Authentic Orange

Submitted by Maxwell Beaudoin

Upon my first arrival at OSU (just last fall), I found my school spirit to be somewhat offsetting. I had this feeling that I was simply faking the feelings of school pride because I had been sold the feeling from others during orientation. Since then, I have continued to question my feelings, and more importantly, the motives behind those feelings. I was initially pursuing identity as an existentialist (Lecture 5-19-2015) here in Corvallis. I was basically trying to force myself into feeling like I belong. I was trying to find an authentic impulse from within, but as we learned, “I can neither seek within myself for an authentic impulse to action, nor can I expect, from some ethic, formulae that will enable me to act” (Satre, Existentialism Is a Humanism, pg. 9-10). Diving deeper into Satre’s comment, his reasoning holds true for many actions that we as humans participate in, such as: trying to love someone; going to class (on sunny days especially); playing new sports. Those are all actions that I have definitely done in the past, and from experience I know it is ultimately impossible to create an authentic desire for an action that was originally not desired. This is one thing that Satre could have been referring to as an inauthentic impulse that we as humans sometimes try and create.

From this, I draw the conclusion that it is impossible to be a Beaver, authentically. Instead, you must become a Beaver without any realization of change, or you must metaphysically earn your experience as a Beaver (Lecture 5-26-2015)

Change is something that I have been particularly intrigued with lately, especially considering the changes I have made since last year. While people do change authentically in themselves (i.e. changing beliefs; morals; ethics; or motives), I believe that the action of change is by definition inauthentic because you are forcing yourself to do something differently than you are used to. Essentially, you’re denying your transcendence (Lecture 5-26-15). However, inauthentic actions can lead to an authentic result.

When I moved to Corvallis, I chose to live in a dorm, to go to classes that I had never been to, and to change the habits that I had made prior to the transformation. After 10 months of adapting to those changes, I might say that I am living authentically again, but I was temporarily living in bad faith.

This raises the concern: Is change an obstacle of authenticity?

While change may in fact temporarily dampen our authentic nature as humans, it is also a bridge to being authentic. Human’s have an innate sense of authenticity. I mainly feel an absence of authenticity when I am in situations that are unfamiliar or when I feel uncomfortable. That is the stage when we are inauthentic. But the practice of being uncomfortable, for example, eventually leads us to being comfortable in situations that previously we were not comfortable with. This is an example of how in-authenticity can become authentic.

By this definition of authenticity, no matter how reluctant an individual is to living in-authentically, they must for a period of time do so if they encounter change, which is inevitable in our existence due to death and the continuity of time as an hourglass that is constantly flipping (Lecture 6-2-2015).

Submitted by Emily Burkhart

They say college is where you find yourself. Where you become your authentic you and establish your own personality, character, and spirit regardless of the external pressures and demands of the social and material world.  Everyone here at Beaver Nation is in search of who they are. As a community at Oregon State University, we are one, but as individuals we all have different ideas, thoughts, and motivations that make us who we are and authentic in our own way.

Figuring out who we are is an ever going struggle and we may not find our authentic selves until later on in life. We are constantly asking ourselves the same question almost every day, and that is who am I, and how do I want people to see me for me? With no one truly knowing the meaning of life we are to create our own and this is where our authentic selves are beginning to show. This is where the existential theme: Humanism plays a large role in becoming oneself and creating our own values. (Lecture 5/7/15) Humanism is where we are in the purists of identity and freedom in our thinking and where our values start to emerge when it comes to social, political, and economic pressures from today’s material world arise.

We must be wary in finding our authentic selves because there are so many obstacles that can lead us away from who we want to and are meant to become. As we are all Beaver Nation we all find ourselves becoming part of Nietzsche: “the herd” instinct. (Lecture 5/5/15) Where people will form groups of friends based off of similar interest and disinterest. We go to class, do our homework, and fall into a social life that we see to fit our needs. It’s human nature to want to “belong” As freshman we all worry we will not make friends, so we change some of our beliefs and qualities of ourselves to “fit in with the crowd” and later down the road we become comfortable with our new roles and become lazy in finding out who we really are. These are the external pressures of the world that influences us away from one’s authentic self and a lack of authenticity is considered in existentialism to be bad faith.

Nietzsche, “the herd” is in close relation with Kierkegaard’s, “The crowd”. Kierkegaard goes into discussing, “even if every individual possessed the truth in private, yet if they came together into a crowd, untruth would at once be let in.” (Kierkegaard, The Crowd is Untruth) Being in college this relates to students very well. We tend to have our own opinions and thoughts, and we stand by them, but as soon as we are in a group setting we want to change our mind and go with others thoughts on subjects to fit into “the crowd”. When someone is to open up about their own opinion and it can get shot down and hate from others because their ideas don’t go along side of “the crowds” and in today’s society is a big obstacle for the young adult to overcome.

How are we are to distinguish between our reasoning and our freedom is what it means to be human and where the role of ethics comes into play. (Lecture 5/21/15) Sartre discusses is to choose self, choosing for all humans, or are we only responsible for our own actions that shape the “image” of humanity. (Lecture 11, 5/5/15). It is the responsibility of people having to own up to who they are as an individual rather as who they are not is what makes them different. Each one of us at Beaver Nation reflect as individuals how others see the college as well as how we has a whole community reflect the college.

As college students here at Beaver Nation our transition into adulthood can be difficult, but we all find our way and have the paths set out before us as we choose them. There is no set definition to being “authentically orange” because each one, not only the students, but factually as well here at Oregon State make up what it means to be authentically orange. As long as we put in the effort to be authentic with ourselves and others we will reach our goals. I being one person out of thousands still need to work on myself but I, know I will become my own authentic beaver. I am Beaver Nation. We are Beaver Nation!

Submitted By: Aubrey Hills.

I don’t think there is a way to authentically “Be Orange.” Bad faith is, as we discussed in lecture, lying to yourself or someone else about something. Examples of acting in bad faith would be denying transcendence or facticity (Lecture, 5/26/15). If you think about it, trying to fit students into a box of “Being Orange” or “Being a Beaver” is denying both transcendence and facticity. In my opinion, trying to authentically “Be Orange” is a form of bad faith.

The idea that one can authentically “Be Orange” is denying transcendence. Transcendence is the idea of one’s existence beyond the normal or physical level (Lecture, 5/26/15).  If I were to say that I am currently living “Authentically Orange” I would be lying to myself because I only joined an institution that others has joined before me and other will join after me. Nothing is personal or special about going to a higher level of education in school at this particular institution.

The idea that one can authentically “Be Orange” also denies facticity. By trying to authentically “Be Orange” I am denying that I am not technically affiliated with the institution of OSU. Yes I do pay tuition here and I am a student with finals and summer classes but I just as easily could have been a student at the University of Oregon, paying tuition there and writing an essay on what it means to “Bleed Yellow and Green.” By saying that I live authentically “Orange” I am lying to myself about who I am without an outside institution that educates me and takes my money.

Simone de Beauvoir says in The Ethics of Ambiguity that authenticity is man having the power to lay down “the foundations of his own existence” (Beauvoir, The Ethics of Ambiguity, conclusion). Just from this I already see flaws in the idea that there is a way to authentically “Be Orange”. For one, everyone that goes to OSU all the way back to the first class of students obviously was not involved in the founding of the university, therefor they did not lay the foundation of his or her existence within the schooling setting.

An obstacle to becoming an individual in the Orange community of Oregon State University can be explained using the idea that Nietzsche had about herds that we talked about in lecture. If Oregon State University is thought of as a single community as it generally is then everyone involved in the community is just part of the herd. As discussed in lecture, there is no way to become an individual while in a herd unless one escapes the herd and becomes a true individual on his or her own (Lecture, 5/28/15). If a student of faculty member at OSU wants to be authentic in his or her identity, he or she has to acquire the conviction to break free of the herd that is the university institution and find a distinct identity without the comfort and support that is always constant in the university environment. The ability to break free from the herd, or in Kierkegaard’s view, the crowd, is diminished and weakened because the crowd makes the individual irresponsible and unrepentant (Lecture, 5/5/15). So the deeper one is enveloped into the crowd the harder it is for one to break free and find what makes them authentic to themselves. Basically stated, the more one tries to authentically “Be Orange”, the harder it will become for one to be authentic to themselves. That is why authentically “Being Orange” is not possible.

Submitted By Taylor Ireland

Authenticity is uniqueness, genuine, real, veritable, and most importantly, being true to one’s self. People strive all of their lives in search of what makes them special. How do you become true to yourself, without knowing who you are? The first step in order to be true to yourself, especially while in Beaver Nation, is the third theme of existentialism; Humanism. Individuals, or “Beavers” are focused on the pursuit of freedom and identity. They search for their own opinions and values on politics, social conformity and their own virtues (Lecture 5-7-15). A true and authentic Beaver searches during their, hopefully four years of college, to find out what makes them so unique. While we are all one Beaver Nation, we all have separate identities, which is what makes us authentic.

As we search for our identity here at Oregon State University, we are also among tens of thousands of other students with the same goal. This agrees with the philosopher Heidegger, and his theory on “The They”. As we walk to our classes with our headphones in, every face a blur as we walk by, we see a larger picture. This is called “The They”. While we think we are the ones unique and separate from “The They”, we are actually a part of it just as much as everyone else is. The other students are there with you, all with the same goal in mind. In Heidegger’s reading, he states that “Others are encountered environmentally” (Heidegger, Being and Time pg. 225). As we walk by these blurry faces, it is in the environment of Oregon State’s campus. From a larger a scale, everyone here at Oregon State, is a small part of an even bigger “The They” which is the entire world. Every Beaver is an everyday mode of being, finding their own identity in an even bigger “The They”.

While we are all part of “The They”, we must also consider the fact of how we look through other’s eyes. Every true Beaver has experienced tour groups consisting of parents and hopefully future Beavers walking past you; a sleep deprived, hungry, hungover, college student trying to get past this small group of “The They” to make it to class. I feel like an animal trapped in a glass cage at the zoo. This brings us to the philosophical  statement, Being for Others (Lecture 5-5-15). In your eyes, the tour group is turning you into an object. Which can be somewhat alienating, for you, a person in search of their own identity to be turned into just another object for that group. This is one of the many obstacles you must overcome as you embark on the journey to be an authentic Beaver. While it may seem like you are being objectified, every other fellow Beaver feels the same way and it ends up being one of the many obstacles you overcome.

As the world progresses, somethings end up being more important than it was twenty years ago, maybe because of social norms, or because it did not even exist. One of these important things that relates to being a true Beaver, is the Facebook page, “Things Overheard at OSU”. While this may seem petty, it correlates perfectly to Kierkegaard’s theory of The Crowd (Lecture 5-5-15). He states that the crowd is one driving force that persuades decisions and it weakens the responsibility of others as the bigger the crowd is, the less important one person is. “Things Overheard at OSU” is a perfect example of this because with the crowd on that page, approximately 15,000 members, each Beaver has less of an impact on the larger crowd. When one post gets over 500 likes and a lot of support, if one Beaver feels opposite of others, they can (and usually) receive a lot of hate for their opinion, because it does not follow the crowd. This is just another obstacle one faces while you attempt to be an authentic OSU student. While you may not always agree with the crowd because it is “untruth” as Kierkegaard states, the crowd is too powerful to face as a single individual.

Finally, every college student, let alone a Beaver faces procrastination. While some cases are more extreme, we all deny transcendence by procrastinating. (Lecture 5-26-15). This is in Sartre’s perspective, that we keep denying and denying starting the simplest of tasks. This is another obstacle we face, and will always be a challenge. The second part of procrastination is the “I’ll start sooner next time” phase. Which is also denying transcendence, because you never really do start earlier next time. It is the same repetitive task over and over of procrastination, sort of like Sisyphus, repeating the same task over and over. This, to me, is one of the hardest obstacles of being a Beaver in search of identity and authenticity. While it may not ever be conquered, it alone will not stop your commitment to being a unique Beaver.

Ultimately, while there are many obstacles and steps of being an authentic and true Beaver, the identity you find in the end is worth all of the time and effort. Hopefully, as I am still continuing through the process of being my very own, authentic Beaver.

Submitted by Jenna Nilsen

Oregon State University students are all part of one large community. This community is known as the “Oregon State” community, or, the “Orange” community. What students do as a whole, defines the community. But what they do individually, defines them as individuals. One would hope that each and every student would live authentically for themselves, even within such an enormous group. To live authentically, is when a person lives, while remaining true to their own character, spirit, and freedom of choices, despite any societal pressures, which attempt to persuade them to do otherwise.

To be an individual, people first have to realize, or become aware of, their own individuality. This can be one of the first obstacles in becoming an individual, because, as people ‘grow up’, they also have to learn how to become an individual (Lecture 11, 5/5/15). It is after this realization, that people are officially “condemned to be free” (Lecture 17, 5/26/15). They can choose to conform to the majority of society, or they can choose to challenge it. With this decision, people choose to either ‘be for themself’, or to ‘be for others’. In other words, people choose to be who they want to be, or who society tells them they should be. However, to live authentically would mean that one would mainly ‘be for themself’, despite potentially being judged, with however that applies to them.

Another obstacle that people often face is feeling as though they are just “part of a herd” (Lecture 11, 5/5/15). In other words, they are the same as everybody else around them. Almost all students at Oregon State University go to class every day, do their homework, dress in similar fashion trends, and act in a similar, somewhat reserved manner while walking the campus. This could potentially give some people the feeling of just “blending in” with everyone around them. While people often feel a strong need to be a part of a group, it is also still possible to express individuality within a group. It is a choice whether or not someone decides, or attempts to, blend in. The key for authenticity, is for people to discover, and embrace, what makes them different than everyone around them. What makes their rock, much like that of Sisyphus, different from everyone else’s? (Lecture 2, 4/7/15). However, standing out also comes with greater responsibility (Lecture 11, 5/5/15). It is the responsibility of people having to own who they are, and what makes them different.

People often avoid, or hide from, who they truly are, in order to ‘fit in’ with others around them. These people who choose to run from their true selves, are considered to be of bad faith (Lecture 18, 5/28/15). They have bad faith by trying to resolve any tension within their existence, with conformity. These people deny their own transcendence, or in other words, who they really are, or want to be. They are in denial with themselves, have yet to find their individuality, and do not want to accept the responsibility that comes with being an individual.

To be “authentically orange”, is choosing to live a specific lifestyle within the Oregon State community. It is individuals choosing to do what speaks to them the most, despite what any other students choose. Jean-Paul Sartre once said, “If a voice speaks to me, it is only I who must decide whether or not the voice I hear is that of an angel” (Sartre, Existentialism is a Humanism). In relation to Oregon State students, they are all faced with their own freedom. It is only they who can choose to live an authentic life, or to not. It is only they who can decide whether the voice that speaks to them, telling them who they truly are, is that “of an angel”, or that which should be ignored.

Submitted by Sydney Lund

“Be Orange”

There’s many different ways to describe authenticity, or “being orange.” However, for myself to describe, I would say that authenticity means being genuine, kind, and heartfelt. My reasoning for this is because authentic is your true self, and how you express yourself on a daily basis. People express themselves in many different ways, and from the lectures in class, we talked about one of the existential themes being “humanism.” While we were talking about humanism, we learned that it is an individual who focuses on the pursuit of identity and freedom (Lecture, 5/19/15). Also, their values and meaning in opposition to social, political and economic pressure for conformity. This means that humanism is linked to authenticity, or at least I believe so. I think they are linked together because reasoning, freedom, being in situation and questioning are all part of being authentic.

I believe there are many obstacles to becoming an individual within a community, but I have one specific in mind. I think the biggest obstacle people face is not being accepted by individuals, and constantly being judged by others, which makes it difficult to live a happy life in a community. I also feel like it’s troubling to be accepted nowadays because there are so many different spheres of life according to our readings. For example, there is the aesthetic sphere, ethical sphere, and religious sphere. Everyone fits in a different sphere and I feel like people are accepted based on the sphere they fall into. The aesthetic sphere is sensation, and it satisfies immediate desires, and seeks pleasurable experiences (Lecture, 4/28/15). These types of spheres are often thrill seekers and seducers. Also, the ethical sphere is choice (Lecture, 4/28/15). The meaning of the ethical sphere is morality, and has universal and moral duties. Lastly, is the religious sphere. The religious sphere includes, but can contradict the ethical sphere (Lecture, 4/28/15). It means to have Christian faith and is individual and subjective versus church dogma. The eternal meaning of this sphere is found in passionate absurd, commitment and is part of the leap of faith. As an example for being an obstacle as an individual in our community is, I have noticed that here at Oregon State, if you’re not in a sorority or a fraternity, then you are generally not as accepted to hang out with those people. I feel as though the people in sororities and frats are in the aesthetic sphere, because they are more of the risk takers, and thrill seekers. However, that doesn’t mean that other people not in frats and sororities are those types of people either, but people judge too much, and it’s difficult to be accepted.

Being Orange also collides with the themes of existentialism (Lecture, 5/21/15). The first theme is “Existence precedes essence.” Basically, what you are is a result of your choices. This relates to authenticity because authenticity is being yourself, which is a result of your choices. The second theme is existence is temporal. The second theme relates to authenticity because depending on what you choose to do, your choices are up to you and how genuine your attitude is. The third theme is ethics, which means varying definitions. Ethics also includes commitment to politics. Ethics relates to authenticity because it is a shared commitment to authentic living, as individuals and society (Lecture 5/19/15). Basically meaning that to be authentic is being accepted by society by your genuinity. The next theme is freedom, which means reflection, transcendence and responsibility. Freedom relates to authenticity because in order to be who you are and act as yourself, then you have to be and act free. All of these are from the readings, and lectures from class that all relate to being orange, and acting authentic.

In conclusion, to be authentic means to be genuine, and yourself. People these days need to be more accepting and take a leap of faith according to Kirkegard (Kirkegard, The Crowd is Untruth). The leap of faith is passionate, and subjective relationship to truth (Lecture, 4/28/15). This also relates to authenticity because you are taking a chance to show your true self. Overall, people need to be themselves, which is being orange, because that is staying true to yourself.

Welcome to “Authentic Orange”!  In this blog, OSU students studying existentialism utilize their philosophical skills to explore, challenge, and analyze what it means to authentically “Be Orange,” or an OSU Beaver.

In a May 4th, 1888 letter to Brandes, Friedrich Nietzsche wrote that one builds one’s “philosophy like a beaver.” After spending a term engaging with the work of Nietzsche, Beauvoir, Fanon, Sartre, Kierkegaard, and other existentialists, OSU Beavers build their philosophies, bite by bite.