The Downfall of a “Comparison Society” Through the Story of Marie Antoinette
Have you ever experienced something like this?
You watched a movie trailer and thought,
“This movie looks amazing!”
So you went to see it with high expectations.
But in reality, it was not that interesting.
Almost everyone has experienced this at least once.
So why did the trailer look so exciting?
Because a trailer is nothing more than:
“A collection of fragments made by cutting out only the most exciting moments from countless scenes.”
In reality, there are far more boring scenes.
They are simply hidden and not shown in the trailer.
Social media is the same.
Social media is filled with:
- Luxurious trips
- Expensive restaurants
- Designer brands
- Happy-looking couples
- Successful lifestyles
But those things are not their lives themselves.
They are nothing more than
“A collection of fragments designed to look glamorous.”
Behind those posts, there is often:
- overwhelming stress
- anxiety
- frustration
- loneliness
- vanity
- constant comparison with others
They carry many weaknesses and struggles that they never show anyone.
They simply do not post those scenes.
Yet we look only at those
“edited fragments.”
and begin to feel:
“I’m the only one falling behind.”
But in reality, their lives are not nearly as glamorous as they appear.
They are often like boring movies whose trailers alone look exciting.
Versailles: The Giant Social Media Platform of the 18th Century
In 18th-century France, the Palace of Versailles was one of the most luxurious places in the world.
But the true horror of that place was this:
“You were always being watched.”
- What clothes you wore
- Who you talked to
- What kind of carriage you rode in
- What room you lived in
- How close you were to the king
Everything became a subject of comparison.
In other words,
They were living
“inside the gaze of other people.”
It is strikingly similar to modern social media.
Comparison Never Ends
Even today, people are often judged by:
- number of followers
- number of likes
- brands
- appearance
- income
- relationships
- lifestyle
But comparison never ends.
No matter how successful you become, there is always someone above you.
No matter how beautifully you dress, there is always someone more attractive.
That is why people begin to feel:
“I am still not enough.”
Do Not Become a Slave to Other People’s Approval
Before we realize it, we stop prioritizing
“how we truly want to live,”
and begin prioritizing
“how we are seen by other people.”
- buying things we do not truly want
- going to places we do not even want to visit
- owning luxury brands beyond our means
- surrounding ourselves with people who judge others by what they wear
- living only for what looks good online
All of it comes from the desire
“to be seen as a valuable person.”
It is nothing less than becoming
“a slave to other people’s approval.”
But are those people truly happy?
Marie Antoinette Was No Different
One of the reasons Marie Antoinette spent so extravagantly was:
“how she was seen by the people around her.”
At Versailles,
“not standing out”
was considered a defeat.
So people became:
- more luxurious
- more extravagant
- more excessive
Comparison created even more comparison, and the desire for approval kept growing stronger.
Marie Antoinette was always at the center of it all.
And naturally so.
She possessed:
- the status of a queen
- enormous wealth
- widespread fame
- luxurious food
- dazzling jewels and dresses
— everything that other people desired.
That is why she was constantly surrounded by admirers.
They always praised her.
She was exactly the kind of person others envied.
But the Real Marie Antoinette Was Different
Her life was not nearly as glamorous as people imagined.
- She was forced into a political marriage with someone she did not truly love.
- Every day, she was trapped within the strict and suffocating rules of palace life.
- She became the target of public hatred and was mocked as “Madame Deficit.”
- Her entire life was spent being judged, watched, and compared by other people.
In other words, even while living
“a life everyone envied,”
She was never truly free.
She was not truly happy.
She was simply continuing to perform
“a life that looked happy.”
What Waited for Her in the End
When the French Revolution began, the people who had once surrounded her in the palace sensed danger and fled one after another.
Among them, there was not a single person who truly worried about her.
Even the people who once stood beside her at lavish parties did nothing to help her.
Luxurious clothes, jewels, fine food, admirers — none of it meant anything in the face of death.
That dazzling palace became empty, almost as if it had all been an illusion.
And in the end, only one thing remained—
loneliness.
And yet, in the middle of all that, there was one man who still came to help her.
A Swedish nobleman:
Hans Axel von Fersen.
France was already collapsing.
Even if he helped her, there was nothing left for him to gain.
And still, he never abandoned her until the very end.
She must have realized:
“The person I truly should have valued was not the people who praised me at glamorous parties… but Fersen alone.”
And perhaps she regretted it deeply:
“Why did I waste so much money and time on those people?”
What Truly Matters in Human Relationships
Think about it.
Imagine that you lost:
- your expensive clothes
- your money
- your fame
- your followers
- your connections
Everything.
When you are truly suffering, when you desperately need someone to help you—
would the people who followed you and gave you “likes” stay beside you, even at the cost of their own time and energy?
Even if helping you brought them absolutely no benefit, would they still help you, like Fersen did?
If you hesitate to answer,
then perhaps those relationships are nothing more than
“just numbers.”
What History Teaches Us About Living in a Comparison Society
Social media is not “life.” It is a “trailer for life.”
People hide the ordinary and boring parts of reality, and only show the moments that appear the most glamorous.
Even a boring movie can look exciting when you only watch the trailer.
Comparison never ends
As long as you live according to other people’s standards, you will never truly feel fulfilled.
In fact, comparison only amplifies the desire for approval and makes it even worse.
Do not live a life just to impress others
Prioritize your own life over other people’s opinions.
Anyone who stays beside you only when you make yourself look impressive is not a true companion—
they are just
“numbers.”
Numbers do not define human worth
The number of followers or likes does not determine your value as a person.
Many people follow you because they want you to follow them back.
Many people give you “likes” because they want you to give them “likes” in return.
In the end, much of it is simply
“for their own benefit.”
Learn to recognize truly valuable relationships
The people who remain beside you during your hardest times are the ones who truly matter.
Anyone who cannot stay with you when you are suffering does not deserve to share your happiest moments.
Be careful of people who only come close to you when your life is going well.
Final Thoughts
Versailles was not only
- “a place of luxury,”
but also
- “a symbol of a comparison society.”
Modern people, too, carry a giant Versailles inside their smartphones.
And history teaches us what lies at the end of constant comparison:
“endless anxiety and limitless desire.”
True wealth is not
- appearing superior to other people,
but
- living a truly meaningful life with the people who genuinely matter to you.
Are you measuring your worth today by looking at someone else’s post?
Will those people truly stay beside you when you are suffering the most?
Are they your Fersen?
The people who truly matter cannot be measured by
“followers”
or
“likes.”
Have you ever posted the most flattering photo of yourself on social media,
and felt a small sense of relief every time the number of “likes” increased?
Perhaps what you truly wanted was to feel:
“I have value.”
However,
That sense of validation never lasts for long.
So once again, people create another post.
More beautiful.
More enviable.
More “happy-looking.”
Or perhaps—
Luxury cars.
Luxury watches.
Beautiful women.
A successful lifestyle.
By showing these things, they may simply be trying to reassure themselves:
“I am a valuable person.”
Because deep down, people are afraid of feeling
“inferior to others.”
It is not necessarily because they are truly happy.
Perhaps they are simply continuing to perform
“a life that looks happy.”
Just like Marie Antoinette,
who spent her life performing
“a life that only appeared to be happy.”
Posts are nothing more than
“trailers made from the highlight scenes of someone’s life.”
Even so—
Do you still envy them?
Will you continue to “follow” them and keep giving them “likes”?
Whether you continue following them,
or choose to stop,
is up to you.
History has proven this again and again.
The problems we struggle with today are not unique. They are patterns humanity has repeated throughout history.
And many of those problems have already been experienced, understood, and solved by those who came before us.
“When you understand history, you understand the present.”
Author Fuji
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I’m a passionate blogger who loves diving deep into human history and sharing captivating stories about remarkable figures and events from the past.
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