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Self-Defeatism and Big Cities
by Alex Birch
Small towns seem to spawn self-defeatism among younger people. On the one hand, village youngsters feel very proud of where they come from. On the other hand, they become self-defensive as soon as they have to face the big city mentality. There may have been one time when I could relate to this. No more.
(After a pre-party, on the way to a club, a couple of village people from a community far up north begin to pull my nerves.)
Village guy: I heard you talk shit about the North.
Me: Huh?
Village guy: Yeah, why do you hate the North?
Me: I don't hate the North. I feel fine fine living here, but I miss the continental side of the South.
Village guy: We like it here, okay? People know each other, they care about each other, they feel a sense of belonging. You can go into a super market and talk to any person there.
Me: So? If you live in a small town with a population of 3000, of course you'll know everyone. The South is much more crowded, hence more aliens on the streets.
Village guy: Why is that negative?
Me: I didn't say it's bad, I'm just stating facts. I've spent almost all my life in small communities, so I believe I know what I'm talking about.
(Another village guy chuckles but backs off.)
Village guy: Sure. So tell me, why do you think the South is better?
Me: Each to his own. I prefer big cities.
Village guy: This is a big city, almost 100,000 people.
Me: That's the municipality, not the city itself. You rarely see a lot of people out on evenings and restaurants close down at ten. That's a not a big city to me, that's a fucking privacy settlement.
And so the argument went back and forth, mostly because I had one beer too many to say that I'm proud of what I am and where I come from, and if someone doesn't like that, he's free to kiss my ass. Whatever this guy's problem was, his village mentality is all too familiar. You love your community because you don't know anything else--until you face the reality of a huge, complex, diverse setting. Then you both feel like you've been missing out on something, while at the same time your only pride is a village identity. I am since long past that existential problem. Most village people will never get over it.
Cities are addictive, once
Cities are addictive, once your mind is free from all the distractions that a city offers, a rural lifestyle is far more satisfying.
Rural communities are addictive
Your argument can be turned around just as easily: rural communities are addictive; once you've grown used to the same old shop, same old market and same old people, you begin to think that's all there is to see in the world.
In my opinion, the difference
In my opinion, the difference is that the general ambience of modern cities is directly detrimental the the mental stability of the population, some people may rise above this, but in my mind there is no doubt that post-industrial urban aesthetics compound the problems of modern civilisation. I have lived in a city my whole life and still do, so I feel I am able to make this criticism objectively.
Gemeinschaft heisst Gemeinschaft
As long as you're together with people you care for, and inside an environment that is pleasant for you, what's the difference?
Cultural Superiority
I'm from a small (and somewhat rural) city of less than 15,000 people (with no real diversity, either genetically or culturally). Now, I live in Atlanta (so, millions of people in the metro area... oh, and places that stay open past 10).
It's weird going "home" and see all the kids who never really left high school, much less the city itself. But I think you're right--I think it has to do with some illusion of safety in dealing with what you know vs. actually getting out and learning about other things.
And this need to hold on, of course, reinforces the illusion of "the good ol' days". *shiver* Especially in "The South".