The frivolous is associated with the superficial or banal.
Frivolous is that which is insubstantial or light . This adjective, which comes from the Latin frivŏlus , allows us to describe certain shows, publications, texts and songs, where sensuality and form predominate rather than content. People who adopt light and superficial behaviors are also classified as frivolous.
Frivolity is usually associated with stupidity or a form of unconsciousness . The person who is frivolous does not commit to reality and limits himself to staying with the banal . However, frivolity is an inherent and, for many, necessary part of human behavior .
There are those who claim that time and space are needed for frivolity and lack of commitment. In these cases, frivolity is associated with fun and revelry, and represents a kind of break from everyday problems. Of course, excess frivolity implies a lack of attention to reality and represents a problem, whether personal (not addressing one's own issues) or social (lack of solidarity with the problems of others).
The frivolous in the media
In the same way, we also find that within the media sector the term “frivolous” is used to refer to certain types of publications. In this case, the most common thing is to use that to describe gossip magazines, that is, those publications that address issues related to the private lives of famous people in society, whether they are singers, actors or models.
Among the most important fictional characters in the world of culture who have also been described with that adjective is, for example, Dorian Gray. This is the protagonist of the novel that Oscar Wilde wrote in 1890 with the title “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” He is presented to us as an attractive young man whose only concern in life is his physical appearance and also enjoying all kinds of pleasures, mainly sexual, without taking into account whether they are well regarded by society or not.
It is precisely interesting to highlight that within the history of television in Spain there was a program called “History of frivolity”. The great director and creative Narciso Ibáñez Serrador was in charge of creating this space where, through humor, the viewer was told some of the historical events or situations where eroticism or being frivolous have been present: the life of Adam and Eve, the discovery of America or the figure of the biblical Salome.
A frivolous individual chooses ostentation and privileges form over content.
a cultural form
Frivolity also appears linked to a cultural form. Luxury products and services , for example, usually have extra value since the person who purchases them wants to display them in a frivolous attitude. It is not important to just have a gold watch, but the buyer wants to display it and let everyone know about the purchase.
Frivolity, therefore, is also a way of life driven by commercial and, sometimes, political interests (it is preferable for society to remain superficial and not commit to change).