Erostratus syndrome: doing crazy things to become famous

It is known that social relationships change the deepest aspects of our way of being. Thanks to the existence of others, for example, we learn the ability to use language, thanks to which we are capable of thinking and, even, of developing an identity, a concept of the “I”.

However, sometimes the existence of a civilization in which standing out from the crowd is considered a feat. It can lead to behaviors that are forcedly bizarre at best and, at worst, downright bizarre. criminals. This phenomenon whereby some people decide to do anything, no matter how extreme, to become famous, may be called Erostratus syndrome.

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Who was Erostrato?

Erostrato was a Greek shepherd originally from the city of Ephesus. But unlike other great historical figures of Ancient Greece, he was neither an intellectual of renown, like Plato or Aristotle, nor a politician and soldier like Pericles, nor a renowned merchant.

If today we know that during the Hellenic world of the IV century BC. c. There was a specific man named Erostratos because he wanted to be remembered for millennia. To go down in history, the Greek Erostratus decided to burn one of the most beautiful monuments in the Mediterranean: the temple of Artemis of Ephesus, one of the seven wonders of the world.

Despite the fact that when the motivations of this humble pastor were known, the mention or registration of his name was prohibited to prevent future generations from knowing about him. his existence, the result is obvious: Erostratus wanted fame at any cost, and not even the most terrifying threats prevented him from getting his aim; Far from curbing his popularity, the bans fueled his legend.

A case of the Streisand effect

The phenomenon by which prohibited information is disseminated precisely because of the prohibition imposed on it is called the Streisand effect. The case of Erostrato fits perfectly into what, centuries after her life and death, was known by the singer's last name, but that is not what attracts the most attention in the history of the Greek.

What is fascinating is that, on the one hand, someone can direct their whole life towards obtaining fame, on the one hand, and that this can come in a way that is as tragic as, in fact, easy: the only price to pay is one's own life.

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Erostrato syndrome reaches the present

Unfortunately, at present there are two conditions that make the story of Erostrato repeat itself many times, thus giving rise to the Erostrato syndrome.

On the one hand, globalization makes the distance between anonymous citizens and celebrities is immense: It is impressive to think of the number of people who know references such as Shakespeare or, in recent years, Lady Gaga and the like. On the other hand, there are a large number of people who live in an apathy or a degree of alienation that can promote the perception of social recognition as the maximum objective that can be achieved Aspire.

In reality, the society of the spectacle, in which it is easy to obtain fame through quick acts, relatively effortless and impressive makes the Erostrato syndrome easily on target: fame comes, if one wants.

It is possible to create viral phenomena, acts that occupy the front pages of many web pages and newspapers, and all of this is simply motivated by the fact that one has wanted to be there. Other people see it, observe how whoever has sought popularity has achieved it, and they take note of it. This, on the other hand, is a mechanism that serves both for more or less innocuous acts, such as creating a funny video, as for those that cause pain, such as certain types of attacks.

The same society that teaches that having the attention of others is desirable, gives the tools so that everyone knows that personal story (or a distorted version of it, but a story of their own, after all). cape). Social networks burn, newspapers spread all kinds of related information, and there are even ways to spread the legend by word of mouth through the use of mobile phones or even live streaming.

It is clear that you cannot control what others think of you, but to a certain extent you can. sneak into the stream of thoughts of others, break into the consciousness of others even though those others have not sought it. That is why the story of Erostrato is still relevant today.

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