Have you ever imagined being able to have such an ability —
No matter what role you want to become, you can switch between them freely
No matter who you are chatting with, you can talk about it
You can learn from a Michelin chef or talk about repair techniques with a car repair worker with a Michelin tire in hand
Not only can you chat about state affairs with celebrities and politicians, but you can also pull and pull with ordinary people
I don't know if you have ever thought about it, but I have fantasized about it anyway
After all, being able to do whatever you want basically means never offending others and always being liked
Coincidentally, Woody Allen, one of my favorite directors, once made a movie that told the story of such a "human chameleon" in the form of a pseudo-documentary .
The Legend of Xili
The story is set in the United States in the 1930s, when a Jew named Xili appears in front of people
The magic of Xili is that every time he arrives in a new environment, he will show the characteristics of adapting to this environment
Sometimes psychologically – like your own political opinions
When talking to celebrities, he was a pro-Republican aristocrat who was full of praise for the rich
And when he talks to the kitchen helper, he becomes a Democrat with a foul-mouthed tone
Sometimes it's physiological —even race can change at will
XiLi attracted great attention from public opinion, and he was taken to a mental hospital for various studies and treatments
However, the doctors found that when they tried to communicate with Xili, he suddenly became a psychiatrist again, saying some esoteric terms that he did not know where to go
Because of this particular ability, the media and the public affectionately refer to him as a "human chameleon."
Xili was popular and became the hottest star of the time, and the peripheral goods related to him were sold well, and the songs written for him were widely sung
When Ciali became an object of mass consumption, only Dr. Fletcher Eudora cared about his condition and insisted on finding a cure for him
She hypnotizes Xili, communicates with his subconscious, and looks for the reason why he became a "chameleon"
Dr. Eudora asked, "Why do you want to show the characteristics of the people around you who are with you?" ”
The hypnotic XiLi replied, "Because of safety." ”
Eudora went on to ask when Siri first tried to become like everyone else
"At school, a couple of very smart kids asked me if I had read Moby Dick, and I was embarrassed to say I hadn't read it," Xili said. ”
After such a precedent, gradually, Xili's body and mind began to change automatically, which is the origin of the "human chameleon"
Last month I mentioned the "spiral of silence" in another public tweet, and someone in the background criticized me in private letters that I would only copy the theory and not link with reality
The reason for my criticism is that the "spiral of silence" theory is based on the assumption that most individuals will try to avoid isolation due to holding certain attitudes and beliefs alone, which they consider to be unrealistic
Of course, Neumann's hypothesis may not quite fit the reality, but at least in my opinion, from my observations of the friends around me
There is a phenomenon of choosing not to speak because of disagreement with the majority of the people, whether or not it is simply because of the fear of isolation
Perhaps there is another reason for choosing not to speak: the fear that you are not right
But this is also a variant of the "spiral of silence"
In the film, when Xili is finally cured by Dr. Eudora and no longer a "chameleon", he says this:
Children, you must be your own
You know, you shouldn't pretend to be someone else
Just because you think they know the answers to all the questions
And you don't know
Do whatever you want
Learn to express yourself boldly
Say what you want
The old man borrowed the story of Xili to tell us that we should never forget our own voice
If today you choose to hide your voice because of the opinions of others
Then tomorrow you have the potential to become a chameleon accustomed to pandering
Be bold and speak your voice, because nothing in this world is absolutely correct and objective except the facts before you
We must learn to listen to the opinions of others, but also learn to think independently according to the facts, and learn to put forward our own views
Dr. Li Wenliang said: "A healthy society should not have only one voice. ”
We are in a post-truth era, where objective facts are no longer the most powerful tools of the media, and emotional incitement and polarization of opinions have become weapons that dominate public opinion
But it is precisely because we are in such a public opinion environment that we need to insist on independent thinking and bold voice more than ever
Don't lose your independence in front of any point of view, don't become a "chameleon"
Whether that view "represents" the people or "represents" the country
Whether that view advertises "justice" or "fairness"
Whether that view comes from a favorite idol or the closest friends
Before Xili died, he lay in bed and said to the doctors:
He had a good life, and the only thing that bothered him about death was that he had only just started reading Moby Dick and wondered what the story would end.
Author: changer
Bookroom