The Other

Otherness is a feeling on the outside. That internal dread that sinks to the bottom of your stomach like a rock in water. For some it might be simply walking past a group in the halls. It might be trying to fit in with your coworkers. It might be trying to appear like you know what you're doing at the gym. It might be actual ostracism that is conditioned throughout the threads of life. The Other dwells at the gates of difference. Otherness difference tends to be cultural, political, racial, economic, or sexual.

I truly don't mean for this post to be a bummer lol, hopefully it won't, but the concept of the Other is one all too familiar, and interesting to dissect once you notice it in more than just life. The term "other" essentially defines another side of something not so well known. Usually a marginalized or oppressed group/individual. Othering is a form of narrative structure in media that exposes the mechanisms behind exclusion and control—often paralleled to modern day. The act of "othering" in literature or other media's is when people, civilizations, or entire society are portrayed as essentially inferior, dangerous, or alien, perpetuating a stigma such as "us vs. them." Themes of identity, power, and belonging have been explored and critiqued using this strategy. For example, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (analysis coming soon wink wink) portrays the creature as a literal and symbolic "other"—a being shunned by society, thus reflecting anxieties about the unknown in everyday life. Shakespeare's Othello, written and set in Elizabethan England mind you, used cultural and racial "othering" to emphasize the social lack of acceptance about race and the foreign "other" side. Though gut-wrenching works of art have been born from the feeling of the Other, we wonder, why is it considered Other in the first place?

It is no secret that works of art tend to parallel modern day, so the concept of Othering did not sprout from thin air. While most examples are represented within literature and media, it is not always done in such a large way. Sometimes it will be ostracizing a classmate, leaving out a new coworker, or feeling left out because your beliefs differ from those in your friend group. In my opinion, I do believe othering began with colonization and the belief colonizers held that the inhabitants of the newly discovered land suddenly needed "correction." It's horrible to automatically assume that someone with different cultural traditions than you, is inferior and simply mUsT need "civilizing." Thus, most Western literature is what became most popular and preached those same ideals—creating an oppressed marginalized group. This same blue print happened over and over and over. Whether it was gender, or sexuality, or economic status (things that cannot be helped by the way), and while school does educate the repercussions of those predetermined biases, it doesn't reach you the same way as literature or a great movie can. Recognizing what "othering" looks like in media helps you identify it in real life—see through the censorship fog and understand how certain voices are excluded from governance, how history is selectively told (ESPECIALLY NOW YOU CAN SEE HISTORY BEING ERASED but that's for another post), and even how language itself can be ostracizing. You might venture to a place where your language isn't spoken, so strangers look at you as if you had three heads the moment you speak it. Or the opposite might happen where you travel to a place where the language is spoken, but suddenly your execution of the language is "wrong" or "not good enough." Both suck.

Highlighting what is excluded, misunderstood, or just condemned is important for reimagining what inclusivity looks like. For most media it can be fun to reinvent worlds where fictional "evil" and humans coexist. Vampires for instance. Everyone's favorite is actually meant to serve as a mirror of humanity's deepest desires that are deemed "shameful" in society. They are usually depicted to harbor uncontrollable lust, dark personas, immortal of course, and immune to all diseases. They represent humanity's forbidden fruit—the deep seated desire to act on impulses and live with no ailments, nor a finish line. Witches are another good one. Of course paralleled with historical scapegoats, they represent the marginalized power lurking within women on the edges of society. Their feminist rebellion in most medias will of course represent the reclamation of female power as well as a deep, rich connection with the nature. You guessed it, werewolves too. Of course they are the most primal and represent the result of rage and repressed emotions within, left unchecked.

Othering hides in who the story is centered around. You learn the inside before you see who's on the outside, who gets corrected, and who is made to feel out of place for simply existing as they are. Literature and media make these patterns visible by exaggerating them—turning people into monsters, witches, outsiders—so we can finally see the blueprint that already governs reality. Once you recognize it on the page or the screen, it becomes harder to ignore in classrooms, workplaces, languages, bodies, and identities. Paying attention to who is pushed to the margins shifts the conversation from representation alone, to who is actually allowed to belong.