Two years ago, I found myself in a state of perplexity. In a political theory lecture in my second year of University, my professor introduced us to The Jargon of Authenticity by Theodor Adorno, a philosopher from the Frankfurt School of Critical Theory.

During her lecture, she argued that the so-called “authentic self” is a product sold to us by capitalist institutions. These institutions create agencies—brands, advertisements, and cultural narratives—that convince us authenticity can be bought. Adorno called this strategic use of language or “jargon,” a tool deployed in marketing, politics, and culture to project an illusion of realness, even when it is entirely performative. “If you want to be your authentic self,” she paraphrased, “buy this and achieve it.”