How do they cope with the trials of life, marriage, childbirth divorce , fiscal responsibilities, ageing, the loss of looks , fading health ,death of family members, pets,Wars etc .
We are all 'performing' to some degree, but those of us who grew up pre-social media at least have an anchor in un-curated reality. The reason reality feels so 'impossibly unmoored' for the younger generation is that the anchor has changed. Millennials and generations before us grew up seeking validation from the local community; today, it’s sought from global strangers through a screen. When your identity is hyper-curated for an algorithm rather than rooted in real-world relationships, you lose the ability to just 'live' without performing.
I agree with the aesthetics part but not with the "romanticizing life" one. I have taken some steps to inject a whimsical element in my life, romanticize it. And it's not just for the aesthetics, it actually feels good because it makes me appreciate the little things, not "play pretend" or be an actor and director.
The frictionless life section is the most honest part. A vibe offers no structural support. You spend all your energy optimizing the lighting and never build a foundation.
However, why the performance feels so necessary is everything that also creates this. It’s not only anxiety about identity. It’s economic. People are terrified of being visibly imperfect in a market that will use any visible flaw against them. The aesthetic is armor as much as avoidance. And AI is going to intensify this, not resolve it, because the pressure to produce polished legible output at speed is exactly what these tools are built to reward. Refusing the performance is the right call. But it requires conditions of safety that not everyone has equal access to.
This was a rare piece of writing that didn’t just describe modern culture, it diagnosed a psychological condition with unsettling precision.
I’d add one layer: aesthetics are not only avoidance, they are also compensation. In a world where traditional structures of meaning have weakened, people are still trying to create coherence, just through visuals, moods, and “cores” instead of inherited frameworks.
So maybe the tension isn’t simply authenticity vs performance. It’s fragmentation vs the human need for form.
Which leads me to a question I’m left with: if aesthetics are a substitute for lost structure, what could a “real” structure of identity look like today, one that doesn’t rely on performance, but still gives coherence to a fluid world?
"performing highly specific, hyper-curated visual identities" This is interesting, that is the reason why it feels fake, people posing all the time
I’m rarely one to comment. This was very well written and designed, the pacing, the analogies, the meta commentary. Congrats.
How do they cope with the trials of life, marriage, childbirth divorce , fiscal responsibilities, ageing, the loss of looks , fading health ,death of family members, pets,Wars etc .
We are all 'performing' to some degree, but those of us who grew up pre-social media at least have an anchor in un-curated reality. The reason reality feels so 'impossibly unmoored' for the younger generation is that the anchor has changed. Millennials and generations before us grew up seeking validation from the local community; today, it’s sought from global strangers through a screen. When your identity is hyper-curated for an algorithm rather than rooted in real-world relationships, you lose the ability to just 'live' without performing.
This felt hollow and baseless. I do not think this should be appreciated
But isn't art the aesthetic escape from reality?
I agree with the aesthetics part but not with the "romanticizing life" one. I have taken some steps to inject a whimsical element in my life, romanticize it. And it's not just for the aesthetics, it actually feels good because it makes me appreciate the little things, not "play pretend" or be an actor and director.
The frictionless life section is the most honest part. A vibe offers no structural support. You spend all your energy optimizing the lighting and never build a foundation.
However, why the performance feels so necessary is everything that also creates this. It’s not only anxiety about identity. It’s economic. People are terrified of being visibly imperfect in a market that will use any visible flaw against them. The aesthetic is armor as much as avoidance. And AI is going to intensify this, not resolve it, because the pressure to produce polished legible output at speed is exactly what these tools are built to reward. Refusing the performance is the right call. But it requires conditions of safety that not everyone has equal access to.
Just hits home! What a wonderful piece!
This was a rare piece of writing that didn’t just describe modern culture, it diagnosed a psychological condition with unsettling precision.
I’d add one layer: aesthetics are not only avoidance, they are also compensation. In a world where traditional structures of meaning have weakened, people are still trying to create coherence, just through visuals, moods, and “cores” instead of inherited frameworks.
So maybe the tension isn’t simply authenticity vs performance. It’s fragmentation vs the human need for form.
Which leads me to a question I’m left with: if aesthetics are a substitute for lost structure, what could a “real” structure of identity look like today, one that doesn’t rely on performance, but still gives coherence to a fluid world?