Authentic Orange

Submitted by Caleb Carroll

Authenticity. The word is derived from the word authentic which, by definition, is of undisputed origin and genuine. From a philosophical standpoint the definition does not change much at all. Essentially to be authentic is to be yourself without being influenced by others. Even though this is true, many people often times become engulfed in their surroundings and become of it. Their actions and feelings are often swayed from what they really are so they are more likely accepted by those around them. In today’s world, the best and most likely way to fit in is to conform to what the world believes you should be. This is the “right” thing to do. To do anything that goes against what is commonplace in the world would be classified as “wrong.” But instead of conforming, people should ask themselves why a feeling has to be right or wrong when in reality it’s just how one feels. Noting more. Nothing less. It is impossible for you to be “Authentically Orange” if your life and the decisions you make are controlled by your fear of judgment. And unfortunately this has become the majority of the world. Countless numbers of people have become fraudulent. A facade if you will. Or as Soren Kierkegaard has said, “the crowd” is untruth (Kierkegaard, The Crowd is Untruth).
When I look out into the crowd I see an ocean of despair. Thousands upon thousands of people shackled and enslaved to be that which someone else says they should be. The situation I mentioned in the first paragraph is, in my eyes, one of three types of Despair mentioned by Kierkegaard. Despair Not to be Conscious of Having a Self (Lecture, 4/21/15). This particular type of despair is the worst type of despair. And I do not say this simply because Kierkegaard said so. I say this because those who are going through this despair are slaves to the world and are completely unaware of it. No originality. No self-made thoughts. Practically no soul. Just a computer made of flesh that has been programmed to be what it is. These people are lacking in two crucial existential themes. The first being humanism (Lecture, 5/19/15). The people I have been describing throughout this essay have yet to pursue their own identity and freedom. The pressure and thought of exclusion from society is too heavy a load to bear. In turn they stay stuck in a box. This brings me to the other existential theme these people are lacking in. Freedom (Lecture, 5/21/15). As I just stated these people are trapped in society’s box. This box is very easy to escape from but on the inside it looks quite splendid. Those who leave are looked at as the odd, the outcasts, the peculiar, the strangers. They are anomalies. Those who have deviated from the common rule. And from the outside looking in they can see the horrid prison like structure that is society’s box. Satre would say that these people, these anomalies, are choosing self, choosing for all humans (Lecture, 5/21/15).
In short, to be the authentic you, you have to do what you want to do without fear of being judged for it. Be happy and proud of who you are. No matter what anyone might say or think you must continue to do that which you love. That which brings you joy. As long as you do not infringe on others to do so, be who you truly are. Anyone who tells you to do otherwise is likely too scared to do what you are doing. So instead they tell you what to do if they were you. Trust yourself and chase your dreams.

Submitted By Sean Prior

Be yourself. Words I have heard many times from my mother growing up. As a kid you don’t think much more into that thought. As a junior in college I can think a little deeper now. It brings up a question, who is myself? What would Sean Prior do? How does one be authentic? When in the situation, do I do what my mom said I should do, or do I make my own judgement call and find out for myself. There is a moment of ambiguity. Do I act upon how I was told to handle a situation and let that define me? I think I’m going to experiment and decide what I would do after I’ve a trial run. I think that to be an authentic OSU student is to guide your choices and invest your time based on your wants with input from many un-invested guides. Here are my four tips how to live authentically

Human Reality is Ontologically Ambiguous (PP 4-9-15, 17/22).  Based on Sartre’s reading we have two thoughts. One is Being-in-itself, which is the facticity of the situation. And Being –for-itself is the transcendence of the situation. The facticity is why you are in college and how you got here. Tip #1 Do what you enjoy doing, but in some sense you must conform to the school standards. I’ll use myself as an example. I’m here because neither of my parents went to college so I grew up with the expectation of going to college because based on their life experience it was needed to make more money. Now who was I to say no to this as a naïve high schooler?  Once I got here I was free from them. Now everything was my choice, what to study, when to go to bed, what to do all night. My freedom and consciousness said to have fun and ignore responsibility. But the facticity of the situation was that I had committed to paying lots of money and going to class. You can’t stay in school and be free if you aren’t passing classes. Sartre compares us to Ontological Centaurs (pp 4-9-15 19/22.) Being in situation, to be successful you must manage your Transcendence with your Facticity and balance them so that you stay happy but also keep afloat among school expectations.

Tip #2 Find friends that let you be you, and sometimes doing something you want to do, alone, is more satisfying than pretending to like something. “Do what you must, come what may.” (The Ethics of Ambiguity, Simone de Beauvoir 1947.)  I like this because it is impossible to find someone who is going to do life exactly like you. If you want to sleep all day spend the wee hours of the morning at the library and drink the weekend away. Go for it. You are sure to meet people along the way. Compartmentalize your friend groups and know who to call to do what.

Tip #3 Be the Hero of your own Story and achieve your goals. We recall the myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus. Sisyphus is condemned to rolling a rock up the mountain only to have it roll back down. But see him as the Absurd Hero. He reaches his goal every day. Can you say that about yourself? It doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you do it.

Tip #4 Do everything with an intention of bringing happiness. No one likes to be sad, angry, or upset. I can honestly say I don’t. Think about Nietzsche’s Eternal Recurrence (pp 6-2-15 12/17.) If you knew you had to live your life out again numerous times without change how would you live it, knowing that you are writing the script as you read this? Would you change your ways and be more optimistic and worry less. I think so. In the You tube series 8-bit titled Time is a Flat Circle? (Nietzsche + Mega Man) Nietzsche’s schemed up a person who is strong enough to deal with the hardships and remain with a positive outlook on life. One who can do this is called an Ubermensch. That is what you must aspire to.

My final words are use these tips or not, I don’t care, it really doesn’t affect me, but please be yourself.

Submitted by Benjamin Seib

What does it mean to be authentic? Dictrionary.com defines authentic as, “not false or copied; genuine; real.” This is the ability to be true to one’s individual self. The internal and external ideas, thoughts and actions support the creation of a unique, self-built independent being. What does it mean to be “Orange”? As a respectful member of Beaver Nation, I define “Orange” as person who works to grow in knowledge, shares a kind smile, is welcoming to a community and uncontrollably loud at Beaver football games. With both words defined, how does one authentically “Be Orange”? It is through three key steps, that future Beaver’s can use when developing one’s authentic, orange self.

The first step is to embrace the idea of Freedom. Fyodor Dostoevsky stated, “Man is free, man is freedom.” (Satre, Existentialism Is Humanism) We, as beings, have the ability to think, process, imagine and reflect with zero limitations. We have the ability to, “create and choose”, based on our wanting. (Lec. 5/26/15) As a Beaver, our entire University thrives off the ability to explore and discover the unknown. This is only accessed through the acceptance of freedom and following the direction in which one is called to follow, both as an individual and a community. By doing this, past Beaver’s have made great development in the Engineering, Animal Science and Scientific fields. As future Beaver’s, one needs to understand that they control their path. Each individual has the power to choose their direction. It is through the discover of self-freedom, that one will be able to create and experience the ultimate unknown, ones individual future. (Lec. 5/26/15).

The second step to being “Orange” is finding a solid balance between “Choosing-self” and “Choosing for all humans.” This is the idea, when working with freedom, the choices made can both, positively or negatively, affect one’s own self and the community. To find the balance, one must develop of image of humanity. (Lec. 5/21/15) Whether one works alone or with a large number of people, we must look to see how an action may affect today’s humanity. As students of a college town, we are looked upon to aid others. Here at Oregon State University, support and respect is expected from each student. Choosing-self is extremely important, for the self is the foundation of authenticity. But new Beaver members must critically analyse their free decisions, for they may create a destructive outcome for others, especially when involving personal success. As stated above, Beaver’s share smiles while creating a welcoming community. Though this may feel like a lot of pressure, if one is meant to be a member of Beaver Nation, developing individual success and helping others along the way comes natural. It is an “authentic” trait of the University.

The third and final step to authentically “Be Orange”, is one must bring their “true-self” to the University. Each individual here at Oregon State is unique and contains ideas, thoughts and dreams that differ for others. No one person is the same. Thus, to be an authentic “Orange”, one must be an authentic “self.” Philosopher Soren Kierkegaard touches this topic through his description of a crowd. “A crowd either renders the single individual wholly unrepentant and irresponsible, or weakens his responsibility by making it a fraction of his decision.” (Kierkegaard, The Crowd is Untruth) As young-adults, this is extremely challenging and takes great understanding of one’s-self to create. Today’s society, which contains judgement, discrimination, and bullying, makes it hard to express individuality. As an Oregon State Beaver, we must attempt to be “That single individual” that stands out from the crowd. (Lec. 5/5/15) We must challenge the norms of society and express our “freedom” to be different. Beaver Nation thrives on the diversity of students. From nationality to unique fashion, without personal idiosyncrasy, there would be no “Orange”.

Overall, what it means to be authentically “Be Orange” is to be one’s true-genuine self. Through the process of understanding freedom, one learns they are the creators of choice. When faced with the idea of “Choosing-self vs. Choosing for all humans” one discovers that these choices within the life of existentialism can affect both the internal and external world.It is up to individuals to find a balance. And finally, although present day society tries to place us in a crowd, it is individual authenticity that gives Beaver Nation the ability to nurture diversity.

Submitted by Trevor Whitaker
To be authentic to oneself is to achieve the ability to be an individual, separated and distinct from the crowd or group of people that one is a part of. To be able to be comfortable with standing out or not fitting in takes a level of self-actualization that few possess. This is a very important idea to talk about at a university, especially one as large as Oregon State because it becomes so easy for us to become lost in the “they”, the “herd”, or the “crowd” (lecture 5/5). What we should attempt to do is to have the ability to be Orange—that is to be a contributing member of the Oregon State community—while still maintaining our authenticity.
The path of least resistance when we are a part of a large community is to conform, to be like everyone else. “The crowd… in its very concept—is untruth” (Kierkegaard, The Crowd is Untruth, pg. 1). This is the general consensus among philosophers, although each words it differently, that to be just one piece of a larger working mechanism is harmful to oneself—an act that is not in good faith (lecture 5/21). The “herd” as Nietzche calls it, can only do us harm. When we become part of the herd, we give up our own authenticity and adopt the morals and traits that are not our own (Nietzche, The Gay Science, pg. 116-119). At the university we are presented with a problem however: it is such a critical time in our lives that the desire to be likable and thus have the ability to form relationships and connections pushes us into this herd mentality—we start to think that the only way to be accepted is to fit in and conform. What we don’t realize is that we have the ability to be likable by just being ourselves. Being distinct while not the most easy thing we can do ensures our that we keep our identity and freedom in the crowd (lecture 5/7). When we are all able to achieve a level of authenticity within the Oregon State community, we promote more diverse and well-rounded thinking. This introduces new ideas and new thinking into our community that while still allowing us to act and be as a whole (to be orange) we are able to foster understanding and love of all walks of life and all different methods of thinking. Not only are we helping ourselves as individuals by being authentic, but we are contributing something to a community that helps society as a whole. In contrast, if we conform to what everyone else is doing we become self-conscious and unaccepting, and it leaves the door open to hate and prejudice. In doing this we can understand what it means to really be authentically orange. It is very possible for every member of the Oregon State community to “be orange” while everyone is just a slightly different shade of orange. If we can apply the thinking of the great minds of existentialist thinkers, we will all be able to be distinct while enhancing the life and well-being of our community and society.

Submitted by Kassie Morrison

To be authentic is the ability to live out your own life, to embrace yourself, your abilities, your passions, and strive to be your truest self no matter the obstacles you may face in life. To be authentically orange means to apply this authenticity to your life amidst the Oregon State beaver community, taking pride in who you are and the environment you are helping to create.

This authenticity is of utmost importance as it shapes your individuality and entire means of existence. As noted by Simone de Beauvoir in 1947 in Ethics of Ambiguity, this authentic stance on ethics is individualistic as it carves out your individual’s “absolute value…[and] the power of laying the foundations of [your] own existence” (Beauvoir). The “Orange” aspect of being authentic is also of significance as someone’s authenticity isn’t just shaped by their true individuality, but how they can apply that truth to their surroundings. This application includes humanism towards all beings, holistic embodiment within a community, and pure compassion.

As we journey through our years at Oregon State University we can practice these forms of Orange Authenticity among friends and classmates, group project members, the individuals we pass in the MU quad, and in every passing moment of our college careers to the ends of our existence. Humanism is a solid note on how to practice authenticity, in his piece Black Skin, White Masks, Frantz Fanon explains how “Man is a Yes: Yes to life, Yes to love, and Yes to generosity”  while “Man is also a No: No to scorn of man. No to degradation of man. No to exploitation of man” (lecture 5/19). So, humanism celebrates the relationship we have with one another and the ways we can express that bond, while also noting that dehumanization is what tears that relationship apart. This connection among people is also a great sustainable source of happiness as it graces us with a sense of worthiness, love and belonging, and moments of vulnerability to gain trust in others (lecture 5/28). We are all given the opportunity to express this compassion and authenticity in our lives, we just have to stand up and take responsibility for being a part of the society we create and we will know what it means to lead authentic lives.

But the ability to stand up may be the hardest part of living a complete and authentic life, as there may be a number of obstacles that need to be challenged. While I’m sure the majority of people believe they are living in good faith, accepting and embracing your transcendence and facticity (lecture 5/26), I think there is always room for improvement. For one, facing obstacles head on and deciding that they do not have control over who you are. Some of these obstacles may include; not living out who you are in entirety for fear of being judged by others and society’s opinions, this sort of mentality was noted by Nietzche as “the heard”, having to look or act a specific way to fall in line with the majority of a society (lecture 5/28). Other obstacles may include not putting in the effort to go out of your way to express compassion towards others, smiling or saying hello when passing someone on the street in order to acknowledge someone’s existence.

If we were all to live full authentic lives by demonstrating pride in our individuality as well as the community we assist in creating, we would all be a part of living authentically orange lives.

Submitted by Nivita Sriram

     Humans can never be sure if they are truly authentic or not. What we can do at the least is to find ourselves even if we’re unable to reveal our true self to the world. Authenticity means being truthful and honest at all times regardless one’s environment and people surrounding them. In this day and age, it’s very hard to find people that are truly authentic. To authentically “Be Orange” at Oregon State University means to be a true Beaver. It is difficult who is actually a true Beaver that religiously follows all games and activities on campus, or one that hops on the bandwagon to be a part of school spirit- which probably includes most of us here at OSU. In this society, it is difficult to find who is authentically “Orange” and who isn’t due to various societal pressures and expectations we have set for one another.

 Many factors can contribute to preventing someone from becoming authentic, or truly an individual. This is also seen through Nietzshe’s beliefs- “But throughout the longest era of humanity, there was nothing more frightful than being single. Being alone, perceiving as a single person, neither ruling, nor constituting an individual-that was no pleasure, but a punishment” (Nietzshe, The Gay Science, p. 117). As Nietzsche explains, throughout humanity it’s been a common theme that individuality and authenticity is bad. To truly be authentic, however, one must reject this belief and be a singular person and believe that their individuality is more important and valuable than following the “herd”- a term used by Nietzsche to describe how people generally follow others around them. The “Herd” can often lead individuals to act in unauthentic ways, or to be less authentic themselves (lecture, 5/5/15).Ways to express ourselves and be authentic can be done in many different ways- one way in particular is appearance. As demonstrated by the extra credit exercise done in class, many people came to class in their “authentic” selves. If people dressed like their real selves all the time, authenticity would be the “norm” of society. However, we are forced to follow societal norms and behaviors to fit in- which we may not all agree with or abide to. Girls who don’t wear makeup could be seen as authentic, and guys who don’t shave their faces could be seen as authentic as well. Authenticity doesn’t have one definition, to some people being “all natural” could be authentic, but to others they are their authentic selves when they are dressed up. Authenticity varies from person to person, and is hard to point out in a crowd. It’s difficult to naturally “be authentically orange”- rather it is an achieved trait. One becomes “orange” after participating in school events, wearing orange, attending games and cheering on the Beavers.

Individuals must not forget about themselves and their minds well getting caught up in a society where individualism may be seen as a bad thing. Kierkegaard states that the crowd is “untruth, and makes the individual irresponsible” (lecture, 5/5/15). Following the majority of society makes us lie to ourselves about who we really are, and influences us to do things we may not usually do, which also makes us questionable in the realm of ethics. What often happens in society, however is dehumanization, the refusal to recognize humanity when people try to follow social norms and abide to laws (lecture, 5/19/15). This theory by Fanon proves that humans are often dehumanized- much like Jews in concentration camps during the Holocaust but in less extreme situations today. Instead, humans must be in the situation, in itself, for itself, and for others to be authentic and find themselves in the chaos of today’s world. Rather than following dehumanization, humans must strictly follow humanism. (lecture 5/19/15). In addition to following the theory of humanism, humans must realize their freedom and use it to their full potential. Freedom is the last existential theme of philosophy- it includes reflection, transcendence, and responsibility. Humans are condemned to be free. We have the freedom to create and choose values, we are self surpassing and lastly, man is responsible for everything that he does. (lecture 5/21/15).

To be authentically orange, one must truly believe that he/she is a true Beaver, and achieve status in being a true Beaver. It cannot be easily defined, as authenticity can vary person to person. However, if one follows the theories of humanism, freedom, and defy the common beliefs of the crowd and the herd to be true to themselves, and become purely authentic.

“Submitted by Madison McAleavey”

Authentic, of undisputed origin; genuine. Authenticity can be looked at from many different angles, and be given many different meanings depending on who you ask. “Beaver Nation” has a diverse population with people from all different places, upbringings, and ages. I was asked to discuss what it means to authentically “Be Orange”. With my new found education of existentialism and the guidance of many accredited philosophers, I have formed my own opinion concerning this topic. To authentically “Be Orange” is a difficult task due to the rank, social pressure, and lack of self focus. In order to authentically “Be Orange” one must focus on these topics and seek to take a different path.

At Oregon State there is, as Kierkegaard would say, a “rational ordering of society”. We have deans, professors, all the way down to the “bottom feeders”, in this case students. Kierkegaard talked about weakened responsibility (Lecture, 5/5/15), which is seen through these titles. Ideally college is a time to make your own decisions and live as you would want. This would not be the case. For many students attending the university decisions have been and are still being made for them. Kierkegaard referred to this as as the university giving us a “fraction of decision” (Kierkegaard, The Crowd is Untruth). Examples include, being forced to live in a dorm freshman year, requiring the completion of BACC core classes, and the constant encouragement to be more involved around campus. Although I think many of these things benefit students in their later endeavors, this hierarchy makes students college experiences lose its meaning, and “authenticity” (Lecture, 5/5/15). In order to authentically “Be Orange”, the students need to be in the drivers seats of their own college experience. Choose what classes they want to take and who, if anyone, they choose to live with. The rational ordering of society cannot be considered when one is living and making decisions, because it may sway them to be inauthentic.

Secondly, to be authentically orange means to stand out in the crowd. To be a unique individual in the midst of all the same type of people. In class we discussed the Ontological Proof, and discussed the example of looking through a key hole, which revealed societies addiction and interest in others lives (Lecture, 5/5/15). This is seen all over campus. When students watch one another,making assumptions and taking note of who they are and what they have in comparison to them. Students need to spend less time looking at others, and instead focus on themselves. This will lead to a much more authentic experience and would transform them into authentically “being orange”. Another thing that prevents students from authentically “being orange” is the idea of the herd instinct, brought to light by Nietzsche. He states “By means of morality, individuals are led to be functions of the herd and attribute value to themselves merely as functions” (Nietzsche, The Gay Science, pg. 130). To authentically “Be Orange” the herd instinct must be disposed of. One must practice functioning as an individual and finding value in that.

Lastly, and one of the most important characteristics that will allow someone to authentically “Be Orange” is making the decision to create an image for yourself. When at such a large university, we tend to refer to ourselves in terms of the general population. When discussing existentialism and ethics (Lecture, 5/21/15), Sartre was able to make some good points concerning freedom and image. He states that when we choose for ourselves we are also choosing for all humans. As students we are creating an “image” for Oregon State, and taking into consideration the mass when making those decisions. This could also be a considered denying transcendence, also talked about by Sartre. To authentically “Be Orange” one must ignore the pressure of outside sources and make decisions for themselves. Accept the freedom we as humans have, and take advantage of it. Create an image for yourself, that you are proud of and willing to stand up for.

To authentically “Be Orange” is not a simple task. It rarely occurs on our campus do to outside impacts. To overcome what seems to be the rational ordering of society will allow you to make authentic decisions. To focus on yourself and move beyond the herd will allow you to become an authentic individual. Lastly, to do things for yourself and your own desired image, will create a more authentic image for you. All of these steps will allow one to authentically “Be Orange”.

Submitted By: Matthew Bushbaum

To ask ourselves, what does it mean to be authentically orange is to ask first, what it means to be authentic, then, what it means to “be orange,” and in the case of this situation I’m going to assume it means to “be orange” in respect to our interaction with the Oregon State University. When addressing what it means to be orange it is first derived to be referring to us being Oregon State University students and as such, we need to address what needs to be overcome to consider ourselves “orange” in the eyes of ourselves, peers and the university.

To first determine authenticity it needs to be known that the person in consideration doesn’t deny their facticity or their transcendence. Their transcendence is one’s existence beyond physiological state, (Lec, 5/26/15) and one’s facticity is the existence within their physical state (Lec, 5/26/15). Therefore a student to determine him or herself to be “orange” is to determine themselves to factually go to the institution be actively involved and typically blend in with the herd that is “being orange.” They must do this without denying their authenticity, meaning they must truly want to be a beaver not just attend class there.

Let’s assume a person is attending OSU yet they aren’t involved within the society that is to be a beaver such as attending sporting events, classes, extracurricular and the campus that is OSU. For example, they are an online student that doesn’t attend regular activities ever. For them to consider themselves to “be orange” would be in bad faith. This form of Bad faith is “ambiguous because they are being in situation” when they lie to his or herself about their authenticity (Lec, 5/26/15). We also need to consider the grey area between being active in OSU life and being inactive. Where is the line drawn? And there really isn’t a line in the eyes of our peers and the institution; however, there could be a line drawn in the imaginations of ourselves. Friedrich Nietzsche inquires about the “herd instinct” in The Gay Science saying, whenever a person is in situation they assess themselves, and “These assessments and rankings always express the needs of a community and herd” meaning those in the ’herd’ consider themselves “orange” only if they feel it necessary to consider themselves “orange.”

For one to declare being “orange,” one must see a benefit or gain from declaring, by not declaring themselves orange they can deny there authenticity if they are in fact orange. For the average person, to become orange and break into the community that is Oregon State all they have to do is claim being orange or to not claim being orange.  Everybody has this freedom and are condemned to make the personal observation of whether or not they are orange in nature (Lec, 5/14/15).

So in the eyes of your peers and the institution it is ambiguous whether or not you are “being orange;” however to be orange in your own eyes you must be authentic to yourself and be aware if you’re in situation or out of situation and if your denying your transcendence or facticity. Therefore, I consider determining whether or not you’re orange or not to be a personal quest of finding your authentic self then determining if that self is “orange” or not.

Kylie Titus

Philosophy 150

Final Exam

Authenticity in my opinion is defined as one still being able to be themselves and expressing who they are while still being absorbed in everyday life and experiences. Being able to be authentic is an important part of becoming an individual and growing as a person. The Ethics of Ambiguity by Simone de Beauvior states in the first paragraph that, “since the individual is defined only by his relationship to the world and to other individuals; he exists only by transcending himself, and his freedom can be achieved only through the freedom of others” It is hard to be oneself when it is so easily to get caught up in what everyone else is doing and not letting that influence you, but who you are as an individual is only determined by your actions and how you see the world and your peers.

Becoming an individual today’s society is very difficult. Everyone has such high expectations of everyone. Even if one does something a little bit out of the ordinary or doesn’t follow a certain trend, they will get ridiculed and judged and be thought of as “weird” or “different”. Especially with the use of social media, if somebody posts something that bothers someone else or just seems like something weird to post, everybody starts to talk badly about the person that posted it and associates a certain judgment right away with that individual. People are expected to follow society and do as they are told. What even is considered normal anyway? No one really has a way of knowing; everyone just feels the need to follow everybody else. If a person expresses who they are and stands out in anyway at all, people just judge and talk smack. They expect everyone to be normal and follow “society’s rules” while trying to become successful because if they don’t, they will go nowhere in life. I am guilty of judging others as well and I am not proud of that, but I also know that I have been judged myself for wanting to do certain things or wearing certain clothing. Being authentic here at Oregon State is easy for some people and others not so much. We have a very diverse campus so I see a lot of cultured people wearing different clothing and expressing who they are as individuals and I think that is awesome. Many others however just play follow the leader.

Many of the themes covered in class have to do with being authentic. The existential theme number 1 is Existence precedes essence. This talks about how you become who you make yourself to be. What you are is a result of your actions and thoughts, (5-12-15 ppt). Everyone has a different view of certain people. If its one thing I have learned, its that not to take things personally because whatever someone says to you or how one may act towards you is because of who they are, not who you are. The Look: other objectifies who you are by watching you and listening to you. 1^st person is being for itself and being in itself while 3^rd person is being in itself or object. (5-5-15 ppt). Are we all just objects or subjects? What does our existence really mean? Its up to us to make a meaningful life and being authentic is a big part of that. We all have the freedom to create and choose are own values (5-26-15 ppt). Existential theme number 3 is humanism, which is an individual focused philosophy and the pursuit of identity and freedom and our values and meaning in opposed to social, political and economic pressure for conformity. (5-10-15 ppt). There is so much pressure in the social, political and economical world to be perfect and live up to everyone’s expectations. But humanism in my opinion is known to focus on being your own individual and having your own identity and freedom. Kierkegaard states that the crowd is untruth, which makes the individual unrepentant and irresponsible. (5-5-15 ppt). This means that when following the crowd and trying to satisfy everyone’s needs and wants while ignoring our own values and beliefs one might lose ones authentic self. I feel as if being orange means you are standing out as who you want to be while everyone else who just sticks with what they know and follows everyone is just a boring gray. Being orange is the true color of authenticity.

Submitted by Mollie Handkins.

Arguably, authenticity can take an innumerable amount of forms, depending on the opinions of he or she whom one may be asking. Authenticity can plainly be seen as the clichéd idea of being true to yourself. However, philosophically speaking, authenticity goes immensely deeper than simply being yourself. It can mean defying the thoughts and unwelcomed ideas of others in an attempt to stand your own ground. It can mean seeking the truth behind all of the accepted meanings we find in this world or in the existential world. Authenticity can further be defined as the pursuit of identity and freedom. However, despite the aforementioned ideas, authenticity can truly only be defined by the individual him or herself.

Judgment and expectations can indisputably be seen as the largest obstacle that one might encounter within his or her community. Expectations such as achieving a certain GPA, acceptance into a professional school, pressures to drink, and many more, are specifically heavily forced upon the students here at Oregon State University. Further, while attempting to relieve or exceed some of those expectations, one will almost definitely come across the judgments of others. Regardless of how hard one may try to control the effects that those judgments have on their emotions and their own authenticity, it is nearly impossible to ignore the negative outcomes that judgment, whether real or imagined, places in all of our lives. While experiencing the initial sense of freedom and individuality that college allows us, it can still be difficult to maintain a true sense of authenticity. Regardless of how we all might see high school as a prison full of judgment and a lack of individuality, some of that can still seep into our lives in college. The perilous combination of both judgment and exceedingly high expectations can especially weigh down our hopeful sense of authenticity. However, it is entirely in our own control as to whether or not we allow the opinions and frightening hopes of others heave our authenticity out and away from us.

In conquering the inevitable judgment and high expectations that are awaiting all of us in every step we take in life, we must combat and maintain our authenticity. While dealing with the human obstacles that we are likely to face, we must remember: “the individual is defined only by his relationship to the world and to other individuals” (Beauvoir, Ethics of Ambiguity). Sure, it may seem to be the easier path to revolt against those who challenge our authenticity, but the more rewarding path that allows us to uphold our hopeful identity further challenges us to be the so-called better person and to disallow others’ negative ideas and opinions to stand in our way. Furthering the argument for maintaining our ethical being in the search for authenticity, it can be said that: “ethical considerations are shared commitment to authentic living, as individuals and society” (Lecture, 5/7/15). In my opinion, it is only through the interactions and experiences with others that we find our true authenticity. Therefore, in searching for our own identity, we must remember that others too are on the same journey. As Fanon argued, “dehumanization is the refusal to recognize humanity” (Lecture, 5/19/15). The importance of embracing our own and others’ flawed humanity can truly not be stressed enough. However, while we should welcome experience with others, we cannot let it sway our pursuit for identity and freedom. Kierkegaard argues: “ the crowd is untruth… makes individual ‘unrepentant and irresponsible” (Lecture, 5/5/15), which can be interpreted as him saying that when we allow our truths and our attempted authenticity to be dictated by the needs, wants, and opinions of others, we truly lose ourselves. We are the only ones who can decide our fate, our authenticity, and our experience. While it is important to have the loving and guiding spirits of others, we hold ourselves to be who we truly are. In summary, “you become who you make yourself to be” (Lecture, 5/21/15).

Being Orange truly cannot be rigidly defined; it can only be loosely said that it is imperative that we believe in our own authenticity and do not stray from the path on the pursuit of our own identity and freedom.