The willingness of people to attempt to appreciate something they think is "important".

I think it’s funny how much of the stuff that comes across my dash was obviously reblogged because the person thought it was important. Not because it has any real significance to them in any way, but because it’s supposed to have significance. A classic rock song, protest photographs, a quote from a existentialist author, etc. People on Tumblr eat these things up whether they understand the significance or not… or even if they realize if something has a significance.

I know that this is going to sound pretentious, but I don’t care. It’s true. I’m not complaining about it anyway, I’m merely stating an observation that takes place, not only on Tumblr, but in most of society as well.

People talk about things and “appreciate” things that they think has significance to the forward momentum of a certain medium, be it music, literature, etc… For example, The Rolling Stones logo being on cut-off tees at H&M or an Ernest Hemingway quote on a coffee mug at Barnes & Nobles. People who go to these places generally aren’t consumed with why these things are significant or even if they really are. What they want is to appear as if they have achieved a higher level by being aware of the supposed significance of these things.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not doubting the significance of Ernest Hemingway or The Rolling Stones or anything else that pertains to this subject. Of course, there is significance. The thing that gets lost on these people is what exactly is significant and why. Tumblr, H&M, and Barnes & Nobles all generalize. They generalize significant specimens and suggest that every piece of what they ever did was significant. This is not the case. The Rolling Stones are not defined by every song they ever put out and Ernest Hemingway isn’t defined by every word he ever wrote. The most popular of these societal tributes are important, sure. However, they’re rarely the most important.

Culture icons such as The Rolling Stones and Ernest Hemingway don’t have significance to society. They have significance to the people who enjoy them and to their given field. Their given field… which is comprised of people who enjoy them and search for the significance to them. These people are objective. They realize that there’s more than The Sun Also Rises and a set of lips with a tongue sticking out.

The general public assumes things like this (for example, The Rolling Stones and Ernest Hemingway) to be important. When importance is assigned to something, everyone wants to make it seem as if they “get it”; as if they “understand” why it’s important and significant. This is done by purchasing a tee with The Rolling Stones logo on it or a mug with a quote by Ernest Hemingway. These objects show that the buyer totally understands the deeper meaning and the significance of the artifact. What a falsity.

The object (or reblog for Tumblraic purposes) only shows that a given person knows that there is a significance to something. It doesn’t mean that it is in anyway  significant to them or even if what they have is significant. It’s a symbol that tells other people that the buyer is aware. The buyer is deeper. The buyer has taste, culture, and intellect.
When something in society is deemed important, it is flocked to. It is flocked to until all significance is gone.

The musical significance of Lynard Skynard fades each time FREEBIRD is shouted at a concert by someone who’s never even heard the song. One may pose the question, “If they haven’t heard the song, why would they request it?” The answer is obvious when taking into account the aforementioned argument. The request the song because they think it is important and they believe that by requesting a song by a band that is revered and tragic, it makes them deep and therefore, significant and interesting.
Overall, the point is to say that people put their own significance to things that they think are already significant. This is done for a person to assume depth and intrigue… as if to say that because they realize that Lynard Skynard was a good band and they had that good song that one time and a lot of people know it and they’re tragic the person is deeper because obviously shouting FREEBIRD at a Vampire Weekend concert makes them get the deeper undertones of the song and it makes them significant as a person.

Don’t judge me by my examples.

-Peter