Charlyboy: The Gothic Me

The gothic mind is a limitless mind but you may choose to refer to me as creepy and weird. Why don’t you call me an individual with no particular direction? I’m here, far from you because the society has a limited philosophy and ideology. I stand afar from the scene because; I wouldn’t want to be limited by its inability to get out of the box. I want to remain outside of that limited-tiny box. Your world is too small for me to exist. I need a better space, even beyond the horizon. FREEDOM! Yes, freedom is all I seek, to simply break out of societal constriction. I’m unwaveringly flying like an urufia bird; you don’t know that name, because you are not free.

To start the story of my freedom, you must know this. Simply put, the society is a group of people with collective interest, though this could vary from community to community. However, every society must have collective ideas on morality, ethics and politics. Lord Devlin said, “the bonds which holds a society together are not physical but invisible bonds of common thought. If the bonds of a society were too far relaxed, members would drift apart. A common, morality is part of the bondage. The bondage is part of the price of the society; and mankind which needs society, must pay its price.”

But far from it, the Australian Values Study Section 35 submits, “one of the greatest problems of our time however, is that elites in politics, society, media and even in some religious organizations have turned their backs on the traditional conceptions of right and wrong. Some have done so deliberately- others support ideas and causes which have (for them) the unintended effect of undermining values to which they are committed.”

My fear however in this article as relatively tied to the above values study, is that if the institutors of these values and laws break them every now and then, how can other members of the society adhere or stay committed to these values and laws? A question, we can’t discard in this our “yarn”

 Based on the Judeo-Christian section 18:2, “people have to feel connected to a shared moral community. There is a yearning for morality that invariably is genetic-and far too many of us in this society have a hole in our souls because, day to day, it just isn’t there.”

Though laws and values are necessary factors in the society to help curtail anarchy, how do we justify that these common laws and values instituted by some cabal in the society are actually what truly defines one as living right or wrong? And how those following a particular trend or pattern determine your being right or wrong?

The society gave a structure of how life should be lived so there would be order, it didn’t state that we all must use the same pattern to arrive at what we all term as moral.

In every society, there are a set of people who stand out, regardless of any situation, they like to be referred to as the free thinkers or the gothic minds. Goths are mostly individuals who live their lives the way they want to, not conforming to a particular style; the way most people are subjected or told to live their lives. They are a group of people who listen and make up their own minds rather than accept the moral rules of the society because they are told to do so. Because many people are conformed to one style of living, these free thinkers are often rejected in the society. Many people have developed a misconception of who goths are, a lot of people term them as satanic or cultists because of their mode of dressing or approach to certain things in life. Fundamentally speaking, these are not true. Being different, taking another pattern, living their lives regardless of what others think does not make this free thinkers immoral or devoid of values. They only do what they do, the way they know how to do it. Goths have open mind and that’s what makes them unique and exceptional, they’ve refused to have enclosed minds like every other person in the society. These people are intelligent, they see beyond what ordinary eyes can see. Being a goth does not require any specific qualification, goths all have different interest, hobbies, fashion sense, religion, different occupation such as doctors, lawyers, tradesmen, even down to the common man. Their life style may vary, but their exceptional way of reasoning, their free way of thinking makes them stand out. Believably true, most goths have a high level of intelligent quotient. Because their thinking is quite deep, the public see them as weird, but that’s the beautiful path of being a goth. There are never afraid of coming out openly about who they really are or how they feel. Sadly, Undisputable is the fact that goths are people like everyone else even though they are distinct. Can the society freely express what bothers it without having some gothic traits? How can we ask political leaders questions when we conceal our thoughts in pretense? I express myself, and I ask question, because I want to be free at all time.

The brand, my brand has survived the test of time, because of its eccentricity and its ability to reason outside the box, process and analyze anything it hears or sees (Politics or whatever). Many have misconstrued who I’m, ‘but I no send una’. Some people are against why I act young, dress young or look young. Is there any rule that we must act certain ways when we get to certain age and what makes people think acting old when you are old justifies your being morally upright? Being different, doesn’t make anyone demonic. The fact is that even people, who might be demonic, do not go for a public display of it. Why is my supposed demonic power always in the glare of the public?

 Being free minded and distinct has made me to ask certain pressing questions, ordinary people cannot ask, making my brand an invaluable material that continues to be of  befit to our nation, our youth.

 The reasons our society has seized to grow are because, a lsot of Nigerian youth are docile, they accept everything they are told and swallow hook line and sinker, and they can’t sit up and make decisions for themselves. They are so afraid to ask questions even though everything is obviously going wrong.

The society is being raped by the government, but no one is aggressively asking questions. The youth have allowed their fates to be tied to leaders who in a free world do not exist. If only Nigerian youth could imbibe exceptional minds like the gothic minds and refuse to be subjected to frivolous societal rules. If only they knew, they can succeed with just freedom on their palm. Our society currently needs people who wouldn’t just settle for anything. People with the ability to decide for themselves what is true and what’s not. We need people with independent minds, despite the societal cord that ties everyone together.

But it is quite pathetic that intelligent and reasonable people have out of fear committed this nation into the hands of miscreants and misfits. The gurus at home and in diaspora should come return in search of freedom. The most sorry part, is how these evil perpetrators often meet to scheme new ideas while those who should be at the helm of affairs are nowhere to be found.

For a better society, people need to take responsibility, as it is the foundation of any leadership. When people run away from what they should do and lose hope to power mongers, then things might never change. We all must be willing to participate, only then can we push out leaders who are only in power to protect their own interest, and not for the freedom of the rest of us.

Also, there needs to be attitudinal change. Things need to revolve. Our youth need to think aggressively (not negatively). There is no need to be paralyzed with fear.

In this journey and quest for freedom, brainteasers need to come together and form alliance. There is a need for networking amongst like minds, to draw a plan and strategize on how this nation can properly run. Structures should be set up to automatically work against any bad governance or leadership. I Advocate for gothism, even as I remain gothic. This is my plea, a plea from the heart. Fight for your freedom today.