Professors Smith and Wells-Edwards
English 101D OL
8 Feb. 2011
The Function of Community
It is an inherent need for humans to relate to one another. We are social creatures who naturally seek relationships in our quest for significance, security, and acceptance in life. Considering that we don’t all have the same desires, interests and habits, we tend to form communities with like-minded people, which is necessary for a society to exist. The function of communities in our lives is to provide opportunity to participate in society by serving as an outlet for expressing identity, as well as an avenue for building relationships.
The fact that communities are a vital and necessary part of society is often recognized at a fairly young age which is evidenced by 17-year-old college student and rower, Charles Forrest, when he said, “I don’t think society would exist without communities. Society is the collection of them." This is aptly apparent if we try to consider the existence of a society without communities. They vary from the very large, such as race, religion, and where we live, to the small; our soccer team or office buddies at work. All of these communities, large and small, give us an outlet for self-expression and a sense of belonging.
David Brooks, in his essay titled Our Sprawling Super-sized Utopia says, “...in the age of the great dispersal, it becomes much easier to seek out and congregate with people who are like yourself....you don’t have to travel very far in America to see radically different sorts of people, most of whom know very little about the communities and subcultures just down the highway.” (p. 186). Likewise, Forrest, during his interview, speaks to the need for participating in and contributing to society by stating, “ I row because I enjoy it. I like to socialize with those who have a like interest and with whom I can work toward a common goal.”
Being accepted and being a part of something where we can express our identities is a common need and/or desire among people. It is that expression that gives us a sense of value. Although communities come in all shapes and sizes, a commonality among them all is the opportunity to express one’s identity in some way. We see this premiss in large scale in Our Sprawling, Supersize Utopia, by David Brooks, when he discusses the different types of cultures among suburbs. He discusses the differences in people and their chosen activities among the ‘crunchy suburb’, the ‘up-scale suburban town center’, and the 'suburban light industry zones'. Each of these places is somewhere a person can choose to live in expression of his or her identity.
We see expression of identity in community on a much smaller scale when we consider clubs, activities and even support groups. In her essay, A Secret Society of the Starving, Mim Udovitch quotes 18-year-old Claire, who says about her online community “... at the end of the day, it would be really nice if you could share with the whole world how you felt. I can go online and talk to them there, and they know exactly what I’m going through and how I feel.” (p 151.) Claire’s need for self-expression is evidenced by her words.
As much as we desire community in order to express ourselves as a participant in society, thus fulfilling our need for significance and accomplishment, we also seek community for the benefit of building relationships. We have an inherent need to know people and be known by them, thereby experiencing a form of cohesiveness with others. Perhaps this explains our desire to congregate toward (form community with) those who are like-minded in a particular area. We see this in Shari Caudron’s essay, Befriending Barbie. Shari observes a large group of Barbie lovers during a Barbie convention. While the members of the Barbie community are somewhat fanatic, Caudron ends her essay with a telling comment about the relationships which can be formed in communities of common interest. “I envy their enthusiasm, their deep connection with one another. Their ability to shriek with delight over a pair of Patio Party earrings just marked down 20 percent. I want what they have....and am willing to go to extraordinary lengths to get it.” (p. 175). We see relationships in communities in our homes, our churches, our clubs, groups, teams, and online chat groups, just to name a few.
Since we will all be a part of ‘some’ community, whether by choice or not, we must consider that being a part of community comes with a certain amount of conformity, which can be seen as a cost or a benefit, depending on the motive for conforming as well as the nature of the community. In his interview, Charles Forrest states, “While I certainly have to conform to certain rules and social expectations in my community (rowing), I don’t have to conform in terms of morals or character”.
While we may not have to conform in some areas, often we do due to the influences in that community and our natural tenancy to seek happiness and a sense of belonging. We see an example of this tenancy in some college initiations as noted by David Berreby in his essay, It Takes a Tribe. “A subconscious clue for perceiving a tribe as real and valuable, then, may be expending sweat, tears, and embarrassment to get in.” (p.122).
An example of conformity in the negative sense can be seen in a high school environment where young people are often willing to enter a clique in order to belong somewhere, even if that clique requires some social conformity and sacrificing of self to be able to maintain a place in the group. At times, the overwhelming need to belong can override the need to be accepted as we are. There are also situations when conformity can play a healthy role in one’s life. Charles Forrest had to conform to certain rules and socially acceptable behaviors in his rowing community, but in his case, he was conforming to positive behaviors that uphold his personal values, rather than detract from them.
It would appear that the need for self-expression and relationship are foundational drivers for the seeking of community. While communities vary widely in their makeup, they certainly serve these purposes. It is true, in my experience and observations, that we move toward communities in effort to be accepted and express our identities and while we are there, we seek out and experience relationship with those who are like-minded.
Works Cited
Bereby, David. “It Takes a Tribe.” Remix: Reading + Composing Culture. Ed. Catherine G. Latterell. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2010. 119-124. Print.
Brooks, David. “Our Sprawling, Supersize Utopia.” Remix: Reading + Composing Culture.
Ed. Catherine G. Latterell. Boston: Beford/St. Martins, 2010. 184-192. Print.
Caudron, Shari. “Befriending Barbie.” Remix: Reading + Composing Culture. Ed. Catherine G. Latterell. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2010. 167-177. Print.
Forrest, Charles. Personal Interview. 30 Jan. 2011.
Udovich, Mim. “A Secret Society of the Starving.” Remix: Reading + Composing Culture. Ed. Catherine G. Latterell. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2010. 149-157. Print.
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