Normal and Culture

Standards

Normal is a pretty low standard to live by.

Take a minute. Assess every thing you consider normal. Go on.

List of normal stuff then

In the conversation, George Mack references lists kept by the philosopher Montaigne to illustrate how social norms are often just a form of “social contagion” that varies wildly between cultures.

Here are some of the practices mentioned that were considered normal in various societies throughout history (19:11-20:54):

• Asymmetrical grooming: It was once considered normal to grow hair out on the right side of the body while shaving everything on the left.
• Teeth staining: In certain cultures, white teeth were deemed unattractive, leading people to purposely stain their teeth blacker and blacker.
• Ritualized patricide: Within some societies, individuals were expected to kill their own fathers upon reaching a specific age.
• Funerary consumption: Some cultures practiced a funeral rite involving chopping up the deceased, grinding them into a pulp, mixing them into wine, and drinking the mixture on the day of the funeral.
• Wedding customs: Certain cultures judged the success of a wedding by how many of the groom’s friends were able to sleep with the bride.

List of normal stuff now

In the conversation, George Mack outlines a list of statistics and behaviors that he describes as what is considered ‘normal’ in modern society (21:11 - 22:01). These observations include:

• Sugar Consumption: Consuming 17 teaspoons of sugar per day.
• Financial Debt: Carrying $104,755 in debt.
• Physical Health: Being 30 lbs overweight.
• Activity Levels: Averaging less than 4,000 steps per day.
• Work Engagement: Spending 90,000 hours of life at work while disengaged.
• Sedentary Lifestyle: Staying indoors for 22.3 hours per day.
• Toilet vs. Exercise: Spending more time on the toilet than exercising.
• Reading Habits: Not finishing a single book in the last 12 months.
• Silence: Experiencing under 10 minutes of silence per day.
• Screen Time: Spending 20 years of life watching TV or scrolling social media.

Take

Normal sucks.

Being weird works.

Be weird.