Citing Erich Remarque from his novel All Quiet on the Western Front, “The keenest brains in the world invent weapons and words to make it yet more refined and enduring.” We have all been hurt from harsh words from others, whether they come from family, friends, or even strangers. Hearing ‘I hate you’ or ‘why are you here’ feels as sharp as a dagger, as hard as a slap to the face. But words can also form beautiful things, used to compose stories, music, literary works and ‘I love yous.’ Why must we allow negative words to become a weapon designed to harm us?

Without realizing it, most of us place a lot of value on the opinion of others. As humans, we all desire validation and will destroy ourselves in order to receive it. Changing outfits, re-doing projects, refining personal humor, the list goes on and on. However, when we put aside our desire to please others, great things may happen. For example, the first ever cheeseburger was referred to as a “typical Californian novelty, one that could not possibly become profitable.  People could simply not fathom combining ground meat and cheese. It was simply too absurd. Lionel Sternberger, the teenager who came up with this revelation, chose to ignore the opinions of others in pursuit of his own culinary happiness. The result was a widespread American delicacy that makes companies like McDonalds millions of dollars a year. 

Other individuals who practiced the art of ignoring others’ opinions include Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr, Rosa Parks, and John Lennon. These people chose to ignore pre-stated words- which in some of these cases were laws- and caused a worldwide impact that encouraged many others to reject  previous unjust views. The world would be a different place if they had changed themselves to obtain society’s validation. Although it is often scary, you do not always need to confine and limit yourself to the opinions of others. Wonderful things can be brought about through self expression and the ignorance of hate.