Tattoo • ology

Tattoos were, at one point of time, not very well regarded or respected by society. The main reason behind this was the age-old connection between tattoos and men and women of ill repute – like jailbirds, ex-convicts, etc. While this ignominy has changed over generations and centuries, tattoos are currently under a completely new set of doubt. Even this latest infamy has no grounds or logic to support it.

For some strange reason, tattoos are these days associated with some sort of ‘addiction’. It is a fact that many people sport tattoos which they have carefully acquired over decades; it is also true that some regularly make a trip to their favorite tattoo studio to get another design implanted. Be that as it may, calling it an ‘addiction’ has no basis or logic behind it. Since every person has his or her own reasons for tattooing, it is next to impossible to know the motivating factor behind such actions, unless the person makes a true confession. The reasons are as varied as the number of people who tattoo: attractive design, honoring or commemorating a special person, getting included in a specific coterie of people or just to blow up some money! The fact of the matter is that while the reasons change according the person’s personal choice, there is no question of being ‘addicted’ to tattooing.

The myth about ‘tattoo addiction’ has two parts to it. Both these parts a to the bad reputation to the art of tattooing in general and also to the people who have opted for tattooing. The first part of the myth is that the tattoo-loving people are ‘addicted’ to this and the second part deals with the people being portrayed as those, who love to inflict pain on themselves. Thus people are in other words ‘addicted to pain’. While it may sound crazy to think about people like this, but nevertheless, these concepts give tattoos a bad name.

According to an experienced tattoo artist, tattooing has caught on as some kind of ‘fever’ – characterized by the so called odd sense of enjoyment which people get in spending a lot of money to get a permanent artwork embedded on their body. Most of his customers decide to go for more then one tattoo and this is pretty common in his studio. While these gestures can never put a tattoo-lover under the cloud of being ‘addicted’, the tattoo artist confessed as to never meeting a customer who actually enjoyed the pain inflicted in the process.

The reality is that the word ‘addiction’ is used very loosely by the same people who understand the true meaning of ‘addiction’ themselves. The actual meaning of the word ‘addiction’ is related to a kind of involuntary compulsion which many people have towards drugs, alcohol, behavior, etc. While it is quite possible that people who are otherwise ‘addicted’ to something else, can get ‘addicted’ to tattoos as well, it definitely does not encompass all the people who decide to have a tattoo. Majority of people who go for a tattoo do it, because they love body art. It is not necessary that they are weak-minded people like the other true ‘addicts’ who do not have any self-control over their behaviors or habits.

When people believe that tattoo-lovers are actually people who are in love with inflicting pain upon themselves, are either completely ignorant or have a personal issue with tattoos, which they are simply trying to give them a bad name.

It is very unfortunate that these myths have brought the art of tattoos as well as the tattooing process and the tattoo lover under a lot of social scrutiny. There is no scientific or logical basis behind these misunderstandings which currently prevail in the minds of many. Yes, there are people of not very commendable reputation who decide to go for tattoos, but then there are thousands of others who go for it for the sheer enjoyment of getting a design on their bodies.

The final take-home message is… that when you meet someone who talks tattoos and addiction in the same breath, go a little deeper and you will likely find the individual with their own issues, who has a lop-sided view of the world around them!

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