Everyday Canvas

Birdman and Fame

Prompt: Fame.
What do you think fame does to people in regard to ambition and ego, especially when it is found and then when it is lost? Does a person’s life turn dark, weird, and funny, as it does in the Oscar-winner movie Birdman about a washed-up actor trying to make a comeback?

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Fame is achieved through some kind of success, although not every success will result in fame. As fame is the condition of being known or talked about by many people, it is dependent on the outside of a person; therefore, it wallows in its own value, regardless of the worthy struggle through which it has been reached.

Once fame is reached, however, the now famous person can become addicted to the act of searching for the situation of becoming talked about, and to achieve this end, he will try to satisfy what is outside of himself. This results in the formation of a huge ego, and the person forgets who he really is. This can be a major loss for the internal growth of any person.

A strong person, even if he is famous, will not pay attention to what others say about him, and he won’t try to impress people at all, as what others tell and think becomes totally irrelevant to him. What is relevant is the work he does and who he becomes.

Ambition when it takes the form of desire for perfection in one’s work is admirable. This kind of ambition elevates a person. Yet, when ambition takes the form of going after fame, especially after tasting and then losing it, it becomes deadly.

As to Birdman, I haven’t seen the movie yet, but I read an article or two about it and watched it receive the best picture award during the Oscars on Sunday night. I understand it has comedic scenes with tragic ending, and as such, the movie should effectively show what happens to a person when the horse he is riding gets caught up in the flood waters of fame.

I think, as in Birdman, a person who has fallen off fame will try everything to get back on it and will push himself to ridiculous extremes, which will be the end of him.

Since I am always thinking about writing, how does all this relate to our craft? With the application of electronics and easier approach to becoming published, many writers neglect the true learning of their craft and rush to publishing numerous times. I have no qualms about publishing at all. All writers should work toward it. What I have trouble with is seeing the same mistakes from the same writer, book after book.

I think the lesson is, with any kind of fame, we should all work toward perfection but shouldn’t let fame encourage our egos to get out of proportion. As Rainer Maria Rilke said, “Make your ego porous. Will is of little importance, complaining is nothing, fame is nothing. Openness, patience, receptivity, solitude is everything.”