Conformity Vs Nonconformity

Social Conformity Vs. Social Nonconformity

Every human feels a longing for acceptance and this desire to blend in with society leads to individuals resorting to conformity. Conformity is an opportunity to comply with society’s standards and offers a sense of belonging, whereas nonconformity is intentionally expressing an individual’s unique qualities. In general, people usually do not notice if they are conformists or nonconformists, however, it is still an issue regarding one’s identity. Individuals should not conform just to “fit in” with others, they should change who they are only when they feel ostracized because changing yourself entirely to be the same as others is not staying true to oneself. With more people conforming, our society
The film Dead Poet’s Society, focuses on these topics. One of the main characters, John Keating, was a major influence to the plot of the story because he was different from all the other teachers. Keating’s way of teaching had an effect on how his students changed from conformists to individuals. From the time Keating enrolls as a teacher in the movie, he begins to encourage the students to “seize the day,” “carpe diem.” In this specific scene, Keating shows the group of boys a school picture of former students who looked very similar to each other. As they are influenced by the words of “carpe diem” and encouragement to be different, throughout the story, they begin to show their true feelings and gain confidence in themselves. These particular scenes that show Keating and his unique ways of teaching support the idea of nonconformity being important in society. Additionally, in the article “Leopard Man” by Logan Feyes, nonconformity is brought up. Tom Leppard, also known as Leopard Man, is a nonconformist. The article states that Leopard Man is clearly unlike any other standard person, appearance-wise and personality-wise. “Seceding from society, as Leopard Man has done, would certainly free us from social pressures. Leopard Man -- unlike so many millions of people who are slaves to society’s demands -- is happy” (Feyes 2). Leppard chooses to be different
As a human, I have had a point in my life where I wanted to change myself to fit in with my friends. When I moved to a different city, I felt like an outcast. I was the only student who came from another school district in a different city. I followed the trends and ignoring my hobbies of watching anime and listening to Korean pop music. I kept my passions secret thinking I would be seen as a weird person, however, I felt a sense of guiltiness and felt unnatural since I was unlike my usual self. I began to stay true to myself and properly embrace everything about myself I ever disliked. Even though people may look at me with odd eyes, I learned that I should never change how I am. Changing my nature to become something or someone I am not does nothing to help me. If there is anytime I feel outcasted because I am different than the others, I may tweak my personality or appearance but I will not change myself entirely. Basically, I would be lying to myself if I ever alter myself physically and mentally. All in all, it is normal as humans to have the urge to conform when feeling outcasted, though it is not necessary to