Faking It and the Problem of Authenticity

The moral case for understanding why you need to be open with people about who you are.

We all want to be seen for who we really are.

We like to believe that if we could just show people the person we really are that people would like us. That trying to hide who we are is part of what is causing us all our problems. Although actually doing that is harder than it seems. Mainly because we fear that there's some part of us that we think other people won't understand. They would think that if we really showed them a particular part, we're going to end up looking like a fool or they're going to find us weird. As a result we try to hide who we are from other people. We find ways to avoid topics that might bring up what we think of as the weirder parts of ourselves. To the point that we will construct entire ideas of ourselves that explain why we don't have these weird parts of us. We create entire identities which look like what we believe other people will like as a way to make sure that we look good to others.

Because people are trusting and tend to assume the best intentions of others, they think this constructed identity is our true selves. They don't have any reason to believe other parts even exist. After all, you're presenting it as your authentic self. Obviously this isn't the whole truth about you, so at some point they'll end up seeing some part of you that isn't consistent with the way you've presented yourself up until that point. It ends up making people confused and like they've been lied to about who you are. If you get enough of a following and people see this new idea of who you are, people will turn against you for seeing this different part. Somewhat ironically, it's only when you reveal these parts you're trying to hide that your true self has in fact been revealed. But to those around you, it looks more fake than it actually is.

Faking It is fundamentally about what happens when the idea you present to the world isn't who you actually are. Karma and Amy, as played brilliantly by Katie Stevens and Rita Volk, have constructed an identity that they present as authentic to the rest of the school. It's part of what they think people will like about them, namely that they're a couple who used to be best friends. Something they say they've been hiding from the world because they were concerned about how people would react. Yet in reality, everyone celebrates this identity, even though it's entirely fake. Or at least that's what Karma and Amy want to believe at the beginning.

As things go along however, it's not so clear that the fake identity they've constructed to make themselves popular and celebrated is entirely false. Their relationship isn't as simple as it appears on the surface. Which makes it harder to figure out who they really are in the end. Who their authentic selves are.

Do yourself a favour and explore the problem of authenticity by checking out Faking It as soon as you can.

You can watch Faking It on Amazon in the United States and CTV in Canada.

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