On Asociality
What it means to be an extreme introvert
Human culture is built on our ability to communicate with one another. Social life is considered to be a top priority for most people. But what happens when there are people who don’t seem to value it as much?
A large chunk of the population considers themselves introverted. But a subset of these introverts might classify themselves as extreme introverts — even to the point of using the term asocial.
These are people who simply would rather not engage in social interaction. So, in a society that also values autonomy and freedom, doesn’t it seem like a cruel joke to force someone to interact with others when they don’t want to?
The problem is, we’ve built a world where social interaction is a prerequisite for everything. To dig deeper into this dilemma, it’s important to look at some assumptions about social life that many people might take for granted.
Assumptions about social life
- It is healthy to socialize.
- It is necessary to judge and critique others.
- It is unavoidable to be the object of another’s attention.
Now, let’s break down these points a bit further so that we might challenge these assumptions.
