Nonconformity - Where Did It Come From?

When you were in the fourth grade studying vocabulary, when your teacher taught the class the word nonconformist she defined it as a person who did the opposite of what everybody else was doing. Where did that sensibility come from? Your question reminds me of at a young age, i want to say maybe first or second grade. I remember looking at that sentiment, a smile is the nicest kind of welcome,. And so i tilted my clown head to what i considered a rakish whimsical angle. When i heard that that was called nonconformity, i said, yes, please, please count me in for one of those.