Flawlessly Human

“I am human, I am human, and I will let you down.” So ends the Brian Buckley Band’s song, ‘I Am Human’. What exactly does it mean to be human? There has always been a high level of importance on self-awareness. Our generations, and many others, have realized this. Many other civilizations before us have realized this as well. It is important to know that we are flawed, and that it is okay.

One great example is the Greeks. A lot of their city-states were very self-obsessed, but as a whole they were a pretty self-aware civilization. They knew what it meant to be human. It shows in their paintings and writing. The women in most Greek art are not as thin as twigs, like we see in magazines and on television nowadays. The artists were not afraid to paint their women this way. They wanted to paint the truth, and the truth was that not all the women back then were incredibly fit like most of the males. Just take a look at any painting depicting the story of Leda and the Swan. Their women were portrayed as rounder, fuller, and curvier than most of the women in magazines and on billboards in today’s society. It’s okay to not be perfect physically. Everyone’s bodies are built differently, and that’s just the way it is.

It is also okay to not be perfect mentally or emotionally. Some great examples of these are many of the stories in Greek mythology. Their own gods had many similar human characteristics. They were selfish, vengeful, easily angered; yet at the same time they could also be humble, kind, caring, and helpful. Their tempers and attitudes could change rather quickly, just like ours can. Zeus, the god of the gods, is a perfect example. At times he would be very angry at humanity, and would wreak havoc. Other times he would spare the Greeks his wrath. Not only are their gods not perfect, but most of their heroes aren’t as well. For example, Odysseus from Homer’s The Odyssey, has quite a few flaws. First of all, he cries, a lot. Odysseus is very emotional. Secondly he’s not that forgiving; the fact that he kills all of the suitors and all of his disloyal servants without waiting for further explanation from them proves this point. The Greek’s heroes and gods, the people they looked up to and strived to be like, weren’t perfect.

When we are young, we look up to our parents and see someone who we might want to be when we grow up. In our little, naïve eyes, our parents are perfect. There’s no way they can do anything wrong. It’s only when we grow up that we realize that we were incorrect. Our parents are human, just like we are.

Now, sometimes, it’s hard to accept that these flaws are okay. A lot of girls in today’s society have a self-esteem problem. Some boys probably also have this problem as well. At the age we are now, we tend to focus on our imperfections. That we’re not skinny enough, or our face isn’t clear enough, or that we’re too pale for our own good. All of these thoughts, and many, many more, are constantly going through many people’s minds at various points throughout the day. Yes, people accept the fact that they’re not as smart as someone else, but they’re not willing to accept that it’s okay. Being flawed is being human.

In other cases, people are too ignorant to admit that they have flaws. Take my father for example; he’s convinced that he is always right. There is never a time when we’re having a discussion about any topic that he doesn’t have an answer and that his answer is never not right. I’m not saying that he lies about it; that his answers aren’t actually correct. It’s just that he gets too cocky at times. Every once in a while we’ll catch him off guard and he will make a mistake. Thankfully he corrects himself, and apologizes, but that rarely ever happens. Odysseus shows this same ignorance when he is with the Cyclops in the cave. He thinks he is so clever, hiding under the sheep to escape the Cyclops. But once he is back on his boat, he begins to taunt the creature. Saying how his father, Poseidon, doesn’t even accept him as his own child; and that Poseidon isn’t a god at all; he also goes as far as to start filling his own ego, saying how great he is. Odysseus ends up giving out too much personal information, telling the Cyclops where he lives even. The Greeks have a word for this: hubris. It’s great to be confident in yourself. But sometimes it can get a little out of control. This, in itself, whether people like it or not, is a flaw.

We’re human, so we should know what it means to be us. This is something that needs to be said. It’s something that you can’t put enough stress on. We’re flawed, whether we like it or not, and there’s really nothing we can do about that. Brian Buckley’s song continues, “Don’t you interest yourself in the things you cannot change… I am human and I will let you down.”