Although Virginia's Woolf's "A Room of One's Own" was predominantly written to address the oppression of women and the light in which women are regarded, I personally took much more out of it than simply an equality lesson. In her proceedings, she mentions the utter importance of outward appearance not only as far as women are concerned, but also geniuses. She stated that all any human does is observe how others see themselves and use sed feedback to alter or maintain their personality. And so provides the concept of the "looking glass" that Woolf proposed, that directly connects to an actual notion in psychology known as the "looking glass self." This particular social idea states that a person's self grows out of society's interpersonal interactions and the perceptions of others. Woolf goes on to emphasize the skewed view of which men see themselves in their looking glasses, and how everyone is subject to such mental processes, whether they be conscious or unconscious.
However, the topic of this passage is not to discuss men vs women, but the limiting factor that plague every soul on the planet, regardless of race, gender, history, or intelligence. In fact, in her essay, Woolf presses that geniuses, of all society, are the most concerned with their looking glasses and the impressions of their surrounding company. For if they do not agree with whatever mind-shattering new realization the so-called "genius" discovers, then what would be qualifying him/her as a genius? Precedent. That is all that lies before public and mass opinion, is the precedent set of what is "right and good" before us, for man would be lost without his mold to conform to. In an instance, women were heavily oppressed and banned from the midst of literature for centuries, yet when they finally received their much sought-after poetic freedom, women still preferred to publish under the "veil of anonymity." They only concerned the thoughts of others, and how their work would be perceived, and in turn, themselves. She also brings to light that when these women write, they do not ask themselves "What do I think?" but "What will the reception be of what I think? And what will others think of my thoughts?"
Issues such as these that are so deeply ridden within our society, tradition, and history are guaranteed to withstand the test of time, and of course are still well and thriving even today. Obviously, as the current psychological terming of "looking glass self" has been coined and heavily utilized, humanity still relies immensely on the thoughts, perceptions, and opinions of their surrounding environment. Authors must find a publisher who thinks their work is good; it must have potential to its intended customers, and most importantly, must sell. Dominantly in teenage years, this need for approval and restriction in expression is a core aspect of life even more so than any other essential point in a lifetime. And as for those who say "I do not care what others think of me," what possesses you to say that? Why must you announce that you do not care while everyone else does? Is it to set yourself apart, or to appear strong? Or do you simply believe that you do not care, which is almost the worst option; being unaware of the subconscious thought process occurring within yourself. Either way, it is an inevitable fate that Woolf had addressed years and years ago, and it still remains true today.
Recognizing such regrettably truthful misfortunes and pondering the extent to which they have permeated our lives is all that can be done of such large scale embedded issues. This system is an ongoing one that traces back to the establishment of our very structural existence; it runs in the base beams that form society and date back to its early beginning. My only hope is that one day, we can manage to pull out the threads that contain this undeniable concern with others and be perfectly free within our limitless minds to explore the vast cavities we weren't even aware existed.
