I think it's safe to say that we are all vain in some ways. In fact, it's natural for human beings to be vain to some extent. Vanity can act as a self-defense mechanism and moderate levels of vanity can even contribute to higher levels of self-confidence, self-worth and happiness.
Numerous psychological studies have researched vanity's effects on human beings. One study found that a large majority of college students consider themselves more intelligent than the "average" college student. Hopefully, as a Dartmouth student, you can see that this just doesn't add up.
In fact, natural selection and evolution took great care to ensure that the concept of physical attractiveness remained vital to human beings, especially in the process of finding a mate. As a result, most of us like to think that we are at least moderately attractive. Since the physical attractiveness of a population follows the shape of a bell curve, however, we can't possibly all be stunningly beautiful. But thanks to vanity, most humans are able to perceive themselves as being at least reasonably attractive, even though self-ratings of physical attractiveness tend to be inflated.
So vanity has its fair share of benefits. But now it's time to ask the more important question: what are the pitfalls of vanity?
Vanity has a wealth of dangers. As I see it, vanity is a form of greed and an overindulgence of the self. Vanity leads to downfall when people become too distracted by their own image, abilities or attractiveness to act appropriately towards others. When a person commits more time to his own persona, he necessarily devotes less time to other people. Vanity can be debilitating when it detracts from our relationships with others.
Although I can't be sure that levels of vanity are higher at Dartmouth than at other colleges, vanity is clearly evident across campus (think: facetime, the gym, self-calls, A-side/B-side). Additionally, the hook-up culture at Dartmouth is a clear form of vanity, as it gives an overly strong emphasis on physical attraction and an unnatural importance to social status. I most clearly see the danger of vanity in its power to prevent meaningful, significant and sustainable human relations. I have witnessed the severing of relationships, hidden pain and awkwardness that coincide directly with the hook-up culture at Dartmouth and it's not pretty.
Vanity has the power to prey on anyone and everyone, as it can entice even the noblest of people to depart from decency.
A Dartmouth degree often regarded as a ticket to success and comfort can also be a symbol of danger. As we move away from Dartmouth and on to our future careers, we need to be careful of the dangers that can lurk in our shadows as college graduates. Although fulfilling human drives for success is a key element to ensuring happiness, it's important to keep our own vanities in check as many of us move on to be consultants, hedge fund managers, newspaper editors and advertising executives. Vanity can lead humans to abuse power and opportunity, but if we're careful we can prevent ourselves from overindulging in narcissism and utilize positive and beneficial methods of wielding the power granted to us in our future endeavors.
Ultimately, vanity has become so ingrained in the human condition that it may be near impossible to discover all of its deep complexities, causes and consequences. But let us be more attentive: vanity is more prevalent than we may think and there are mirrors everywhere.
