Why is it that we as humans always have the need to escape from everything?
It isn’t why we escape that concerns me, I think it’s more of how. I would estimate around 80% of the movies or TV shows I watch are complete garbage. Of the remaining 20% that I find to be entertaining, I would say only 25% (or 1/20) make me think and probably 10% (1/50) have a profound effect on the way I look at life. How come the remaining 19 (or 49, for that matter) have no positive influence on me at all? I do realize that saying something lacks a ‘positive influence’ on me is a subjective statement so I’ll attempt to be more specific with a couple of examples.
By a positive influence I mean that the content doesn’t project an aura of uselessness to me. With that argument, one would be safe to assume that I don’t care how it affects anyone else. As long as I get something useful then I’m happy. One of my favorite films is Good Will Hunting. I remember the first time I saw it (and where I was sitting and what time of day), and at the end I was full of hope that I too could be that intelligent. Obviously the unrealistic nature of the movie sticks in my head but since then, each time I see it or parts of it, or even right now as I write this, that uplifting sentiment is perpetuated and for a few seconds it doesn’t matter what else is on my mind because I’m reminded of the hope that I achieved with that escape.
It’s a little known fact that I discovered Dawson’s Creek about six years after the show first aired. In any event, I’m glad I did because it has allowed me to be nostalgic and to remember a little about what it was like to be in high school, to really like the person I’m closest to and not be able to tell them, or to feel like my problems were the only ones. Above all else, I like the notion that there are people who look at the world without a veil of cynicism and only see the purity and wholesomeness of life. That’s something I can relate to because it’s something I want.
I’m certainly not above escapism but the phenomena makes me think. Of course fantasy is a necessity of life because otherwise it wouldn’t be possible to feel the emotions of hope or excitement. Looking forward to something that hasn’t yet been realized (and may never be) would be impossible. Perhaps my sense of reality has been deluded but without the symbiotic relationship between escapism and realism, I think my life wouldn’t be worth it.