Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Self-Defining Images
The way in which we primarily identify ourselves determines many of our characteristics. It affects our preferred means of communication and how we choose to express our feelings and thoughts. Even the methods we use to solve problems we face on a daily basis are engrained within our identity. Our identity also plays a large role in whom we choose to emulate, consciously or subconsciously, while looking for models of behavior. For example, if one were to primarily see themselves as American (as in the United States of) then when confronted with conflict they may be likely to act out violently in emulation of the way the government of the USA is currently resolving its conflicts at home and abroad. On the other hand, if one were to identify themselves as a member of the larger Christian community (wherein their Christian belief emphasizes the global love of Christ over intolerance of differing religious views and lifestyles) then they would be more likely to act peacefully while resolving the conflicts they encountered. In other words, how we see ourselves is all important. For this reason education is incredibly significant in aiding our ability to understand other people's views of the world and enabling us to transcend the limitations of our own identity when coping with the ever-changing challenges of the world around us.
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4 comments:
Are you talking about identification of oneself in a broad general concept or more from a situational basis? At different times, one person will identify themselves with different things and this changing identification can be contradictory to previous or future identifications.
I was referring to the broad general concept of identification. You make a very good point though concerning how situational bias may produce temporary identifications which clash with former ones. I can think of several instances where this might occur. Most of the examples I can think of are of what I would consider a negative nature (pretending you don't know the dorky kid to look cool in school, emphasizing your masculine nature if you are a man surround by macho boneheads, de-emphasizing your intelligence and education if you are surrounded by people who are uneducated, following the "crowd" in a certain activity even if it goes against your own values and beliefs). If you could suggest a situation that could occur where the changing of ones' identity would be "positive" please let me know.
So what do you think is the role of Storytelling in the development of identities and how can that translate into a broader cultural spectrum?
Though I believe a full article would better serve to answer your question, I will attempt to be concise and try to satisfy you in my comment here. I would argue that storytelling is of the utmost importance in the early development of identities. As children we very quickly learn to pay a great deal of attention to the stories we hear and we make use of their content to define the unknowns in the world around us. Since we are so inexperienced as children storytelling is therefore responsible for a great deal of the definitions we attribute to our surroundings. Additionally, stories often indicate to us a moral standard that we are encouraged to emulate in our actions and treatment of others. In this way a child's mind can be greatly influenced and in turn their identity shaped at will. If they are brought up being told of the accomplishments and characteristics of the culture of Russia then it is much more likely they will more readily identify with Russia even if they happen to have been born and raised geographically in the United States. This is a powerful truth and one that has been debated for quite a long time regarding immigrant populations in all countries and the degree to which they are willing to assimilate or instead remain separate and different. As far as how storytelling can then translate into the broader cultural spectrum I would suggest that comic books give us some of the best examples. The creation, distribution and mass popularity of the Superman comic in the early 20th century is a perfect indicator of this phenomenon. And if you are truly interested in pursuing this line of thought I direct you to the link below which will bring you to a book concerning this issue and lists several others on the same topic.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0801874505/qid=1131045157/sr=2-2/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_2/002-2236675-7924060?v=glance&s=books
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