Oct 28, 2006
What was your biggest regret during college? Not accepting that orgy invitation? Not asking that hot girl out even at the risk of total public humiliation? Should have experimented more with partners, sexual preferences, BDSM, pills, powders, food, ideas, et cetera?
I was talking with a friend of mine regarding our undergraduate experiences and the discussion got on to things we should have done in college, but never did. I was expecting a heart wrenching, angst laden story. But no, his biggest regret was not joining a secret society while at Yale.
I sat there wide-eyed in disbelieve as he gave his fictional account of how he could have gotten himself into something like Skulls and Bones. The performance and design aspect of obtaining membership is actually a given, unless you have legacy capital. No, what shocked me was that he was narrating the textbook definition of status envy.
Even at Yale, when you are already part of the elite, they have to create these further artificial boundaries to separate the haves from the have-nots. I don't know which one is more tragic, to create these cliques just so you can feel even more powerful amongst the already powerful, or to perpetuate the myth of power by coveting and orchestrating acceptance, knowing your chance is slim or even null.
Status envy is everywhere. It is in every TV show, it is part of the American Dream. It's even here at VOX. Did YOU get an invitation to the launch party yesterday? (Okay, the latter is a cheap shot.) I don't know, maybe it is human nature to want the things we can't have, to belong to something, and to flaunt and be judged by the things we obtained. Maybe Woody Allen's movie Match Point is really an inspirational story. We can't all be Thoreau, right? Oh things.
Welcome to the human race, whoever dies with the most things, wins.

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