Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)
Back from ‘Road Trope 2013’. (We apologize for the poor sound quality. What the gentleman with the Wakefield Doctrine hat (on his damn head) is saying is, “by Right of hat…I claim this as property of the Wakefield Doctrine. …Paul is dead”)
And, as any clark will recognize, (and tell you, directly and/or indirectly), a personal experience, good or bad, doesn’t do anyone any good until it can be shared. Readers of the clarklike persuasion will know this intuitively, however, for the benefit of any scotts or rogers out there, we say: (this sentiment) speaks volumes about the worldview of clarks. You would not be unreasonable to wonder, ‘why is that? isn’t it enough that you had the experience? Of course, we would love to hear about it, but surely it is not necessary in order for you to enjoy the travel?’
Well, that would be, in fact, a normal reaction for a scott or a roger. Because their worldviews, that of the Predator(scotts) and the Herd Member(rogers), do not have the oddly intimate relationship with others that is the secret hallmark of the clarklike personality type. What the hell are we saying? Well, I’m glad you asked!
clarks, as everyone knows, live in a reality that is characterized as that of the Outsider. Not just: strange, weird, shy, quiet, off-putting but in a nice way, hardworking, loner, if-only-you-would-make-an-effort-not-to-be-so-different-you-could-be-happy, you-have-so-much-to-offer-why-do-you-have-to-be-so… but simply not ‘a part of’. So what, in this rather clearly defined worldview, accounts for what we are calling an ‘oddly intimate’ relationship with others?
It is the fact, that for a clark, an experience isn’t ‘really real’ until it is shared with another.
No, stop! I did not say that an experience is dependent on sharing with another person (so, why would you go and think that?) and I did not say that clarks need to share their experiences with others (although there is a certain element of that in this concept) and I did not say that clarks want to share what they are or what they do with: family or friends or the people at work or the other tourists (and yes, we will end up saying that that is exactly what clarks strive to do).
The ‘intimate relationship’ that clarks have with the world around them is a function of their status as an Outsider. We use the adjective (and possibly adverb) ‘intimate’ quite deliberately.
What happens for a clark, when telling the folks back home, at the job (‘…you were on vacation?‘) or in Home Room (‘…hey! somebody said you had mono!’) is intimate in all senses of the word.
It is intimate because for a clark to do something deliberately, like a road trip, starts with an idea and is developed and nurtured and perfected. If you read the Comments from Readers in the last Post you will see interesting characteristics that are in common among them ( I mean Cyndi and Janine and Melanie and Denise and Amy and Michelle and Dawn and Rich and them….)
Making an experience ‘really real’ by sharing it with others is necessary because most clarks (and scotts and rogers with sufficiently strong clarklike secondary aspects*) are creative. And one of the understated requirements of genuine creativity is that one must live in a world in which the real and un-real mingle. The imaginary (“...if only she would talk to me, I know I could ask her out“) and real (“…this interview has to lead to a job offer“) are part of the landscape for all clarks each day they wake up (and is there for scotts and rogers when distracted or driven to distraction).
All of this is to say, since clarks cannot assume to share with others, the other members of the pack (like scotts do) or the other members of the herd (like them rogers), it becomes necessary to reach out to the world and by doing so let the world see what you see. If this is not an example of being intimate, then I don’t know what is.
Hey! I went to Winslow Arizona… come join me (lol, I’m a clark… that you were standing there with me is as real as only clarks can know…)
About clarkscottroger
So happy you are back safe and sound. Loved the two videos and especially loved the reference to The Beatles (and Paul is Dead!!). Happy Wednesday Clark :)
@Janine
(thank god you got the reference… that was one of those ‘editorial decisions’ that cause a little ‘jeez a little much there?’)
2nd vid – got the feel of a movie set. Wow. A real place with the real feel….movie set.
Hey! Cowboy hats with the Doctrine logo? LOL Why the hell not.
You are a riot. The videos were great and yes, the clarklike need to share. OMG…I’m a poster-child for that. You know, I have found so much comfort with the Doctrine. Since starting at this new school back in January, I have been less than apt to share much with anyone there. Maybe it’s the starting in the middle of the year phenomenon, or just that it’s a spiritual community and I see other clarks there, or that I’m getting more comfortable in my own skin…but boy, when I get home, my husband gets to listen to me gab and gab about this perspective or that, this issue or that over there, and blah blah blah. He’s patient with me but sometimes is like, “dude. I can’t listen anymore. You’ve been going and going and going…” I do that with family and close friends, but no one else. :)
@Cyndi
…and like so much of the Doctrine, the thing about ‘sharing’ is not so much that it is good or bad, but that we accept that it is in our worldview that we have this ‘need’… and (for clarks to know of the need conveys an additional choice). It is not a bad thing to need to share (in the hopes of becoming ‘part of’) it is a clarklike thing, a fact of our (common) reality.
Having said that, a big part of the Wakefield Doctrine is it’s potential for allowing (us) to develop our scottian and rogerian aspects.
This is totally a cool thing.
Haha! I never realised that was a Clark-like personality trait. I really don’t feel like it’s happened unless I show where I’ve been or what I’ve experienced. Which reminds me that I really need to cut down on sharing so much when we’re on holiday next time. A few pictures and a post when we’re back is great, but I have a friend who is in the Maldives now on her honeymoon, and my goodness – if I have to see one more picture of a tropical beach or luxury hotel room suite I am going to hurl. :P Loved both videos and seeing that part of the world. Nice take on the 2nd one with the music. It does look like a movie scene! :)
@Melanie
I like your Comment (and the others of the ‘new Generation’) in that you raise issues that the Wakefield Doctrine has a perspective on but is not often addressed in Posts. The matter of sharing-to-make-it-real and ‘over sharing’. Both are related in the sense that when a clark does this sharing there, there is an element of risk (to us). By definition (and as discussed in the Post), as Outsiders we know we are taking a chance in going to people and offering a look at what we have done ( yes, clarks do tend to be way more private than the other two), so we all deserve much more credit for having the daring to do this thing. The real risk is when we do enter into a (temporary) relationship that is implied when sharing. Simply put, it is so enjoyable to us (clarks) that we lose track of time. It is just that there are times, on occasion, when the people we are sharing with get tired and tell us to stop. A clark, at a certain point, is inclined to take this specific rejection (too many photos and stories) and generalize it to ‘what are you doing talking like this? you don’t belong! you are not one of us’.
Usually not a pleasant experience (for the clark), and we (often) take this much more to heart than we need to… so the Doctrine offers the insight ( one of the few insights that clarks will accept as applying to themselves, after all, we are different…lol)
Short form, seeing this matter from the perspective of the Doctrine can be helpful.
Until now I was never cognizant that having an excellent sense of direction was a clarklike characteristic.
I’ve been riding shotgun for years with my rogerian man and I’ve got to say that I’ve saved the day on more than one occasion with my innate sense of direction. LOL
Makes sense that clarks possess this trait as we are always traveling in our heads….somewhere…. and manage to get back….. :D