Call it a preconceived notion, but I think all rich people are fake. They’re phony! They think they are chameleons. That they can blend in and fit into any situation undetected, motivations unknown. But some people can see right through them, probably because they are weary of every little thing.
Where did my preconceived notion come from? I have no idea. It’s not as if I’ve ever actually had a conversation with a rich person. I’ve just been a middle class teenager in a room full of upper class teenagers; making small talk, watching them exchange judgmental glances, and listening to them complain about the latest luxury item they’re parents wouldn’t buy them. I’d watch them whisper comments to each other about another person and then greet them with a huge smile and a warm embrace. Talk about being fake! I guess being one of the only middle class people in the room, I stuck my fellow “class-mates”, we were just more comfortable together, but watching the upper class kids socialize was like watching an episode of My Super Sweet Sixteen: unnecessary attitude and drama.
Yasmina Reza’s God of Carnage embodied and characterized my interpretation of “Uptown”, wealthy New York. Let’s set the scene shall we?
Two sets of parents come together to discuss an altercation that transpired between their sons. Alan and Annette Raleigh. Michael and Veronica Novak. The discussion takes place in the Novak home. At first we sense some strange tension between the two couples. Both couples are described to be very stiff and put together, as opposed to the natural air that people usually have when they are comfortable and being themselves. Every comment and response made seems precise and well thought out, not organic or unrefined.
About twenty pages later it appears that all hell has broken loose! Vases of freshly bought tulips are being shattered. Priceless books are being vomited on. Cell phones are being destroyed. Compacts are being broken. In short, real personalities are have emerged, causing utter confusion, resulting in behavior than my mother would frown upon and call lawlessness!
What were the true intentions of this meeting? To resolve the quarrel between the boys (who were never actually seen) or to get an apology?
I’m not comparing a realistic play to a sub-par television film, but back in the day, and by back in the day I mean eight years ago when I was a young and annoying ten year old, I watched the legendary film Cheetah Girls 2. Although looking back at it, I am aware that the movie was barely above mediocre, there is one line that’s stuck with me: “It’s the principle of the thing.” Our class discussion brought out the idea that while Veronica was indeed concerned about her son’s predicament, she was more interested in receiving an apology from the Raleigh’s. Perhaps because “it’s the principle of the thing”. Kind of like there is an unwritten contract between the rich: If your child beats mine up, you must apologize to me as soon as possible. The perpetrator does not have to apologize to the victim; the responsibility of expressing remorse falls upon the parent of the perpetrator. It’s just the principle of the thing!
On a brief side note, I found it absolutely hilarious that Veronica told Michael that Annette was being fake. (Pot, meet kettle!)
Now, back on track. I’m sure we’ve all encountered fake people at some point in our lives whether we realize it or not: A “friend” who says things about you behind your back. An employee at a store who helps you with a smile, but rolls their eyes as soon as you aren’t looking. The list goes on and on. But it just seems to me that the rich, upper class people are so much more fake than the rest of us “common folk”. Their fabricated personalities are so easy to detect. Maybe it’s just me, but I feel that most, if not all, wealthy people, not necessarily “Uptown” New Yorkers exclusively, have a ‘holier than thou’ attitude, like they are better than you or above you. Underneath that exterior of kindness and understanding, welcoming and openness, they are only looking out for themselves and their priorities. Occasionally, something phases them and their persona falters, but make no mistake, they are professionals, and slip back into character in the blink of an eye.
I get it; people have to fake their way to the top! You have to blend in with the others, even if it means acting like someone you’re not. But what about after you get there? Can you just be yourself, and “let your hair down” so to speak? Can you drop the contrived persona? I thought that people just fake it ‘til they make it, but I guess not. Once a fake, always a fake.
