Believe it or not, a self-centered diva like Mariah Carey has disproportionate concerns or anxieties about herself - appearance mostly - or "complexes" as we call it. First is of course, being born in a bi-racial family, second is her consciousness about the left side of her face. She never allows anyone to photograph her from that side ever since. This peculiar demand of hers got people wondering "Why not?", when clearly, she looks gorgeous in any perspective.
Only after reading this article "Self-Conscious In Front Of The Camera: Are You Obsessed With Highlighting Your Good Side?" by Charing Ball from madamenoire.com, can we learn about the back story of her strange complex. Mariah said, herself, that back when she first started in the industry - she was only 19 at that time - someone from her agency drilled into her head that her left side is her "bad side" and that she should never let anyone take pictures of her from that side. It definitely affected her and made her struggle with this idea embedded inside of her. On 2009, she finally said, "I don't care anymore." and declared that she no longer demands people to only take photographs from her right.
But last 2013, on an interview with E! for American Idol, she was placed on the right side in which her "bad side" was facing the camera. It can be seen on the video that she was uncomfortably squirming for the whole duration of the interview. Mariah wouldn't face the interviewer because doing so will show her "bad side".
"There is a larger point here that involves more than pointing and laughing hysterically at this poor, poor soul known to the world as Mariah Carey. In fact, this bit of humanity from Carey makes me appreciate her even more." Charing Ball said.
This only proves that we are all human. Celebrity or not, complexes exist in everyone. As hilarious as it may seem though, knowing that someone couldn't function well because they feel that their looks become inferior when they're in the wrong angle, is just plain sad.
Now that we all know the back story of Mariah's complex, it is safe to assume that it all started from someone criticizing her looks and it greatly affected her way of thinking. I read an article that can be relatable to Mariah's current condition. "Why Criticizing Others Is A Lot More Harmful Than You Think" by Donna Labermeier from huffingtonpost.com goes deeper into how a simple idea when implanted into a person's thoughts can damage that person's life.
Some people can be very careless about what they say to others. They don't know what negative impact can it cause to that other person. And such people will never stop doing so unless they become aware of what is really happening. They have to see the bigger picture that everything in the world is interconnected meaning everything affects everything else so it is important to be careful of our own actions. Instead of finding one's faults to bring them down, we must try to lift up each other.
There are three ways in which criticism can become a destructive force. First one is "Negativity". Throwing negativity at someone can hurt them without us being aware of it. We have the ability to interfere with another's self-esteem and self-worth which can change who they are and how they perceive the world around them. Number two is "Psychology 101". When you make derogatory statements about others, people can tell that these are your own insecurities. An individual lashing out on someone is automatically acknowledged as a defense mechanism. Our behavior is a reflection of the things we are trying to cope with. And finally, number three is "Collective Consciousness". What we do to others eventually comes back to us. So, in order to live a harmonious life, we must first find peace within ourselves and learn to emit that to the world.
"We know that we're all different, have our own opinions and everyone is never going to agree on everything. Having said that, the bottom line is as it always has been. If you can't say something nice, well, you know the rest..." said Donna Labermeier.
With Mariah's complex as our example, we can see that her condition falls under "Negativity". After hearing someone tell her that she has an "ugly side", it scarred her for life. She has been living with it for the past 23 years and even though she claims that she's over it, that might not be the case. This just proves that criticizing does not only hurt a person's feelings. It leads to the destruction of one's perception and self-esteem.
I know I'm not in the right place to tell Mariah that she has to be over it by now because I am not aware of what is going on inside her head. What I do know is that she doesn't need to have such complex because she is a beautiful woman and everything about her is divine.
No comments:
Post a Comment