Individualism is not a problem contained to our time. No matter how much we might argue about the “good ol’ days,” the over-emphasis on one’s self is a perennial problem, or even the first problem. In the Garden Adam and Eve decided to place their own individual desires above the commands of One who was external from them, even though that One was their own Creator. In doing so, they reaped the consequences.
As a result, we shouldn’t be surprised when we look around and see the expression of individualism in the various messages of our times. The media is replete with individualism as a main motif. Movie after movie calls its protagonist to follow his heart, as if an individual’s heart is the source of all that is right and true in the world. We are charged to be true to ourselves—whatever that means. Though Frank Sinatra’s “My Way,” was first sung in the 1960s, it is certainly an anthem for our times.
No one needs to tell us that individualism is a “thing.” But what is curious is how this form of interacting with the world around us is manifesting itself in the current culture. While individualism may not be new, its current expressions are. Therefore, in this essay, I aim to examine current symptoms of individualism in our culture and how it has manifested itself in both a networked and expressive way.
Networked Individualism
To begin, our current rendition of individualism boasts of a strong “network” dynamic. Arguably, compared to other forms, this form of individualism gives at least the impression that it is connected to a larger community. We live in a culture of “friends” and “followers,” on the surface of things at least.
Networked individualism, though it has a variety of social implications, is most easily understood as a move away from traditional community structures—the family, neighborhood, church—and a move toward “personalized communities embodied in me-centered networks.”[1] Andrew Zierschky argues that this form of individualism finds its beginnings in the Industrial Revolution. Certainly, without the rise of modern technologies, this current form of disembodied networking would not be possible. Zirschky writes,
As with any social system, networked individualism demands that its inhabitants behave in certain ways in order to be socially successful. Those who lived in the era of door-to-door community had to conform to social expectations or face being shunned by the village. Those who lived in the era of place-to-place community had to attend group meetings, services and functions, or face being cut off from community. And when we consider networked individualism, we find four demands placed upon teenagers. Meeting these demands can have negative effects.[2]
These four demands call students to: (1) create a personal network, (2) keep the network engaged, (3) grow the network large, and (4) be socially selective.[3] This requires the student to focus more on the management and sustainability of the network itself than on those who compose the network. That is, those within networked individualism are concerned about being connected—not always about who they are connected with.
As Samuel Baker notes, “The notion of ‘networked individualism’—a predominantly digital social construction of oneself—only underscores a particularly problematic trend in post-familial relationships, whereby an over-reliance on gadget-mediated relationships strains interpersonal presence.”[4] Networked individualism is more than an orientation around media, but a significant shift in the very social configuration of our culture.[5] It is a move away from traditional, embodied communities.
Expressive Individualism
In addition to networked individualism, we also see expressive individualism in our milieu. This individualism of our time is not confined to a networked manifestation. As Charles Taylor has noted, “As well as moral/spiritual and instrumental individualisms, we now have a widespread ‘expressive individualism. . . . What is new is that this kind of self-orientation seems to have become a mass phenomenon.”[6] That is to say, this individualism is highly expressive. Yuval Levin defines expressive individualism as
not only a desire to pursue one’s own path but also a yearning for fulfillment through the definition and articulation of one’s own identity. It is a drive both to be more like whatever you already are and also to live in society by fully asserting who you are. The capacity of individuals to define the terms of their own existence by defining their personal identities is increasingly equated with liberty and with the meaning of some of our basic rights, and it is given pride of place in our self-understanding.[7]
Expressive individualism is a full declaration of one’s own (perceived) identity. For Andrew Root, our cultural obsession with youtfulness is the fruitful ground from which expressive individualism has grown. He writes, “[B]ecause of our overexposure to youthfulness, our conception of faith formation has too often followed this expressive (even instrumental) individualism.”[8] Root, in his book Faith Formation in a Secular Age, goes to great lengths to demonstrate this natural relationship.
Of course, the implications for this form of individualism are myriad. With a central focus on self-expression, traditions are rejected, technology is lauded, social ethics are diminished, and individual freedom is proclaimed as the highest good.[9] One’s own identity is placed as ultimate so that nothing can rule over it. Therefore, all areas of one’s life are dictated by how his individualism can be expressed. No one, especially those who may be older, should tell a person how he should think, feel, or act.
Trevin Wax explains the difficulty well, “Expressive individualism would have us look deep into our hearts to discover our inner essence and express that to the world. But the gospel shows how the depths of our hearts are steeped in sin; it claims that what we need most is not expression, but redemption.”[10]
Conclusion
Culture is constantly changing, and it can be difficult to remain literate in its verbiage. With new technologies come new ways of interacting with those around us. And while several people have sought to redeem many of our current mediums and messages, we should note that these mediums and messages also have a profound effect on those using them.
One of the common themes of both networked and expressive individualism is the inherent effort to propagate one’s own work. In a sense, individualism is very much a works-righteousness—though instead of tithing, it may focus more on tweeting. Those engulfed in either/both of these forms of individualism are constantly called to do more and try harder. Whether through maintaining connections with those around them to stay informed or constructing a certain form of themselves to others to affirm and/or envy, those caught in this individualism will never be fully satisfied.
Students (and others) are being robbed of authentic, accountable community—especially that which is available within the body of Christ. They are being deprived of the realization that the humbled self leads to a much more content life than does the expressed self. Students who are networked but not communally loved and expressive but not deeply affirmed, are like “[a] child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea.”[11]
The church stands as a counter-cultural community in this age of individualism. For those separated and isolated, the church is exemplified as a nation, a people (1 Pet. 2:9), and a family (Eph. 2:19-22), and invites all to join. In the church, one becomes part of the body of Christ (Rom. 12:5; 1 Cor. 12:27; Eph. 4:12; Heb. 13:3). In the body of Christ is wonderful diversity, joined with glorious community and unity. As Christians, we stand ready to offer those tempted by these displays of individualism a better and more fulfilling way.
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[1]Manuel Castells, The Internet Galaxy: Reflections on the Internet, Business, and Scoiety (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), 130-31; quoted in Andrew Zirschky, Beyond the Screen: Youth Ministry for the Connected But Alone Generation (Nashville: Abingdon, 2015), 53.
[2]Andrew Zirschky, Beyond the Screen: Youth Ministry for the Connected But Alone Generation (Nashville: Abingdon, 2015), 65.
[3]Zirschky, 66-70.
[4]Samuel Baker, “Who’s Shaping Whom? Digital Disruption in the Spiritual Lives of Post-familial Emerging Adults” Journal of Youth and Theology 16, no??? (2017): 118.
[5]Zirschky, 53.
[6]Charles Taylor, A Secular Age (Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2007), 473; quoted in Andrew Root, Faith Formation in a Secular Age: Responding to the Church’s Obsession with Youthfulness, (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2017), 9.
[7]Yuval Levin; quoted in Trevin Wax, “Expressive Individualism: What is it?” The Gospel Coalition, October 16, 2018; https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/trevin-wax/expressive-individualism-what-is-it/; accessed October 26, 2018; Internet.
[8]Andrew Root, Faith Formation in a Secular Age: Responding to the Church’s Obsession with Youthfulness (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2017), 57.
[9]Wax.
[10]Ibid.
[11]C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory: And Other Addresses (New York: HarperCollins, 2001), 26.
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