Afterword

This was an interesting one to write. A lot of it was off the top of my head, a culmination of my learning. It relies on my other work, Never Have I Ever: Kinks, which might have been a bit too long or a bit too adult for some to read. Consider this the post-reflection of that paper, as I have learned from it (and all the other papers).

Overall, this paper voices something that I’ve known for a long time. I don’t flow with society, but my resistance to it can manifest as something beautiful, something new.

My constant re-watches of Dr. Seuss’ The Sneetches on Netflix has instilled something beautiful in me. It tells a hopeful story about two friends from unfamiliar and openly divisive backgrounds who refuse to let those divisions define them. They were each raised to believe very different things about who was right, who was wrong, and who belonged, yet both actively reject what they were taught. Their connection is not subtle or passive. It is visible, confident, and unapologetic.

What resonates with me is how clearly the story shows resistance without replacement. They do not trade one rigid ideology for another, nor do they look for a leader to tell them what to think next. They choose each other, and they choose themselves, in a world that keeps trying to pull everyone into louder and more extreme positions. In a time when society feels increasingly radicalized from all sides, The Sneetches offers something rare: a reminder that you can refuse inherited divisions, resist group pressure, and still move forward with warmth, conviction, and humanity.

Whether you’re a rigid individualist like myself, or align yourself to a group: Try to take a step back. A fresh breather may be all you need to continue on with informed intent.