First among the seven deadly sins is pride, which encompasses vanity. All sins—whether you subscribe to this particular doctrine or not—are of excess. They are essential human impulses that we are advised not to overindulge. But how are we to know where the line between normal and excessive lies? We are left to rely on our own flawed judgment to figure that out and the examples of the flawed people who raised us.
The point here is: normal is whatever our crazy families say it is.
We grow up, leave home and try to recalibrate for the true north of normal, but by then it may be too difficult for many of us to locate it.
Such is the case with the Brights, a fundamentally good family of outsized pride, in a place and time that rewards the sinful impulse. They have everything but the ability to see themselves clearly. They are beautiful and terrible.
They are us.