a.k.a. V.J.

All of the disruptions caused by COVID were a massive global trauma, but I did experience some positive consequences from it. During the lockdowns, with all that time to think, unencumbered by previous habits, I became more introspective. I started to examine all of my counterproductive behaviors, assumptions, and attitudes. That self-examination took me in a lot of different directions, but one in particular was recognizing the extent to which I had traditionally defined myself in terms of negative space.

While negative space is a concept associated with the visual arts, I’m thinking of it more in psychological terms; the idea of saying, “I am not (fill in the blank).” Through most of my life, I always had a clear idea of what or who I was against. I understood the battle lines between myself and the perceived threats, the beliefs that set me apart from whatever I thought was ruining society at any given moment. The problem was, I never gave a lot of thought to what I was for.

I am hardly alone in that tendency. Negative space is the defining feature of modern (and not so modern) American politics. From Anti-Federalists to Anti-Slavery to Anti-War to Anti-Nuclear to Anti-Communists to Antifa, so many movements appeal to the public based on what they oppose. Research shows that approach works, and the American electorate tends to vote against candidates they hate rather than for candidates they like.

The world of marketing is also rife with examples. For years, Seven-Up built its brand around the idea of being “The Uncola.” Credit unions trip over themselves to tell you how they are not the same as banks. Mac famously positioned themselves against unappealing stereotypes of PCs and their users. When I was studying advertising in graduate school, a particularly colorful copywriting professor advised the class that the most powerful tactic we could employ in copy strategy was to “find an enemy and cut his balls off.”

It really comes down to the way humans are wired. Psychologists tell us that social comparison is a major driver of how we come to think of ourselves. It is natural and inevitable for us to use this negative space approach, but I don’t think we should stop there, and all too often we do just that. That’s the lazy way out. It’s easy to find enemies. If you want something to be angry about, you’ll never have to look very hard. But being for something… just being something in the affirmative is hard. It can be uncomfortable for a person like me to even think about.

One day, I did a little thought experiment. I asked myself that if all the things that I had traditionally defined myself against — all the villains and bogeymen — went away, what would be left in the place where I stood? Would there be some core of virtue or even a coherent central idea there, or would that space just be a formless void? I didn’t like the answer I arrived at.

Since then, I’ve been trying (not always succeeding) to concentrate on coming up with a better answer. I’m trying to focus my thoughts on figuring out what I like, appreciate, celebrate, and support; to seek out those things. That’s part of what I’m trying to accomplish with this blog. If I can’t fill that negative space with anything else, I’ll cram it with words.