The Primacy of life - Privacy!

Nowadays nothing is private: our culture has become too confessional and self-expressive. People think that to hide one’s thoughts or feelings is to pretend not to have those thoughts or feelings. They assume that honesty requires one to express every inclination and impulse.

Adapted from J. David Velleman, "The Genesis of Shame"

Should people make more of an effort to keep some things private? 

21st century is an era of technology where agility and might are the only dominating factors. The world has turned out to be a global village with the advent of internet communication. Just a click and you're connected to a pal in the extreme pole! A coin can't help but have obverse and reverse for it is the very essence of existence! The introduction of the all-pervading social networks has exposed the individuals. It has made exchange of ideas and innovations easy but at the same time has throttled the privacy of men. Certainly each individual must have his or her own private space.

J K Rowling said, "we do not need magic to transform our world, all the power that we need is already within us"! Each individual is intrinsically unique and is bestowed with a quality or a style that has never been replicated in the past or will never be! Thus each one of us has the right to keep certain things private. It is a proven fact in psychology that people of like minds and having similar patterns of thoughts understand one another better. The same paradigm is apparent in our age old adage - birds of like feather flock together! A jigsaw puzzle can only fit into its complement and not otherwise, howsoever hard I may try. Similarly, it is simply impossible for a man of other mettle to understand the plight of his mate, howsoever munificent he may be! For a stinky rich man, it is impossible to digest that having buttermilk is a luxury! The frequencies don't match and the signals get dissipated in vain! Therefore, it is necessary that certain things must not be exposed for none other than our own selves are capable of understanding it.

People often get fussy when it comes to sharing things in public. Sometimes it not only robs them of their self-respect but also poisons relationships. Gossiping is the original sin that exists in humanity ever since Adam ate the apple of knowledge. It is not apt to blame any single individual; neither you nor me. But nonetheless no one can deny the existence of garrulous lot of guys and girls that keep on rambling for no substantial reason. Not all matters are worth sharing in public. For instance, if I go bankrupt I will certainly not like the condescending attitude of my neighbors. Instead all that I would need is motivation. But the society is full of cynical people seeking for an opportunity to hail derides upon the wretched! Thus it is detrimental at certain points in time to share our hearts out in public.

Apart from that there are also times in life where sharing our predicaments with others would only make them more sorrowful. Gandhiji, the epitome of truth, said that it is not a sin to lie for the betterment of others! If such a man as him is asking us to respond to the spur of the moment, we must really sleep upon his avowal! Even amidst the doldrums, where the patient is hovering over the eerie borderline of no-return, the doctor will always try to create a cozy and heralding milieu for him or her to convalesce. In such a case if the doctor does share his mind, it would only serve to aggravate the destitute beyond recovery! 'The Last Leaf' by O' Henry is a perfect embodiment of the above mentioned scenario! Keeping things a secret at times is the only way out!

It is clear from the above assertions that privacy is an essential element for us all. Without privacy it is difficult to survive. It is not true that the relations are judged on 'how much' you ventilate but it all depends on 'what all' you ventilate! Quality gains primacy over quantity! Anything that serves for the well-being of others or for our own selves is salutary. In situations where privacy plays the mellifluous tones of magic, it indeed is a boon to mankind!