“You want a village without being a villager” is a phrase that’s been circulating online recently. Today, we explore what this really means, the rise of hyper-individualism today and what it may look like in the future.
Individualism stems from the idea that we are all self-reliant and independent – however this has snowballed into making people overly self-centred, often at the cost of supporting their communities. It’s often contrasted to collectivism, whereby community action and thought are at the core of people’s actions. Whilst collectivism continues to exist across the globe, it is often in less capitalist countries; perhaps it’s no surprise that individualism has been intensified here in the UK.
In a society where our time is fast becoming the most valuable commodity of all, perhaps the development of hyper-individualism was inevitable: if our time is linked to our productivity and therefore our ‘worth’, it’s no surprise that we care more about ourselves than our community.
However, I’d argue that at university, we live much more of a collectivist lifestyle. How many times have you cooked dinner for your flatmates, gone to an event just to support a friend or turned up to something in the hope of meeting someone new? Students have to build their own communities, as for many of us this is our first time away from home, and so we support each other throughout everyday tasks.
A common counter argument to the ‘village without villagers’ argument is that |convenience is the cost for a community” which yes, it might be inconvenient to show up for people on your most exhausting days. However, whilst building a community takes effort and some dedication, once it’s created, it allows for joy and fulfilment in all areas of your life. From local sports teams to extra babysitting services or public libraries, creating a village is undoubtedly at the core of what humans need.
As Audre Lorde says, self-care should be a radical, rebellious act. Therefore, I’d argue that developing your village is a form of protest because it’s in direct contrast to the capitalist values that the move to hyper individualism developed under. And so, next time you’d rather go home and relax rather than see that one friend you haven’t seen in forever, I’d urge you to remember just how valuable communities can be, and that through nurturing our village, we fulfil an essential part of the human experience.
Illustration By Mieke Shaw (@mxekeshaw).
