Introduction

In October 1945, Sartre uttered his existentialism catchphrase: ‘Existence precedes essence’, meaning that unlike, say, a table, we are born into this world without a definite purpose. Rather, our purpose is something that we acquire throughout the course of our lives.

Whereas throughout history, the stories of our community – the communal narrative – kept us afloat in times of ambiguity and meaninglessness, modernity and the shift in societal values has removed that privilege. Thus, we are continually pushed by the helter-skelter cultural tides of the modern world. And, without the crutches of concrete mythology to guide us, we are bound to be the playthings of a cruel fate.

I’ve previously written about this shift towards ambiguity (read more here), though this topic has been a recurring theme throughout the last century or so. Indeed, numerous philosophers, social critics, and even psychologists have previously highlighted this shift.

Throughout history, the limitation of roles available within a society and the rigid social norms provided each individual with a defined path in life. It was customary for children to carry on the work of their parents. Thus, a person’s life was in many ways set out for them from the beginning.

In contrast, the modern age is marked by a great upheaval of economic and social mobility. The massive expansion of developed and economically viable nations has given rise to an exponential increase in the number of niches that citizens may occupy within it. As such, the number of viable lifestyles have also increased.

Whereas previously people lived in small, homogeneous communities, tied by socio-religious conventions where social mobility was practically non-existent, life in modern developed nations has practically overthrown all of this. If there is anything in abundance nowadays, it’s probably choice.

As a result of the age of information, the sheer number of choices we have to make at any given time has increased. Thus, we have entered into an age where confusion is all too prevalent. This uptick in general confusion is seen amongst individuals and societies at large. The modern zeitgeist is plagued by insidious psychological issues such as cognitive dissonance and mental health ails, not to mention the rise of collective societal dysfunctions such as ‘alternative facts’, amongst other deceptions aimed at its inhabitants.

Unfortunately, it is a fact of the times… Times consisting of a constantly evolving and shifting world where many of us are gripped by torrents of confusion and disorientation.

It’s only too easy to drown in the ding of clashing noises without a strong and coherent inner-narrative that can serve as a the necessary guide that cuts through the veil of smoke that surrounds us.

So, in this post I’ll evaluate the significance of our personal narrative – the story that we tell ourselves, as it can make or break our perception of the world we live in.

Modern complexity causes ambiguity and confusion

Confusion is a negative feeling that is characterised by a general disorientation in life and a decline in cognitive ability. It’s caused by a rapid turnover of inbound information and the number of choices that can be made in a given scenario. Too much incoming information and hence too much choice results in a state of ‘overchoice’, which negatively impacts decision-making. Futurist Alvin Toffler highlighted this phenomena in his book Future Shock.

As citizens of the modern world, we are easy prey to the cacophony of voices found amidst a constantly growing and globalising world. Throughout our day, we are constantly steered into conflicting directions by the numerous media outlets, advertisements, thought-leaders and peers that surround us. The resultant life that we live is at best one of cognitive dissonance and at worst one plagued by existential crises.

Without a concrete inner-narrative guiding us towards what we believe is essential for our well-being, we’re only more prone to becoming less trusting, more selfish, and more self-indulgent, as a result of the loss of our agency in life that is caused by overchoice and the overwhelming confusion that is associated with it.

Therefore, it’s important that we choose to assert ourselves against the noise, lest it consumes us and makes us strangers to ourselves.

The existential hero is one knows this intuitively. He is often depicted as a stranger or outcast in an alien world. Though he may live, work, and even mingle with the people of a given society, he very much exists outside of it by virtue of his independent consciousness.

The protagonists of Dostoyevsky’s, Kafka’s, Camus’, and Sartre’s works all represent islands in the vast seas of their respective societies. The speech, manners, and behaviours of the inhabitants of their respective societies feel alien to them and vice versa. Though these protagonists represent lonely islands in vast seas, they also serve as bulwarks for authenticity and truth, and they often expose the flaws in the society around them.

Existentialism places a large burden on the individual as they become tasked with finding authentic and individual meaning in a largely inauthentic and communal world. Often, this is devastating, and many existential heroes don’t survive the ordeal. Nevertheless, in a world where mass-industry has commoditised nearly everything, even personality, the struggle for authenticity has become increasingly important.

Finding your inner-narrative

Despite the fact that we live in a time of heightened individualism, we often try to escape from ourselves. And, many of us today are only too eager to drown our own inner-narrative out. Though there are numerous reasons as to why we might engage in this behaviour, they all point to the same thing: we are constantly looking to escape from ourselves.

Similarly to the existential anti-hero in Sartre’s The Stranger, many of us float through existent as a spectator in some way, not really belonging to the environment that we inhabit. We might be looking to distract ourselves through various means: intoxication, love, company, and other means of escape.

Ultimately, we are looking for ways to not be alone with our thoughts and feelings, for our clashing opinions, thoughts, feelings, and actions are simply too much for us to bear and make any sense of.

How would do advance through this morass of confusion that troubles us so?

Finding your voice

The main reason why so many of us are confused nowadays is because we don’t take heed of what we truly think and feel – we’ve been taught not to. Many of us grew up being told what to do by our parents, teachers, lecturers, role models and others in authoritative positions throughout our lives. Even as adults with responsibilities, we’re kept in check by those higher up the chain.

Needless to say, growing up, these authorities have influenced our decision-making in numerous ways. It was only a matter of time before we stopped thinking for ourselves and fell into the habit of taking others’ word and advice for our own.

Now, as we assimilate others’ opinions, thoughts, and advice as our own without thought, we form an inauthentic construct of ourselves. Hence, we might struggle to achieve the goals and dreams that we think will make us happy, only to feel a deep sense of emptiness as soon as we achieve them.

If this is you, heed this visceral feeling, for it’s sending you an important message.

What, then, must we do in order to reclaim our authentic inner-voice, our inner-narrative? It’s simple: let it speak up!

Allowing that portion of yourself, the authentic and untarnished you to voice itself, is a key part to being human, but one that many of us suppress due to societal constraints. It’s no wonder then, that many philosophy heavyweights have prescribed solitude as a key part of self-improvement. Therefore, to cultivate your authentic self, you must spend time in solitude.

Spending time alone is conducive to understanding these essential but forgotten parts of ourself; and it’s something we don’t do enough of. This is especially true as it takes a considerable amount of time to sit and reflect on our feelings, thoughts, and actions. It’s a process that cannot be rushed.

Of the essential nature of solitude Nietzsche has to say the following (On the genealogy of Morals/Ecce Homo):

‘’I need solitude – which is to say, recovery, return to myself, the breath of a free, light, playful air.’’

Bonus points if you spend your time of solitude in nature!

Conclusion

In 1970, Alvin Toffler highlighted the phenomena of overchoice and confusion as consequences of an increasingly novel and complex world. It appears that these issues aren’t exactly new. With the rapidity of technological advancements of today, it won’t be long before we reach a future where nothing will be certain except uncertainty in the course of where we’re headed as a species.

In contrast, our primitive consciousnesses are slow to catch up. And, plagued by the increasing number of twists and turns of the modern world, it’s likely that we’ll have even more difficulty coping with the numerous volumes, editions, and versions of being that will be required of us in the future.

To the unprepared mind, ambiguity and confusion will reign as kings.

Fortunately, we can resist the overwhelming ambiguity and confusion that is in store for us by reclaiming our locus of control and positing the importance of our personal, inner-narrative above that of the confused communal-narrative of modern, globalised society. Rather than giving in to the values of a confused society, we should carefully consider what we value authentically, and build our lives accordingly as we set out to live our personal narrative.