Written by: Rana Abduel Fattah

I feel very young or perhaps this is even a constructed assumption about myself though in the other perspective, I am a grown up, perhaps old. Neither is logical to me. In fact,  none is logical to me. I like to undermine common sense, and the preset judgments I enforce on myself just because it’s embraced and “logical”.

Enforced judgments are not exclusively made by one’s self, there is a psychological affiliation to the social structure. There is also a dominant social consciousness which even a “liberal” rebel can’t escape.

Often, whether conformist or not, or indifferent, we are grouped to reinforce the idea of a certain collective consciousness. Thus, only to follow a similar social structure which exclude others who don’t belong to the same beliefs or ideals.

It might be the conception of the “herd” at work, or an inherent conflict of groupings, or a stout affiliation to a certain consciousness. However, at the core of these three is history.

Also, at the heart of this controversy, and diverse groupings is a common sense which is treated differently. The endless treatments of the common sense creates, rebuilds, revives, and destroys such groupings, ultimately to initiate others.

It seems an analysis of a person who doesn’t have a group and that is also another contradiction. We all belong to certain groups and believe in certain ideals. We all have political and religious affiliation, and on different levels and different internalization as in behaviors and reflections of what we belong to.

However, we little understand the overlap between the groups and how little we know about the evolution of belonging niche.