Word: self
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...delightful cuisines, the elegant fashion and, of course, the seductive men. Last week, as I sat in my Anthro seminar, lost as usual in daydreams of Paris and Milan, I was struck with a peculiar epiphany. Surprisingly enough, my biased idealization of European culture translates quite nicely into a self-serving comparison between Europe and the Quad. Though initially you may scoff at this unlikely analogy, it is a convenient means to convince myself and others that my life in Currier is second in glamour only to life in the City of Lights. Really, the evidence abounds...
...quite the same as the original product. For example, Temple Bar can't compare to Grafton Street any better than Euro Disney can compete with prototype theme-parks in Anaheim or Orlando. Maybe this copy-phenomenon explains our latent insecurities, which oftentimes induce an inferiority complex hidden by rampant self-justification or over-inflated egos (as exhibited in this article). Like the Academie Francaise, clinging to an exaggerated notion of French linguistic purity, Quad residents are prone to overcompensate for self-doubt inspired by the general consensus that our locale may not be as ideal as we might wish...
Confronting a loss of something or someone so essential to one's sense of self that it seems impossible to go on without it is the second reason people may consider suicide. This may also occur when one feels unable to live up to the expectations of others--the expectations that may have also come to define one's own sense of self-esteem. The third is the situation in which a major mental disturbance leads to delusional thinking and loss of reality testing, leaving one vulnerable to irrational concepts of the consequences of self-destructive behavior...
Whatever the motivation, all suicidal behavior must be taken seriously since self-destructive behavior can be carried out without a good knowledge of anatomy or pharmacology, and a cry for help can inadvertently turn into a terminal event. As I mentioned before, the knowledge that there is someone who cares and is responsive is often life saving, but it should be seen only as a first step--as a conduit to professional resources. Experienced clinicians can help the individual keep options open and better understand the underlying troubles and conflicts and the range of realistic choices that life...
...decade. Charlotte, a coddled housewife taken hostage by Jake, a punk bank robber, is a dream part, with the sort of sly comedic opportunities Sarandon hasn't had since Bull Durham. On the lam, Charlotte and Jake (a sweetly bumbling Stephen Dorff) are soon on the road to self-discovery. If their inner journey becomes too predictable (she loosens up; he starts to pull himself together; they sort of fall for each other), never mind. Sarandon and Dorff are a sexy, odd pair, and you almost hope they buck common sense and set up house...