The Stories We Tell Ourselves Article Analysis Essay

Humans have been telling stories since before they learned to read and write. Telling stories is how we as individuals, whether consciously or unconsciously, interpret our values to others. In his 2017 article "The Stories We Tell Ourselves," published in the New York Times, philosopher Todd May elaborates on the concept of values. May exploits the fact that Trump was being inaugurated at the moment to subsequently dwell on the subject of values and how they are portrayed in the eyes of others. In the article May claims that we tell stories to express what we value and define in our daily lives as individuals however what we don't realize is the way we are altering our stories into our own interpretations. I will be discussing how May interprets his broad assertion about values and how it relates to the stories we tell, as well as sharing some of my own experiences to highlight my ideals in life.

Reflecting on stories we tell others can help individuals better understand truths and values about themselves, or as Philosopher Todd May claims, truths and values we are looking to avoid. As humans, we want to make our life seem meaningful so to do this we tell ourselves and others the most exciting parts of our lives as stated by May, “We tell stories that make us seem adventurous, or funny, or strong. We tell stories that make our lives seem interesting. And we tell our stories not only to others but to ourselves” (May 3). May emphasizes to the readers that we, as individuals, desire stimulation in our lives, which we do by telling stories about the things we love in life as we imagined them. He goes on to argue that we tell these stories about our life, but we rarely actually think about what our principles indicate about us as people.

The author begins the article with a personal anecdote about his own story and how he changed it to fit his view of what his beliefs are. He goes on to depict a narrative about getting cut off on his way home from work, and then adds some details to the story to make it sound more intriguing to the audience. By sharing this personal tale with the audience, he is expressing one of his "values," which he later clarifies as  “not necessarily a moral value, but a way of being that I want to see myself as living, a way of being that I consider valuable for myself and seek to associate myself with.”(May 3). In order to reveal to the audience how we tell these stories without realizing that by adjusting our stories to be more engaging, we are ultimately dissociating ourselves from our true beliefs. May is making a generalization based on his personal experience that we choose what information we wish to share with others based on what we find most fascinating even if it doesn't necessarily reflect our moral values. This prevents us from fully reflecting on ourselves and our values or as May puts it, “In the latter case, what we are doing is dissociating ourselves from a value we might be associated with and thus implicitly associating ourselves with different ones.” (May 3). The author is using these personal anecdotes and examples to illustrate his larger assertion that the stories that we tell others are an embodiment of our values but what most people don't come to acknowledge is their true selves when telling the story. 

Later in the article, which was published during Trump's inauguration, the presidential election is discussed. Many people had extremely different perspectives and ideals during the time of Trump's inauguration. May, in turn, took this concept of everyone having varied stories and tied it back to his main goal. by saying that  "If we reflect on the stories we tell ourselves, both to others and to ourselves, we may well find out things about who we are that complicate the view we would prefer to be identified with."(May 8th). We must first acknowledge ourselves and others in order to appropriately acknowledge our own ideals and views. May says that we need to see things from a different perspective, one that is sometimes more sophisticated than our own but can provide us with valuable insights into ourselves and others. He frequently uses the term "echo chamber," tying this concept to the presidential election, the internet, and other cable news channels. May's "echo chamber" in this situation refers to the idea that we surround ourselves with like-minded people who share our values and worldviews. As a result, when it comes to new ideas and other people's stories that may complicate our own, we shy away. The assumption that we are also complicated is challenged when we refuse to acknowledge other people's complicated viewpoints. May's use of diction builds onto the concept of how convoluted people's beliefs are which is significant to the argument. He wants us to take what we've learned about how individuals tell themselves stories and use it to break out of the chamber and spread our ideas to those who share our ideals. 

Everyone, including me, has a story to share. My cherished ideals and how I chose to communicate them are reflected in the narrative I'm about to tell. Prior to entering the workforce, I had no idea how much effort and dedication went into holding onto a job. I began working in the fast food industry around three months ago, and as it was my first job, I had no idea what to anticipate. I recall being absolutely fatigued and exhausted after working my first eight-hour shift. However, following that day, my entire perspective on hard effort and commitment shifted. After working that day, I feel as if it humbled me and instilled in me two very important values: hard work and devotion, as well as drive and enthusiasm, which I still carry with me today. It has taught me the value of dedication and purpose, particularly after earning my first paycheck. It's also impacted the way I look at other employees, whether they're at a fast food establishment or a restaurant. I'm more conscious of the amount of hard work they must put in. As I share this story it reflects my values and the ways in which this particular story has shaped two of my most important values in life. 

Another story of mine that truly reflects another important aspect of my values is a day that I was driving to school. I was about sixteen years old at the time, and I was going to high school one day when I encountered a lot of traffic. After roughly ten minutes of sitting in traffic, I became irritated, as did the folks around me. All I hear and see while sitting in my car is people honking at one another and the look of frustration coming from every vehicle. So instead of obsessing on the fact that I was stuck in traffic, I chose to relax by listening to music. After that day, I learned a very valuable lesson: patience.  I found that instead of filling my morning with frustration it's better to be patient and enjoy my morning. Telling others about this story and my revelation has completely transformed my outlook on a variety of issues. I tell others this tale because, as May points out, it represents a value with which I want to be associated. So, if I really wanted to spice up the story, I could have claimed that instead of listening to music, I chose to roll down my window and began yelling at people. This might make my story more fascinating, but it would go against my moral beliefs of having patience. As a result, it connects to May's overarching assertion that we, as people, tend to represent ourselves as someone different, even if it goes against our own ideals.

Our true selves are influenced, shaped, and reflected by stories all around us. He claims that stories are valuable and have an impact on us. May believes that when individuals look at themselves in the mirror, they don't always recognize who they are. Outside the chamber, he believes, the varied beliefs and aspects make things more confusing. To improve his diction and speaking style, he uses both personal experiences and hypothetical circumstances. The truth is that practically every story has something in common; all you have to do is consider what you value most. Take a moment the next time you're telling a story to take a step back and consider the values that are being portrayed in the story and consider whether you're being true to those principles.