Journal #8

Q: What does it mean to be an outcast? Describe a time when you felt very uncomfortable and out of place. Why must society have outcasts?

If a person is considered an outcast, it means that they have been rejected in some way by society or even just a group. An outcast feels out of place and no one wants to be around them because of their low social status. There was a time I had a feeling similar to this, when I switched schools in elementary school. I was so used to being friends with the same people, and everyone at my new school seemed reluctant to become my friend because they already had established their own groups. I was very shy at that point as well, so it didn’t help the situation. Thankfully, I recovered from being a pariah, but some people have much trouble doing so. I believe that society has to have outcasts because no one can be exactly the same, and people have the tendency to single out a one person to feel superior. If it’s a big group who rejects this person, then everyone follows along with the ‘boss’ and does the same thing as well. There are many forms of being an outcast and everyone’s definition of it varies, but the main definition of the term is that a person is rejected from society.