Whatever It Takes

                                                                                      

I was thinking of reinventing myself until I realized that I hadn't invented myself in the first place. Like the rest of us, I was a product of (to use the jargon) nature and nurture. My parents and my environment had produced me, and it was some kind of natural process rather than invention.

But that doesn't mean that things are unchangeable. It may be true that you don't have a second chance to make a first impression, but someone who is fixated on his first impression of you, and is unable to see changes, isn't worth worrying about. Everyone wants to change – or at least to appear to have changed.ⁱ To be better. In fact, though it's not always possible, we want to be better than everyone else. Whether it's politics, the Olympics, academics, salary, appearance, romance, or even the price we paid for a new car, we don't want to keep up with the Joneses, we want them to tryⁱⁱ to keep up with us. We want to improve our value to ourselves and to the market

We live in a competitive world because we are competitive. So we want to be the best.ⁱⁱⁱ And it's not just testosterone. We're all pretending to be what we're not – to raise our self-esteem and present to the world a person who is worth knowing and envying. Some^iv may view our ploys as “cheating” or “lying,” but they've become such basic parts of our lives and our society that it's not all that clear that there's anything wrong with them. ^v

What brought this all to mind was Milli Vanilli. Last week I published an essay which included an idea of my son's, and I asked his permission to use his name.^vi He granted it, but a long time earlier I had mentioned Milli Vanilli without citing him even though his Master's thesis dealt with this duo, so he wanted me to include it. It didn't fit with last week's essay but it suggested another subject: self-“improvement.”

In the case of MV, at least until their fall, the improvement was obtained by “lip-syncing” someone else's music. They were taking credit for the work of others. That's not really a unique occurrence in our society, however.^vii Movie dubbing is a very common procedure in musicals, since the star often does not have a satisfactory singing voice.^viii But other examples include a singer's taking credit for a song written by someone else, or a famous personality writing his memoirs “with” the actual writer of the book. Ghostwriting is a major occupation. Most of the speeches of candidates for high political office are written by others, as are the “spontaneous” witty remarks by late show hosts and by many comedians. Is it a surprise that many students writing papers (as well as authors writing articles and books) have no compunctions about plagiarism? Everybody does it. After all, we use recipes from cookbooks and sometimes we even serve “ready-made” foods, passing them off as our own efforts.

And even in the field of science, with its “gods” revered by those who see it as the source of Truth, intellectual theft may be used in the race “to publish first.”^ix Credit for discovering the structure of DNA usually goes to Watson and Crick and to Wilkins, all of whom received Nobel Prizes, rather than to Rosalind Franklin, whose work they secretly appropriated, and on which they based their model. It provided a shortcut for them, an enhancement of their understanding. A long CV, even if retractions contribute to its length, adds to the luster of a scientist or another in academia, and all was (and still is) considered fair in the academic wars.

Additionally, while industrial espionage^x has increased greatly since the introduction of the internet, in the middle of the last century, intellectual theft took – and still takes – other forms.

There are many other examples of “shortcuts” and “enhancements,” usually for personal gain, which some (or many, or almost all – though usually not all) consider to be cheating, but we don't all agree on where to draw the line. I'll list some of them,^xi leaving the judgment to you:

1. Advertising and packaging designed to induce purchases rather than to inform the buyer.
2. The use of cosmetics, toupees, and hair coloring to improve appearance.
3. Use of circumlocutions and euphemisms to demonstrate sensitivity.
4. Use of steroids or other drugs to improve athletic performance.
5. Flavoring food so guests will like it better.
6. Learning from an SAT preparation class how to take tests, even if we don't learn the subject itself from them.
7. “Spinning” an event or statement for political advantage.
8. Wearing clothes considered to be fashionable whether or not you like them.
9. Changing religion to fit in or get ahead, rather than because of conviction.
10. Makeovers of yourself or your home. Cosmetic surgery.
11. An orchestra making a recording of a symphony by piecing together the best performance of different parts from multiple “takes.”
12. Professional wrestling.

“Things are seldom what they seem. Skim milk masquerades as cream.”^xii What you see is what you get, but what you see may not be the thing itself.

In each of these cases – and I'm sure you can think of many others – one thing is presented with the intent of demonstrating (usually to others) a picture of the subject that is superior^xiii to the genuine article.^xiv And each results in benefits that may be economic or may affect reputation, self-image, or academic achievement.^xv Never forget that many people believe that the end justifies the means.

There's always some way in which we want to be better than we are – or, at least to convince others that that's the case. And we want to be better than them. We're all competing. We're all trying to get the upper hand. We all have the attitude that all's fair in love and war. And everything else. But that may not be true. We're quick to condemn in some cases and praise in others.

Perhaps we have to draw the line somewhere. But where?

Next episode: “Just Like Us” – No reference to Facebook.

i       Admittedly there are some people who don't want to be noticed at all – in their original state or with any changes – but I don't know who they are.

ii      But fail.

iii     And we want to make our children the best, by cloning ourselves (if, besides others, we've even convinced ourselves of our value) or by getting (pun intended – never believe anyone who says “No pun intended.” It was intended and it was the result of a lot of work. The punster is proud of it and wants to make sure everyone notices.) a designer baby.

iv     Usually people who didn't think of them first.

v      Lying has become an accepted art form, and fiction may become fact. For example, as Winston Churchill is said to have put it, “History is written by the victors.” (He certainly wasn't the first to expound on this theme.) Goebbels was famous for the “Big Lie” which he tried to turn into truth. Historical revisionists flourish, and they always have. It was (is?) common practice for the Russians and the USSR to rewrite history for ideological purpose whenever it was useful; to enhance self-esteem, our country, like all others, has mythologized its heroes; and the Palestinian Arabs have created a history for themselves and denied Israel's history for public relations purposes.

vi      Daniel “Oracle.”

vii     Somehow MV's fans felt betrayed even though many of them were aware of the industry practice.

viii   For example, see “Singin' In The Rain.” Yes. That's what I said. See it. It's a great movie.

ix      Plagiarize, by Tom Lerer.

x       A serious example of the appropriation of the work of others.

xi     Please note that I have taken care not to impose any order that may be understood as my own view of the seriousness – or lack thereof – to be associated with any particular act. And, of course, there are lots more.

xii     H.M.S. Pinafore, 1878, Gilbert and Sullivan.

xiii   “Superior,” unfortunately, is a societal construct. When Adlai Stevenson ran for President, many of the American people viewed his divorce as a flaw. Now it wouldn't be noticed. Terry Sanford and Anthony Wiener are back in politics – “forgiven” by much of the electorate. And who's worse (if either is bad), the husband of CBS's “The Good Wife” for paying a prostitute for sex, or “The Good Wife” herself for having an extra-marital affair with another man she loved? In my youth, both would have been condemned, whatever society's realities actually were, but there have been many soap operas and changes in our outlook since then.

xiv    Sometimes it's even true.

xv     There are times when the enhancement is based on improvement in resources. If my vaulting pole helps me jump higher than the competition, that's my good fortune. It doesn't make sense to tell everyone my secret.