The scene is Moffat, you are eating with a friend before one of the rushes come in. Once Moffat starts filling, some of your friends come over, but you are not greeted as warmly as you expect: "why aren't you at a bigger table to accommodate us? Why are you sitting in a way that doesn't let (name) sit by (name)?" As they walk off to get their food, you glance at your friend who shares the same troubled look as you. Upon the group's return any meaningful conversation you were having with your friend instantly devolves into superficial conversation and whining about trivial concerns.
Does this sound too familiar? I'll admit, this is a common occurrence for me. But why all this unnecessary drama caused by what seems like not realizing a few people were the center of the universe? I think the answer is so ingrained in all of us that we are many times blind to it--Erskine is a viciously complacent place. Think of all the trouble you would cause if you did something outside of the status quo; I mean omygosh what if you were a nerd and sat at the baseball table, and what if you were a soccer player and sat among one of the societies? The world would never be the same.
Eskine's little world wouldn't be the same if we all didn't feel so confined by cliques and the drama of our complacency. So, next time a friend of yours pitches a fit over something not being the way it always is, or next time you stand in moffat looking at your usual group and table full and are stuck standing because there are so many other open seats, but alas, they are beside people you don't talk to 5 times a day already, next time this happens do something. Tell your friend to grow up, sit by somebody you don't know as well, don't give in to the clique nature of Erskine.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
The clique life of an Erskine student
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2 comments:
I think we sometimes make cliques too big of a deal. What is wrong with cliques anyway? It is natural to want to be around people who share common interests as ourselves. Should this cause us social disability? no. Erskine certainly does have its cliques but I don't think people are at all confined to one and only one group. As a social introvert, I know the pressure of sitting at a table with people I am not familiar with. I think it is the lack of common interest and the apparent rudeness of silence that keeps many of us confined to certain groups. I agree that we should all learn to be a little more flexible in our social lives but there is nothing wrong with using meal times to catch up with friends especially if you have a packed schedule.
I agree with Lee to some degree. There are some cliques that are quite closed--there's an unwritten rule that you aren't allowed to sit with them. But a lot of them are loose groups of friends that frequently shift members and don't mind other people sitting with them. The latter sort I have no problem with. Especially as a social introvert, it's nice to sit with people you know.
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