Relaxation: Avoidance

After a long day of work or school, people tend to put on their comfort show to have peace of mind and relax their brains. Often it is inferred that the show could be comforting; That one might drift off and fantasize what life would be like if they had a life like their chosen comfort show. When one gets to the point that they fantasize it’s defined as escapism. Escapism is seeking a distraction or relief when the realities of life become too much. Most psychologists would say that it’s not healthy and we should deal with our problems head-on but sometimes we as people need a break with dealing with our problems and confronting them right away is not on the agenda. Another example college is becoming overwhelming assignments are piling up and the feeling of drowning starts to creep up. Instead of taking a step back and then resuming, we take the avoiding route whether it’s watching TV or listening to our favorite music genre. Escapism is the art of avoiding going to your happy place when everything else around you is too hard to bear at that moment.

For me, during that rough time, my escapism show was A Different World. It’s a classic American sitcom aired in the late 80’s to the early 90’s. A Different World is about teenagers from different states all attending the HBCU Hillman. The plot follows these five teenagers Whitley Gilbert, Dwayne Wayne, Ron Johnson, Kimberly Reese, and Jalessa Vinson-Taylor as they go through college. Throughout the show, it touches on topics like domestic abuse, feminism, wars, and racism. Even with the hard-to-talk-about topics it includes love, friendship, and the idea of family. It was my escapism show because back in the 80’s there were problems but not like they are now. Back in the 80’s women were respected and didn’t have to chase. The guys were gentlemen and knew how to pursue a lady. There was a girl named Freddy and she was all about the enviornment which is now in danger. Eighties had problems but they were not the issues we face now. A Different World has me imagining what life would be like if I was born in the eighties to early nineties. Escapism for me and the show was the era it was produced in. Back to the tough topic but humor added to make it lighthearted. Season Six episode eleven is about helping inner city kids but Dwayne who graduated college and is a teacher now get’s these two boys but they rep different streets which means they have a issue with each other. Dwayne is trying to drill into these kids head that they can be more than the streets. At the end of the episode they do a presentation about what they aspire to be when they grow up by rapping and people dancing concluding that episode. African Americans kids killing each other over their street identity is hard to talk about so A Different World found a way to incorporate that pressing and still a current issue.

Escapism can be anything that causes you relief and distracts you from unpleasant realities. In this case, TV is the most common example of escapism and how it operates. Whenever you have a bad day think about what relaxes you but don’t do it too much or you will fall into the trance of dreaming away your problems. Every once in a while imagining how life would be is not so bad if you can differentiate the reality.

Escapism is something that we as people do when things get to be too much. Well, that’s commonly the cause of escapism. Are there other causes for escapism besides escaping the real world? Other things could be an escape for you like music. But I am getting off-topic causes of Escapism are simple situations that get overwhelming and go to your comfort place allowing you to dream what life would be like if you were in that show or could relate to that song.

Escapism happens when you need a life change or just want to escape from your reality. The perfect example of when you want to escape your reality the most is when a long-time lover decides that it’s just not working for them anymore. So a natural reaction to that life-altering decision is to crawl into bed eat ice cream and watch romantic movies because it puts you into the mindset when you feel loved by that person. One could also turn to music that reminds you of them and puts you in a happy place but, you don’t do it for a long time and have to face the music eventually. Escapism is good if you know that eventually you have to snap back to reality and get through the pain. For a break up escapism is not the best solution but that’s besides the point it’s just one the causes for escapism.

Escapism is most prominent when our mental health is decreasing to the point that we want to get away stated by Matthias Hastall in his academic essay “Escapism”. Instagram plays a part in escapism; we see influencers living their lives and start to wonder when will I get to the point of no worries. We see our friends post but the explore page and watching streams is what our mind wants in this state of mind called “avoidance”(Kircaburun&Griffiths 2018). Exhaustion is a cause of escapism when pushes the limits so much that scrolling on social media is the only way you relax (Hastall 2017). Virtual Reality a technology that allows people to immerse theirselves in the game it feels real to them. The realness of this technology can lead to escapim because it manipulates your mind that if overindulged in human interaction is unessecary (Siricharoen 2019). There is no need to go outside and enjoy what life has to offer if I have it all right here. “The experience of incarceration is antithetical to rehabilitation, but embodied escapism makes space for feelings of freedom”(Luttrull 2023). The year 2020 society could relate this quote because all we did was stay in our house and just dream about when outside will open again.

Now that we that talked about one cause of escapism which in my opinion is the most common but onto the next which is finals week. Finals week could be the most stressful or breeze of a week for college students depending on which one you are. Either way finals week is stressful and to decompress that rock on your shoulder music is the way. Music could also be your motivation to be productive and study or could be your downfall because you are so engrossed in the music. A music genre that makes one fantasize is the 90s and 2000s because life was good and simple and not so dangerous. If listening to that type of music it causes you to visualize what life would have been like if not born in that era. Especially for girls it has you fantasize about that 90’s type of love.

It was not mentioned but traveling is a part of escapism as well as a way to leave reality completely. This type of escapism could be caused by anything overwhelming job, college life, or just a life change in general. Traveling gives you a sense of peace and a new perspective on your life. When you come back you feel rejuvenated and ready to jump back into the world. College life is hard and can be mentally draining so traveling is a solution to ease the brain, a nice little break.

There are many causes for escapism it comes with life and if that’s your coping mechanism. The ones mentioned above are the most common because life can change at any time. With what’s going on in Palestine now is a time when people turn on something other than the news. Not to completely be oblivious to what’s going on but to have an emotional break from what is happening. Shows that have serious issues in them but have some humor to them that barely make you notice the problem at hand. If you are a part of the escapism audience think about what causes you to drift off and what you turn to.

Escapism is a way to detach from reality. The opposite of escapism is realism. Realism is being in the state of mind always being immersed in reality. Just like too much escapism is bad for your mental health always being a realist is not so great either. Being a realist is like always being in a negative mindset. People who are realists do not dream or see positivity in things that seem unusual. Escapism is looked at as a negative word but if rephrased as refueling it sounds like life is too hard and one just needs to take a step back (Allan 2015).

The model of rationality employed in this argument is then extended to practical rationality, and it is argued that entrenched escapism is pragmatically irrational as well, unless it compensates for other irrationalities elsewhere in a person, as, for instance, when a person must avoid certain facts to avoid succumbing irrationally to despair, or unless it compensates for the effects of an environment in which it is otherwise impossible for an optimally functioning person to survive emotionally. While I understand what Mr. John LongWay author of the journal “The Rationality Of Escapism and Self-Deception” is stating about escapism being a type of coping mechanism he’s also stating that it’s acceptable for a long period based on the person’s emotional stability. Recently, Andrei Buckareff and Allen Plug I proposed a theory of hell called escapism stated by Russell E. Jones as a argument to Zagzebski about how escapism could relate to hell. I don’t agree with escapism being related to a open door to hell because escapism is used as a coping mechanism it’s not used to patronize a person’s state of mind. Escapism might have an undesirable side effect. Although escapism is detachment from reality just simply taking a breather will not result in undesirable effects.

Based on the evidence presented escapism is neither a good nor bad thing but too much of it can alter your mental health like anything else that is overindulged. It is good to have a break but don’t make it a habit. In other words, escapism can be anything that has you fantasize and take a load off. It could range from fantasy books, music, playing games, and scrolling down social media. A psychological state of mind is where escapism thrives. Escapism causes relief and distracts you from unpleasant realities. The relief that forgetting all your problems is addicting and can result in a mindset of a fantasy world. There is nothing wrong with taking a break from reality it makes life just a little bit more bearable. Whenever you have a bad day think about what relaxes you but don’t do it too much or you will fall into the trance of dreaming away your problems. Every once in a while imagining how life would be is not so bad if you can differentiate the reality.

References

Notebook, D. V. (2023, August 31). The Psychology of Escapism: Why Do People Choose to Escape? Medium. https://davincisnotebook.medium.com/the-psychology-of-escapism-why-do-people-choose-to-escape-7379977f075b

Luttrull, Grace Jane, “Embodied Escapism: Liberation Within Incarceration” (2023). Dance/Movement Therapy Theses. 88.
https://digitalcommons.slc.edu/dmt_etd/88

Hastall, M. R. (2017). Escapism. The International Encyclopedia of Media Effects, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118783764.wbieme0154

Siricharoen, W. (2019). Association for Information Systems AIS Electronic Library (AISeL) The Effect of Virtual Reality as a form of Escapism The Effect of Virtual Reality as a form of Escapism (pp. 5–2019). https://aisel.aisnet.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=confirm2019

Luttrull, G. (2023). Embodied Escapism: Liberation Within Incarceration. Dance/Movement Therapy Theses. https://digitalcommons.slc.edu/dmt_etd/88/

Allan, P. (2015, August 10). How to Snap Back to Reality when. Lifehacker. https://lifehacker.com/how-to-snap-back-to-reality-when-escapism-becomes-av-1723091630#:~:text=Escapism%20doesn

John , L. L.(2023). The Rationality of Escapism and Reality . Jstor.org

Jones , R. E. (2023). Escapism and Luck . Jstor.org.

References

Luttrull, Grace Jane, “Embodied Escapism: Liberation Within Incarceration” (2023). Dance/Movement Therapy Theses. 88. https://digitalcommons.slc.edu/dmt_etd/88

Hastall, M. R. (2017). Escapism. The International Encyclopedia of Media Effects, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118783764.wbieme0154

Siricharoen, W. (2019). Association for Information Systems AIS Electronic Library (AISeL) The Effect of Virtual Reality as a form of Escapism The Effect of Virtual Reality as a form of Escapism (pp. 5–2019). https://aisel.aisnet.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=confirm2019

Luttrull, G. (2023). Embodied Escapism: Liberation Within Incarceration. Dance/Movement Therapy Theses. https://digitalcommons.slc.edu/dmt_etd/88/

Allan, P. (2015, August 10). How to Snap Back to Reality when. Lifehacker. https://lifehacker.com/how-to-snap-back-to-reality-when-escapism-becomes-av-1723091630#:~:text=Escapism%20doesn