In the United States, a common metaphor that people use to describe themselves is a variation on covering the face in shame: we are people behind walls. “The walls are ten feet thick. Nobody can come in, and I can’t get out.” These desperate coverings isolate, but they also protect us from the gaze of other people. In practice, these walls can be built with thousands of different materials: money, fame, athletic accomplishment, jobs, and busyness. Nothing man-made, however, can truly cover shame.
