Insanity

Insanity itself as a word, and just like any other word, has a definition that states its meaning. Virtually defined as “the state of being seriously mentally ill; madness,” insanity seems to be a word that many run away from. One of those kind of taboo words that whenever you hear it in a conversation or a book or a movie, there is a hint of fear. A panic from the thought that someone could slip off so quickly and lose their mind, yet still a burning curiosity about the brain of that very person. What went wrong? What pushed them off the edge? What’s going on up there? Stemming from such a variety of thing from over exhaustion to over thinking, insanity is something that can be found all throughout our society despite our efforts to ignore it, and may have pushed people over the edge. However, it also pushes most people off into a plane that most humans haven’t explored. A different type of thinking and mental processes.The reality of it is that the person you sit next to on the bus everyday could be insane, or the bus driver themselves. So many people around you with nothing on the surface, but it is their minds that show. Insanity may be set in its predetermined dictionary definition, but when looking past this, what does this truly mean? Insanity can most definitely be “the state of being seriously mentally ill; madness,” but it should also relate back to the varying thought process from the typical human being whether that be good or bad.

The state of being insane or insanity as a whole is something that has an impactful stereotype within the world. Many see someone who is insane in the same hazy horror movie-esque way. A pristine white room coated in a layer or cushioned fabric from wall to wall. A person sitting criss-cross in the center of the chamber with a straight jacket wrapping their arms around their body as they laugh demonically in a wave of hysteria. Some examples of this may be some of your favorite horror movies such as Asylum, Madhouse, and more. This may as well be a very clear case of mental insanity, but what is the largest problem with defining insanity is that many like to generalize it. The minds of people are very different, and complex for the matter and the fact that you will never get to take a look inside, it makes it all too easy to say that someone isn’t insane. A prime example of this could be the film classic American Psycho.As viewers see the main character, the handsome Patrick Bateman live his life as a serial killer psychopath within, but hiding it behind his attractive and successful lifestyle, those are exposed to the fact that truly anyone could be insane and you would have no clue, as insanity has the ability to lay dormant in the mind whether it be good or bad.

Going back the previously stated statement, insanity pushes people off into a plane that most humans haven’t explored as it relates back to the varying thought processes from the typical human being. A different type of thinking and mental processes possibly good or bad. Thinking about the world and what is and what is not and why that is and why that isn’t. The normal beginning thoughts about how we all got here and going letting your mind wander on and on until you begin wondering about the bigger things that are harder to understand and even harder to try and think about. Insanity doesn’t have to be the complete loss of someone’s mind like everyone thinks, but just the ability to turn it off and on again. Thinking so deeply into something that you push all logic away from yourself after pondering on it too long. Or even pushing yourself too far until you snap and do something drastic like the fictional Patrick Bateman. A perfect example of this is within the movie Alice in wonderland with the Cheshire cat, as he fools around asking, “can you stand on your head?” and further explaining how, “you may have noticed that I’m not all there myself.” This childhood favorite is a perfect example of insanity, which is not always the alarming interpretation in your favorite horror movie, but having power over your own mind to sway it from reality to madness when you please as the cat goes on to tell of how, “If you would like to know, he [the white rabbit] went that way,” only for Alice to ask what way and for him to respond with, “what rabbit?” Bateman mastered this mind trick as he switched from professional businessman to murderer as well as the cheshire cat as he went from exhibiting his insanity to explaining it.

Insanity can be found in the very simple things that we see in life. The typical teenage reckless driver bobbing and weaving in between cars. The people who jump out of planes for fun just to feel the rush, and the people who live off of the fear that comes from sudden death. The adrenaline junkies of the world. They truly are the most insane due to the fact that they have the ability to keep a grasp on their mind while they continuously let it slip away, pushing away logic and natural instinct, and yet pull their minds back at the last minute. That kind of carelessness and that kind of risk that someone is willing make in order for their own feverish enjoyment is where the foggy topic of insanity sits, but we refuse to accept. Daredevil Nik Wallenda walking across the Grand Canyon in 2013 on a Tightrope just to see if he could do it.Even just the mainstream family going to six flags to go on the “death defying” coasters. All types of these actions come together to be the backbone of modern insanity,  as more people seek out the thrill of acts of insanity to push away reality and logic, each time wanting more and more from their adrenaline fueled head high, seeing how far they can push the limits of letting go of their mind.

Insanity as a whole may get very complex, but that does not hold it back from it being quite relevant within humanity whether we like it or not. Insanity has a set dictionary definition just as every other word in our world does, but does that mean that it relates only back to one thing? You can watch the local news every single day and maybe once see the story of someone getting convicted as insane. Yet, you could sleep next to someone for years who everyday their goal when they wake up is to find something that will satisfy their need for the thrill of risk. They search for something that will meet their desire to disregard the rhyme and reasoning of life and see how much pressure they can put themselves under and still come back alive. That person could be in your life right now and you’d still be watching the same horror movie scene of a mediocre actor in a straight jacket thinking, “this could never happen to me,” but the next time that you have that burning need in the pit of your stomach to perform a dauntless act as you mind begins to wonder and egg you on. “Don’t be a wuss, just do it.” Then know that you’re not very far away from insanity than you think. Look around and see the adrenaline junkie qualities that you have and you could maybe even see that you’re farther down the insanity rabbit hole than you believe.