Simulacrum (plural: simulacra) refers to an image or representation that serves a cheap imitation of something real and meaningful. Let’s call it a substitute.
The substitute draws our attention because it bears resemblance with a real thing, like being drunk simulates being carefree, playful, and so on. It stands in the way, masking and perverting the profound reality. A person too accustomed to drinking can’t allow themselves to be playful without being drunk. The distinction between the “real” and the substitute, the artificial reality, has collapsed.
Another example is accomplishment substituting happiness. It is revealing how a personal drive for success is described as ”wanting to become someone”. Talent shows tap into such fantasies. They stage a competition for the favor of the judges (authority, external validation). It’s a gradual process of getting approved and then becoming someone; being molded into an ”idol”. It all can seem just harmless fun, but also, it doesn’t seem completely wholesome to have a competition where the prize is a constructed identity—a substitute self.
Similar narrative lurks is Hollywood movies, especially ones that target teenagers. The protagonist starts as an ordinary person, but then it turns out they are very special and powerful. Maybe they have a weird mutation that grants them superpowers and then, they’re admitted to a secret organization, an ancient brotherhood or extra-super-duper secret strike force, granting them status and heroic identity—external validation, hello! Over and over again, this recipe defines the storylines of formulaic, dumb movies: the fantasy of external validation; of being discovered, promoted, and celebrated; of being made into someone.
External validation is nothing more than substitute (simulacrum) for things like hope, stability, and meaningfulness. One can find the real thing only within oneself. Unfortunately, especially the young are easy prey for those peddling various forms of external validation. Big business, media, and politics will not let that opportunity to pass: ”Come Join Us! Be Somebody! Embody This Simulacrum of Self!”
There is an antidote, though. When the famous film director Andrei Tarkovsky (1932–1986) was asked what he would like to tell young people, he emphasized learning how to be alone. According to Tarkovsky, it does not mean loneliness, but instead learning “not to be bored with yourself” and ”loving solitude”.1
This world challenges everyone, not only the young. The desire to escape the uncomfortable silence of the self drives a person to seek validation from the crowd, authority, and externally approved roles. This is the initial vulnerability that needs attending to.
One way is to treat it like a muscle that needs to be trained. The method is simple: take some time every day to truly stop. Sit calmly and do nothing for long enough. Bored? Great. Keep at it, and it will pass.
A radiant core of inner stability grows stronger. There might not be a more revolutionary force than this.
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A Message to Young People from Andrei Tarkovsky,