Individualism and Democracy

Individualism and Democracy Why do we inherently choose to address our differences by either ignoring them or fighting about them? From a young age we are taught to conform to what is normal and reject what is not. In elementary school we learn from our friends to shun and bully kids who are different. We pick on the boy who is short and does not play any sports. We won’t play on the playground with the girl who always dresses in old fashioned clothes. We mock the child who talks with a lisp. And if we do not listen to popular music and wear the latest fashion, we will be shunned and bullied, too. Society as a whole chooses to isolate and discriminate against people who are different, people who are individuals. Society also forces people to conform to what is popular among the majority, and when someone goes against what is popular, they become the source of discrimination. The American government was built on the basis of a democracy and values social equality, freedom of speech and press, and the right to the pursuit of happiness. But today’s society has a hard time accepting people who are different. We deny the gay man the right to his pursuit of happiness because he is different than the rest of society. We shun the activist who speaks out against the popular opinion in the media and press because their views don’t match with our own. We discriminate against people of other races and those with disabilities because they do not look like us. Instead of trying to understand our differences and use them for good, we chose to fight them. This problem is caused, in part, by the relationship between individualism and democracy. Individualism and democracy have a complex, intertwined relationship.
Essentially, democracy allows individuals to exists, but punishes them for being individuals. The values of freedom and equality breed individualism, so individualism would not be possible without a democracy. But at the same time, the power of the

Bibliography: Anderson, Sherwood. Winesburg, Ohio. New York: Viking, 1960. Print. Capote, Truman. Other Voices, Other Rooms. New York: Random House, 1948. Online Print. Crèvecoeur, J. Hector De, and Susan Manning. "What Is an American?" Letters from an American Farmer. Oxford. Oxford UP, 1997. Online Print. Lorde, Audre. Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches. Berkley: Crossing, 1984. Online Print. One Flew over the Cuckoo 's Nest. Dir. Milos Forman. MGM/United Artists Entertainment, 1975. DVD. Philadelphia. Dir. Jonathan Demme. By Ron Nyswanger. Perf. Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington, Antonio Banderas, and Joanne Woodward. TriStar Pictures, 1993. DVD. Wright, Richard. Black Boy. London: Vintage, 2000. Print.