Critical Thinking: Is Celebrity Worship A Sign Of How Emotionally Undeveloped The Western World Is?

In just about every country in the western world, very few people class themselves as religious. At the same time, the people who are coming into this part of the world from Africa and the Middle East, for instance, are often religious.

Therefore, while religion is on its way out in this part of the world, this might not be the case as time goes by. Due to the low birth rates and the amount of children that these people often have, the western world could end up being extremely religious.

The Same Dynamic

But if with what may or might not happen in the future is put to one side, it wouldn’t be right to say that people in the western world no longer worship anyone or anything. If anything, this is something that still takes place.

What is different, however, is that someone in the sky has been replaced by people who are actually walking the earth. In some cases, this will relate to a sports star and, in others, it will relate to an actor/actress or a singer.

A Superior Being

When one looks up to someone like this, they can end up seeing them as someone who is above them. This is not to say that they will say something like this in their mind as it is more likely to be something that they will express through their behaviour

Each day of their life, they could spend a fair amount of time thinking about a celebrity and they could look through their social media page/s if there is one. This other person is then going to be a fellow human being, yet it will be as though they are from another planet.

Fantasizing

One could imagine what it would be like to know someone like this personally and how different their life would be if they did. Thus, while numerous people would like to be blessed by the pope, for instance, one would most likely like someone like this to bless them.

One will see this person as having things that no other person has, which is why they are so special. And if one doesn’t feel this way about one person, there may be a number of people who they look up to.

All in the Same Boat

It won’t be hard for someone like this to find other people who also see certain celebrities in the same way. If a celebrity is on social media, there will be plenty of comments from other people who are just as enamoured with them.

Still, while celebrity worship has replaced the old form of worship for a lot of people in the western world, these kinds of people rarely provide someone with a solid set of morals. In a lot of cases, these type of people promote the complete opposite; or they can merely parrot whatever ‘morals’ the establishment wants them to support, with can take place through endless virtue signalling.

Back To Reality

Nonetheless, just because one can perceive a celebrity as being more-than human, it doesn’t mean that there is any truth to this. Ultimately, the people who they look up to are inherently no different to them.

Sure, they might be more physically attractive, have more money and be better at something than they are, but these are all surface level things. Deep down, one will be made of the same stuff and have the same amount of value.

An Illusion

The reason that they see this person as being superior to them is likely to be due to what they project onto them. This person is then just another human being, but thanks to the unrealised parts of themselves that they have unconsciously placed into them, it is not possible for them to realise this.

For example, one can feel worthless and incapable, which can cause them to see someone like this as being extremely valuable and capable. If they were to no longer feel this way and were to embrace their own value and potential, they may no longer feel the need to place these people on a pedestal.

Emotional Growth

The reason one feels this way is likely to be the result of the inner wounds that they are carrying. Perhaps their early years were a time when they didn’t get the kind of care that they needed in order to develop in the right way.

Once these inner wounds are healed and they are able to emotionally grow up, it will be possible for them to see these people are their fellow human beings. Now, this doesn’t mean that one will no longer appreciate what they do; what it is likely to mean is that they will no longer see them as godlike figures.

An Overlooked Area

If the education system provided emotional guidance and showed people what needed to be done to develop emotionally, perhaps one would have grown out of their desire to worship celebrities. But as it is generally the mind that is educated or indoctrinated even, it means that this part of one’s being is typically ignored.

It is then going to be perfectly normal for one to be an emotionally undeveloped adult, who sees celebrities as possessing traits that they themselves don’t have. Greatness is then going to be something that is in other people but not in them.

Conclusion

It is highly unlikely that anyone on this planet is here to focus on how great other people are, while neglecting their own greatness. The sooner they spend less time focusing on celebrities and focus on their own strengths and do what they can to develop themselves, the sooner they will be able to live a life that is worth living as opposed to vicariously living through other people.
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Along with this, healing their own inner wounds will also allow them to become a more integrated human being. External support may be needed here to enable one to believe in themselves and to work through their inner wounds.

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Oliver JR Cooper
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