The ironic frame functions as a shield against criticism. The same goes for ironic living. Irony is the most self-defensive mode, as it allows a person to dodge responsibility for his or her choices, aesthetic and otherwise. To live ironically is to hide in public. It is flagrantly indirect, a form of subterfuge, which means etymologically to “secretly flee” (subter + fuge). Somehow, directness has become unbearable to us.

[…]

Ironic living is a first-world problem. For the relatively well educated and financially secure, irony functions as a kind of credit card you never have to pay back. In other words, the hipster can frivolously invest in sham social capital without ever paying back one sincere dime.

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How to Live Without Irony – absolutely fantastic NYT op-ed by Princeton’s Christy Wampole.

Contrast ironic living with Joan Didion’s timeless meditation on what character means, then counter it with some advice on how to live a sincere life of purpose.

(Source: , via explore-blog)