So I was made fun of and ridiculed my entire childhood. The thing I heard the most was that I needed to "act my race" or "stop trying to be -some race here-".

Even when I moved to Atlanta, which seemed alot more diverse to me, I was still an outsider. No one really accepted me. Everyone has little groups that all follow the same traits...and I just didn't have it.

I think, in time, I just forced myself to be an outsider. Even when people at work or when I went to school came up to me and tried to hang out with me, I pushed them away or preferred to be alone.

I suppose "society" made me into a loner and I just...taught myself to like it. Maybe out of hatred or bitterness, but I just preferred to be alone.

I can't really call myself an OUTCAST, per se, but I'm not really a member of my society exactly. I move in and out at will, pretty much. Someone name that for me, and I'll tell you what I am biggrin

How large of a society? An international one, or one as small as a town or school? I believe that no one is accepted by all societies, but everyone is excepted by at least one.
As for me, I'm not recognized on the society of the world, save for my birth records. In school I'm known for my art and academics; in my town for musicianship. So I stand in my society as an artist of sorts.
I have no explanation for how I view society in turn. I might have already answered it.

This is something I've been doing a lot of thinking about lately. When I was a bit younger, and still in high school, I thought my place in the world was to be a s**t disturber. It's a role I play well. I like to ask hard questions and try to make people think about why they behave a certain way, or support certain things. Then 9/11 happened. Before 9/11, it seemed to me that America was headed in the right direction. It was OK to be concerned with the environment or drug legalization, to question things, etc. Now it seems like things have done a 180. People now look at me like I'm crazy or stupid for saying the same things I was saying 7 years ago. Maybe people just thought I was cute and precocious before? I dunno. But now I feel like I should keep my mouth shut just to keep the peace. Not that I really do. But I do spend more time inside than I ever have before.

I am kind of an outcast (probably because of my undefined sexuality), though my peers seem to put on the illusion that I am marginally accepted. a few months ago, I wore a clearly femenine outfit to school (denim skirt, black tights). no one really said much. however, I was told to change in the middle of the day. I'm really part of a very small minority

Thank you all for your responses. I'll add my own response as well.

I've never viewed myself as someone who is part of society. Mostly because it seems to be that society itself is unwilling to accept me.

Most of the friends that I made when I was a child abandoned me a little after a year of so called "friendship". Most of them just hung around me to exploit either me or something that I had.

I was used, tormented, hated and never understood why. I still don't. I was almost always alone as well. The only ones that were there for me were people who were going through the same things.

At some point, something snapped inside of me and I rejected all of society. Any time they said something to me or about me, I ignored them completely. This was the exact opposite of what they wanted.

I was hated more then I was before but I didn't care. I didn't hate them back. I just moved forward without caring or letting them affect me.

Either way, it didn't stop me from doing what I did next. Unlike most of the popular side of things where people in my situation would slide into depression, I looked for a different path.

I took the few people that had proved that they were my friends and made us all family. What we couldn't do alone we could do together. And now, I look after them as a kind of big brother.

As for my last question, is society for all or only for some?

I think that it doesn't matter. Whether you're rejected by society or whether you're part of it, you're still you and you can only make choices that affect you.

Even if you're at the worst moment of your life things can get better if you want them too. Stay strong.

Jeez, let's see...

I'm pretty popular, but not in the "omg lyke that's sooo totally kewl" way, more like the "If I try to be nice to other peeps they'll be fairly nice to me too" way.

Then I'm also a sort of loner, if I'm in a really bad mood I sort of get a book and sit somewhere out of the way. If someone comes near me, I'd just reply to them in these short, straight forward answers until they got bored enought to leave me alone. Then I can be this ED type person too, listing the reasons why this this this should be this this this and not that that that. And the old 'friends' I used to be around would act really pissed off because they knew they were utterly 'defeated' as far as brains went.

*points to signature* Yup. "Two-faced" is one hell of an understatement.