When I first moved to college, I thought the only way to fit in and make new friends would be to put on a new persona. I dressed differently, I acted differently, and I was miserable. While I have escaped this cycle, so many people in our generation have not. As a consequence, we walk around a campus filled with people who are too scared or don’t even know how to be their real selves. Where did authenticity go? This is my attempt to bring it back.
A recent profile for the New Yorker captured Jennifer Lawrence at her most vulnerable. The star discussed feeling rejected by the public for her personality. Although she expected this shift in public perception, in interviews what she meant to be genuine would keep coming out as a defense mechanism.
“I said that it must have been self-alienating to have people demand and obsess over her genuine personality, and then to decide that it was fake,” writes Jia Tolentino, the author of the profile, and Lawrence’s interviewer.
While I’ve always loved Lawrence’s quirky, fun, and personable public persona, I was shocked to read that she didn’t always find it to be genuinely her. As Tolentino rightfully identified, Lawrence’s case was in the court of public opinion. The people of the internet, as they commonly do, unite to tear someone down, shocker! But this topic, only two paragraphs in the article, is much more than that. It marks yet another instance of someone being shamed for being themselves, another instance where authenticity was limited.
“Whether you are a celebrity or not, I feel that it is really hard to find your true genuine self because of today’s standards,” said Walter Bridgewater, a junior Screenwriting major. “Though, I’d like to think that when celebrities reveal their true selves, it allows people to feel seen and heard.”
Kris Jenner’s new face debut, wrinkle free and fully lifted, proved the converse to be true. Jenner faced huge amounts of public outcry on her appearance, as do most celebrities when they show off a new look. Like Bridgewater’s quote illustrates, people did not feel seen and heard by this blatant disguise of her true self. There was a lack of authenticity there.
Jenner turned 70 earlier in November, according to People magazine. For people who are allowing themselves to age naturally, being 70 typically comes with a lot of wrinkles. Jenner’s new face doesn’t reflect that. Now, this isn’t meant to be an anti-plastic surgery statement. Or even a statement that people have to disclose what work they’ve gotten done. The issue is that Jenner wasn’t candid about the blatantly obvious (getting work done and trying to pass it off as her natural face) which only serves to further highlight this issue of authenticity in people with the platform to be genuine.
“Someone with a platform talking about said flaws and imperfections reflects the lives of so many people,” Bridgewater said.
To fully unpack this issue and the reasons why I think our generation is to blame, we need to go over a crucial piece of terminology: the term “fake”. For Gen-Z, this word and its meaning has shifted to include what we see as a deficit in genuinity. Not just calling out something’s lack of reality, but putting that absence of honesty to blame. A common example is when someone puts on a different personality around others, or acts nice to someone’s face but talks about them behind their back. At this point this behavior is normalized, and in some ways accepted.
Though celebrities face a lot of negativity for being fake on the internet, the reality is, us regular people aren’t any better. These days, it is essentially normalized to not be yourself in order to get people to like you. I see that as a huge threat not only to sense of self, but self-esteem, manifesting as having harmful effects on mental health.
Being genuine truly is a core personality trait. Not only does it increase your likeability, it increases your reputation of trust. I believe it is impossible to form true human connections if one isn’t genuine or sharing their authentic self with others. That would be such a shame.
So, let’s bring authenticity back. Let’s bring our real selves to the table and feel comfort in that. It’s a shame that Lawrence felt she couldn’t be genuine in interviews without the fear of backlash. It’s a shame that Jenner didn’t feel she could be candid about her surgeries and share her naturally aging face with the world. It’s a shame that anyone feels stifled by the world and limited in showing their true self. A lack of authenticity means a life less enjoyed without the failings of its imperfections.
