Societies Imaginary Lines

It is interesting to think about what keeps our society functioning in a normal and safe manner. As I have pondered about this I have come to the conclusion that it is societies imaginary, yet recognized, lines or boundaries. This comes about in many ways.

The first and most obvious deals with traffic. We look at the different lines and signs posted around on the streets. We understand exactly what these lines tell us to do, whether it be to stay on a particular side of the road or to park in a certain section of asphalt. It would be very easy to cross these lines, to drive from one corner of a parking lot to the opposite corner in a straight line, causing us to cross many of these lines. Each one of us has done this on multiple occasions. We know how easy it is to disregard these lines.

Why then do we so meticulously obey the assumed meaning of these lines? Because they protect us. If we were to take away all these lines then it would be mass chaos everywhere, and along with this chaos would be catastrophe.

This is easy to see when looking at traffic, but what about in other aspects of life. We have all created personal boundaries or lines. Most people are able to understand and recognize where these boundaries are for others. However there is a much larger difficulty in respecting the boundaries of everyone because unlike the lines in the middle of the road, there are no clear cut labels telling what to do.

The lack of specific directions of what to do in any given circumstance dealing with interactions with other people creates confusion. We often make mistakes. This is what makes relationships with other people so difficult to start. We are constantly trying to understand what lines to stay in, the places to avoid, places where we need to speed up or slow down, or even where we need to use extreme caution.

It is true that society will teach where many of these lines are, and even more of these lines are highlighted by our conscience. We are not left completely guessing what we can and cannot do. The expectations that are placed before us are not completely hidden. But even though we have a general idea of actions we need to take, it would be so much easier if we understood more of societies hidden lines. However I suppose that it takes a lifetime to understand these lines with any degree of certainty, and by that time many of these lines will have shifted.