A Humble Socialite

As we neared the end of class on Monday, I began to wonder "if having both shy and outgoing personalities is adaptive, as Cain claims, then are there situations where having both can actually have a negative impact?". Then it hit me, as I arrived a few minutes late to Adaption and Disease because I was stuck behind a painfully slow group utilizing the entire span of sidewalk. Although I still cannot think of a negative situation related to survival per say (and please comment if you can), I realized that sometimes manners can suffer when different personalities are unable to "mesh" together. Take the sidewalk example; every time you walk somewhere on campus it is almost guaranteed that at least once those people, who get so excited to see each other and talk, will obliviously block your path. In a way, they represent the "outgoing" stereotypes: talkative, bold, comfortable, casual, obnoxious, and often loud. Meanwhile, the people behind the groups takes on stereotypical "introverted" stereotypes such as quiet, non-confrontational, nervous, self-conscious, and shy. Just as the so-called outgoing people act rude, the introverts also are rude in a more passive aggressive manner by either slinking past through the grass or resigning to following behind, but refusing to call them out because they prefer doing social "gymnastics to avoid the slightest possibility of offending" (from "The Confidence Game"). What if the group honestly wasn't thinking of their impact on others and speaking up could have helped them become more aware, possibly even preventing them from repeatedly inconveniencing others?

Another interesting juxtaposition of these qualities occurs in Elaine Sciolino's "This Is What ‘Parisienne’ Looks Like". It is interesting that, although the author clearly demonstrates that Inès de la Fressange is an extremely powerful, smart, intelligent, and confident woman, she still feels a need to use self-defacing and humbling statements to remain appealing. Quotes such as "Photoshop helped" or "I guess they had to choose an old model" almost sound manufactured to fit the culturally-accepted "feminine" image of unconfident approval-seeking. Would she be as famous and admired if she decided not to frequently express implied apologies for her "flaws"? Is this as common as it appears, or is our society beginning to move past this attitude and towards female empowerment (as can be seen in the example of the popular song "All About That Bass")?