What Makes a Life Matter

Lessons from the Status Game

K- introduced me to her friend A- at a reception that the three of us were attending. A- mentioned that, like me, his cousin lives in Alexandria, Louisiana. When I told him that I know her, we went on to talk about our network of mutual acquaintances.

After listening to us for a couple of minutes, K- said, “This is such a Southern conversation!” K- did not grow up south of the Mason-Dixon line. But she’s a keen observer, and she was right about how Southerners size up somebody we’ve just met. We try to make a connection through the people we both know.

Photo by Aziz Acharki on Unsplash

The philosopher Agnes Callard might say that we were playing the Basic Version of the Status Game. When we first meet another person, we usually look for what we have in common. Southerners want to know who your people are. But there are other ways to play the game. Where did you grow up? Where did you go to school? What are your interests: books, movies, sports?

We all play the Basic Status Game. It’s how …