The Curse of the Cliques. xO (OH NOES!)

Most of us will normally form cliques wherever we go. I remember in my secondary school, especially because it was a girls’ school (AH YES. The joys of catty single-sex environments!), numerous tight and exclusive cliques were formed. In particular one such group struck me; the so called ‘popular’ gang, or at least they tried dearly to give off that impression to our fellow secondary classmates. Their group was a conglomeration of the most prominent, attractive, and outstanding personalities in school. Everyone knew about them because they were so involved in organizing and regulating school activities. But… I felt sad for them whenever they walked past me because I felt they were so dearly absorbed and lost in their groupthink.

These people were so insecure that they threw themselves into their group, trying to please everyone and especially the ‘queen bee’ so as to secure their place within the school’s vast social empire. On the outside, there was an illusion of unamity, whereby the group seemed to be in totally synergy, laughing and joking all the time everywhere they went. They collectively took part in activities, with the queen bee normally leading. Some of the things they did weren’t kind, but they did them anyways to avoid being castracised by the other group members (pressure on dissenters). For example, they would make fun of this girl who was socially awkward. I knew that not all of them were at ease with such meanness (you could see it in their faces), but they seemed to collectively rationalize their actions so as to suppress their guilt. They probably molded their minds to think that what they were doing was perfectly right. I remember one of them exclaiming, “It’s no big deal!” when someone chastised her for her mean comments – she seemed as if she really meant what she was saying. The rest of the group would chime in and support their groupmate – all of them seemed to lose sight of their personal moral principles to support the group view. In that way, they believed in their group’s own morality. When they discussed what to do after class, they indulged in shared stereotypes about issues, for instance exclaiming that they should all go to Ministry of Sound or St. James (clubs) and party the night away, biasedly ignoring the fact that they were underage because they all owned fake I.D.s. They obviously had the shared perception that clubbing was a cool thing to do.

I had a close friend who knew some of the group members personally, and she reported that they really were not as happy as they seemed. The group pressure was great, and they realized quickly that they needed to conform in order to acquire idiosyncrasy credit (or brownie points) and gain full membership within the crowd. The more they self-censored themselves to aid in their gradual assimilation, the deeper they fell into the groupthink syndrome. Their need for total acceptance and unanimity altered their logical minds. One of them related to my close friend about how deeply unhappy she was, yet she stuck in this twisted relationship network because she wanted the popularity benefits that came with it. To her, the rewards were worth her suffering. Or maybe she was too cowardly to do otherwise and break out of her situation. In either case, she had evaluated the relationship (costs v.s. benefits) and decided her fate.

It is clear by now that this group’s dialectics was dysfunctional. Their web was one of delusion, deceit and desperation. It is not worth killing a part of yourself to achieve some goal that makes you unhappy in the process. Do yourself a favor, and ensure your relationships are functional and fruitful. To be able to establish a close-knit group of friends, with whom you can feel in sync and comfortable with, is truly a rewarding and great experience. Aim for it. Or clap with me if you are blessed enough to already have one. (:

Ridiculed Singlish Advertisement

One of the most obvious displays of biased perception at work is the reaction to the following AllsWell drink advertisement that has been showing in cinemas and television channels all across Singapore recently.



Today, there was a newspaper article in the Straits Times Lifestyle section (labelled Singlish ad gets laughs, pg6), whereby a dissection of viewer's responses to the ad was discussed. The most immediate negative reaction was one of disgust, stemming from the thick and exaggerated singlish accents and cheesy dialogue that the actors used. Several watchers said vehemently that it was "one of the worst commercials I had ever seen" and that "It oozes so much emo (emotional content) that it makes my hair stand.”

It is odd how Singaporeans are lambasting the very culture that they practise. This ad was set in a typical everyday place in Singapore with typical everyday dialogue between couples. The conversation may be inane but most of our casual conversations are. So what's with everybody trying to be all so high-strung and 'critical' when the ad so closely reflects (and celebrates) the common Singaporean? These people’s cognitive schematas must have already been hardwired to be sensitive towards an exaggerated portrayal of Singapore culture. I think it’s because we are so sensitive to how Singlish can be portrayed in a negative light (especially because of the government’s efforts in having us speak proper English – Thanks PAP!) that we would rather not be exposed to it in avenues that we normally wouldn’t engage with. It’s fine if we’re actually shooting our singlish mouths off among our group of friends, but somehow it’s not when it’s shown on the TV and broadcasted for the whole of the island to see. This could be an example of self-serving bias, where we indeed would judge ourselves more leniently than if we were to see the exactly same thing in another channel. Maybe it is also just part of our script to instantaneously criticize everything – a typical Singaporean mindset. Perhaps we are only lashing out at this advertisement because something in it struck a raw nerve – our mundane normality and broken language is not exactly something to be exulted.

How we have interpreted this situation has been based on our cultural differences and the social context we have been living with. According to our experiences with this subject and the general opinion, so we have chosen to interpret and attribute negative connotations to this advertisement according to our shaped perceptual set.

This ad is uniquely Singaporean, one might add. Only in this context could it have ever been understood in its totality. The presence of the foodcourt, drink-seller selling teh peng (iced tea) and girl shouting “Uncle, no need.” (Imagine if an American were to see this. He’d go, ‘HUH? That drink-seller is your Uncle??? How odd.” Because he would take the meaning literally.) helped to provide a relatable context so that we could understand it. Unfortunately, who would have thought so much negative discussion would be generated? Then again, one might throw forth the argument that for advertising, any publicity is good publicity.

How did you perceive the ad, and what do you think about the hypocrite in all of us? Do give your views. Cheers.

Wall-E - The simplest things are the best.

Wall-E is a modern and charming cartoon that harkens back to the original cartoon shows of yore, where all you would hear was music and all you saw was silent animation. Wall-E depends on very little dialogue to make its point, resorting to an abundance of non-verbal communication instead. Through the numerous robots’ change in body language and facial expressions, one is able to ascertain perfectly well the entire plot of the movie. Indeed, this cartoon makes words look redundant.

Its plot is that Wall-E, the main robot character who has lived alone on Earth for 700 years after humans had abandoned it (due to extreme pollution making the Earth unlivable), finally finds company when Eve, another robot sent from a human spacecraft (where the humans have since been living) enters Earth in search of living life. He falls in love with Eve, and chases her across the galaxies to try and have his love reciprocated. Its a simple story, but one that is made genuine and sweet by the sincerity and innocence of Wall-E and Eve’s actions. Watch the following clip to get an idea of the character and emotions portrayed by Wall-E throughout the movie. Wall-E is the brown cube-shaped robot and Eve is the shiny white Ipod-looking robot on the moving platform.

You notice that he squeals plaintively and reaches out to Eve when she is transported away from him, he flails in confusion and apprehension when the robot picks him up and his head position and eyes constantly shift to try and absorb his new surroundings, but he doesn't say anything to directly express how he is feeling. He communicates mostly through his body language, facial expressions, and the tone and pitch of his voice and vocalics. These factors are the most important because it helps form the basis of what he is trying to tell us. The words that he does speak (“Oh, Eve!”), while complementing his actions, is largely insignificant because I bet you’d still be able to understand him perfectly well if he didn’t say any words. This demonstrates that non-verbal communication is more important than verbal communication, provided that the non-verbal communication is obvious. Disney, catering to kids, of course would have made it apparent enough for everyone to understand.

Speaking of which, since interpreting body language is perceptive and subjective, Disney would have again thought of universal actions to signify the emotions that it would have wanted Wall-E to portray. This way everybody would be able to understand perfectly well what was going on without any confusion or differing in the meaning of Wall-E’s actions. To make it even more dumb-proof, Disney hired a great composer to perfectly encapsulate Wall-E’s emotions through music. Music is universally affecting and understandable, helping to set the mood for the different scenes in the movie. From the tune alone you would have already formed an impression of what would happen next.

Wall-E goes to the root of interaction, letting us absorb its message through a simple but effective form of communication, allowing us to form instant reactions to its appealing visual animations and song. It’s a great movie that made me feel like a kid again. And God knows it’s been a long time since I was one. What are your thoughts? Spill it out, people.

The Paralympics - Are they the same as us?

What comes to your mind first when I mention the words ‘disabled people’? Do you get a mental image of a second-class group of humans? Do you picture a frail populace who are blind, or with no legs, sitting in wheelchairs? Do you view them as retards; feel sad for them, or slightly uncomfortable? Most people fall somewhere in between these lines. Once they are aware that someone is ‘different’ from them, they’ll have more of a negative reaction rather than a positive one. It’s a fault of their social construct, their shaped perspectives based on society’s restrictive ideas and molds about what is acceptable or ‘normal’. These people will go about their lives living in a bubble, clouded by the Idols of their Cave (their prejudices). This influence is passive, as these people would have absorbed ideas unconsciously just by being around other sources – listening or talking to them. But the fallacy is that this means that you have been influenced only by communication rather than actual experiences with impaired people. How then will you truly draw a fair conclusion about them?

2 days ago on the 6’th of September, there was the opening ceremony for the Paralympics, hosted in Beijing. Top athletes with physical, mental, and sensorial disabilities gathered there to compete in a total of twenty sports including cycling, equestrian, judo, and wheelchair fencing and basketball. Perhaps these are sports whom people might not think that disabled people can accomplish well. But if you watch the following clip, you might be surprised. (Watch until 1:30)

Paralympic Sport TV Trailer 2008

Yes, there’s a woman missing a leg. But look at how she is able to still perform somersaults. And witness the swimmer with no arms and one leg missing, striving determinedly to complete his swim in record time. If anything, their disabilities have showcased how focused and strong these people can be. They push themselves so hard to try and be the best that they can. That’s more than can be said of most people. Everybody deserves recognition, no matter what physical appearance they hold, because we are all the same inside. We are all human beings with feelings and minds.


With this new perspective in your consciousness, have I swayed you just the teensiest bit? If previously you held an impaired view against the disabled, has your mindset been altered after reading this post? Did the video clip and pictures, or my words appeal to you through the use of emotions (pathos) or logic (logos)? Be aware of what you think, and why your feelings and beliefs change as you go through life and are exposed to so many different channels. You should not allow yourself to be influenced so by the popular medium and fall into the Idols of the Theatre (the acceptance of fashionable ideas uncritically). For it is only through self-awareness that enlightenment follows.