Being True to Oneself
The Pantheon, Rome, AD ca.126.
THE RIGHT ANGLE JOURNAL
Recently, I visited the original Rosetta Stone at the British Museum. It occupies a large glass case, roped off to stop the intrigued viewer from getting too close. Nearby is a replica stone, reconstructed to represent the original form of the stone. You can run your fingers along the writing, and interact with others who marvel at its language insights. Is the Rosetta Stone reconstruction authentic?
If the British Museum were to present the reconstruction as the original, it would be inauthentic, and if visitors, consciously or unconsciously, discerned the fakery, they might leave feeling uneasy and somehow cheated.
One definition of “authentic” is “genuine,…not a fake or forgery.” We could argue that the Rosetta replica is genuine – a replica of the original, as advertised – provided that we understand that it’s a replica. Similarly, Victorian reproduction homes are authentic replications of Victorian houses, but they are inauthentic when they claim to be actually Victorian. Few people would believe that a Victorian house in a new suburban subdivision in Willowdale or New Westminster is a genuine Victorian-era structure – it is no more than what it claims to be.
Another definition of “authentic” is “being true to oneself.” A mock Victorian building is true to itself because it has a qualifier, just as Neogothic is not Gothic, and a reproduction Norman Rockwell is not an original. A person might say “I’m not myself to day” or “I don’t feel right,” which is another way of saying, “This doesn’t feel like my true self – the authentic me.”
We’ve seen examples of this lately in the news: prominent people accused of inauthenticity, because we sense that they are hiding behind barriers or masks, making it difficult for us to know who they truly are – their authentic selves.
If being true to oneself is an essential component of authenticity, then museum displays, architecture, and people only need to avoid misleading masks and labels and declare their true identity. Illusion and fantasy are acceptable as long as we are aware of them. If we are not, we are entering a realm of delusion and a dangerous loss of reality.