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How culture influences development of self identity
How culture influences development of self identity
Relationship between culture and identity
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“Trying to merge into mainstream society and cover her brown skin with makeup, of having no sense that she had her right to her own opinion”(Shierly) The journey to finding yourself is approached in many different aspects, which varies from person to person. As a child children we see a blurred image of ourselves not knowing exactly who we are, however as we grow older the blur becomes more apparent to us and eventually a reflection of who we truly are, is revealed. This is evidentially shown in the novel Monkey Beach by Eden Robinson, where Lisamarie discovers her new identity as an empowered and strong woman through the positive motivation from her family, role models to whom she looks up to and her acceptance to her own culture.
Lisa as a young teen begins to manage her special gift to connect with spirits by progressing from the motivation her grandmother gave her to grasp a stronger understanding of what she spiritually obtains. Lisa’s grandmother encourages her to learn about the spirit world and the consequences that follow, to make sure her mistakes don’t mislead her, “Never trust the spirit world too much. They think much differently from the living.”(Robinson, 153). Ma ma oo (Lisa’s grandmother) ensures that Lisa is provided with the knowledge of the supernatural world at her current age so she will be prepared for the future and along with that she wants her to being to learn about herself through these teachings and develop from them. Considering that the bond between Lisamarie and her grandmother is already well established it makes the understanding and communication of the spirit world more interesting for her. Overtime Lisa becomes curious about her gift of connecting with spirits, “What do spirits look like?”...
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...ceptance to her roots and traditions grew more as she learned. This brings a new perspective in Lisa’s life and with this last piece of recognition she is able to see a clear image of herself as a new person that she wants to see.
From the various factors that Lisa had gone through, all those elements had evolved her into an overall new person. Ma ma oo (her grandmother) spiritually directs her to recognize what she is internally capable of, on the other hand uncle Mick teaches her about being strong and standing up for what is right and while managing that she learns how to truly accept her traditions and not get caught up with the Western societal expectations. Conclusively, everyone has a different path to realize their true identity and in this novel The Monkey Beach, Lisamarie sets out on quest to find out her own new identity and successfully discovers it.
As I interviewed Annie Filban about her personal experience with spirits, I found to my judgment that it seemed she based a lot of her belief in her story upon faith. Even though she believed something was in fact out of the norm, and was making peculiar movements and noise in her home, she was still skeptical with some of her statements. Filban responded on different occasions to “I don’t know” and “I guess,” which lead me to believe her belief is not based upon evidence as much as it relies on her faith.
Eboo Patel describes the challenges of finding his way in life in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. While Patel faced crises of identity later in life, his adolescence was a time for self-discovery on a level any adolescent can relate to. "… identities can shift in an instant. I went from being a
Our identities are constantly evolving throughout our lives to adapt to certain people and environments. Lars Fr. H. Svendsen states “Self-identity is inextricably bound up with the identity of the surroundings” One’s morals and characteristics are forever changing and these self resolutions are influenced by the encompassing aspects of life such as significant events, environmental revolutions and one’s relationship with another. Due to factors sometimes beyond our control, one’s self prowess is merely an expression of their own prior experiences which conclusively preserve and maintain a state of fluctuation for one’s character. A similar concept is evident in the film ‘The Sapphires’
There are many factors that lead to the development of an individual’s identity. Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” illustrates an extreme change in Gregor Samsa’s external identity and the overall outward effect it has on the development of his family. While James Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues” illustrates a young man struggling to find his identity while being pushed around by what society and his family wants him to be. Both of these characters exhibit an underlying struggle of alienation but both also demonstrate a craving for belongingness. This conflict of trying to belong to something as well as satisfying the needs of society, has directly impacted their own individuality and the lives of the people around them.
The search for one’s identity can be a constant process and battle, especially for teenagers and young adults. Many people have a natural tendency to want to fit in and be accepted by others, whether it be with family, friends or even strangers. They may try to change who they are, how they act, or how they dress in order to fit in. As one gets older, society can influence one’s view on what they should look like, how they should act, or how they should think. If society tells us that a certain body type or hair color is beautiful, that is what some people strive for and want to become in order to be more liked. This was especially true with Avery as she longed for the proper clothes to fit into a social group and began to change the way she spoke to match those around her. As a young and impressionable sixth grader, she allowed herself to become somewhat whitewashed in an attempt to fit in with the other girls. However, Avery did not really become friends with any of those girls; her only real friend was
Your identity is shaped by your desire to be who you want to be. You choose who you surround yourself with. You decide who you want to become, but in the novel the Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan, Jing-mei’s mother already had her identity planned out whether she likes it or not. According to her mother, “you could be anything you wanted to be in America.” Her standards for her daughter were nothing short of the American dream. She wanted her daughter to be a prodigy, to excel in anything, and at first Jing-mei was just as excited as her mother was. She wasn't sure where her daughter's talents rooted, but she was sure that she reeked of potential. Mrs. Woo tried to push her daughter to become an actress, but she soon found out that will get her nowhere. Then
A person’s identity develops from birth and is shaped by many components, including values and attitudes given at home. We all have a different perspective about who we want to be and what fits better with our personality. However, is our identity only shaped by personal choices or does culture play an important role here? It is a fact that the human being is always looking for an inclusion in society. For instance, there is a clear emphasis in both, “Masks”, by Lucy Grealy, and “Stranger in the Village”, by James Baldwin that identity can be shaped by culture. Grealy does a great job writing about the main issue that has made her life so difficult: her appearance. Cancer has placed her in a position where people,
Each of these cultural competences has its own impacting influence and effect over the continuum of the lives of the characters that comprised the story. Towards the progress of the story, the impact of cultural values, beliefs and traditional norms that guided the Hmong people set up their own unique traditions and practices. This influenced the overall development of their cognitive skills and emotional capacities. Furthermore, these cultural competences defined their lives, how they lived in the community and how they organized their roles and their functions towards the society. These were various cultural domains that overall defined their personality and how they should live their lives and unique individuals. However, it was these same cultural and religious considerations that separated them the "normal sense" of development, function and expression of existence (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2009, p. 1). These are the cultural and religious influences that disabled them to understand the narrative display and critical applications of modern knowledge and science. Because of their own set of cultural display and traditions, the Hmong people could not care less of the applications and understanding of modern practices and expressions. Likewise, after Lia was thought of being possessed by an evil spirit, the community thought of her as a poor girl disturbed by the lost souls.
Monkey Beach is a coming-of-age story framed by the search for Lisamarie Hill’s younger brother, Jimmy, who has disappeared during a fishing trip near the coast of Prince Rupert. While the family waits for news, the protagonist, Lisamarie, is sinking into memories of her childhood and adolescence that are interwoven with the present. Thereby, she reveals her life in the Haisla community of Kitamaat in British Columbia, trying to define her own identity within the context of traditional Haisla and modern Euro-Canadian culture.
“Who am I” is a question that most teens find themselves asking at some point during their adolescence. A person’s identity is not made up of just one thing it includes their religion, ethnicity, occupation, physicality, gender, and sexuality. Understanding one’s identity means to fully understand all of these completely different aspects of one self. In The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall, Stephen Gordon struggles with understanding her identity and her inversion. Her physical appearance clearly has an extremely strong effect on the way she views herself. “A Curious Double Insight: ‘The Well of Loneliness’ and Native American Alternative Gender Traditions” by Tara Prince-Hughes explains that identifying as a lesbian and an invert means two completely different things. Through Native American traditions Hughes explains that Stephen’s definition of her identity resembles their two-spirit emphasis on gender rather than the lesbian emphasis on sexual desire. The article “Hall of Mirrors: Radclyffe Hall's ‘The Well of Loneliness’ and Modernist Fictions of Identity” by Laura Green discusses the struggles that Stephen faced with her inversion and how it reflected on her identity throughout the book.
“It’s a blessed thing that in every stage in every age some one has had the individuality and courage enough to stand by his own convictions.” The part of me that sums up my identity best is not the adjectives given by family, or the faults I find in myself. My identity is my desire to better myself, and my passion for children. My identity is who I want to be and what I do to accomplish my goals My identity is the feelings and emotions I pour into my journal every day, and the way I feel when I do something right. My identity is not what others thing of me or what I think of myself after a bad day. My identity is the love and confidence I have in myslef, and the beauty inside.
...es, if one will sit back and evaluate they will find the true meaning of self-identity, beyond ones name, hobbies, or careers. The narrator took his journey of self-awareness and found his identity. In the novel Fight Club, the narrator discovers the truth about himself and his true identity. The path of self-discovery leads our narrator on a dangerous path. Where will your path lead you?
Allende, Isabel. The House of the Spirits. New York, NY: Random House, Inc., 1985. Print.
One’s identity is the most important lesson to be learned. It is vital part of life knowing who you are in order to live a fulfilled life. Without knowing your identity, and the way you perceive life, it is difficult for others to understand you, along with a struggle to live a happy life. In Sylvia Plath’s “The Bell Jar,” Esther Greenwood struggles to find her own identity, and in the process, she develops a mental illness which helps her discover the person she is on the inside.
Haunting Experiences: Ghosts in Contemporary Folklore. Ed. Diane E. Goldstein, Sylvia Ann Grider, and Jeannie Banks Thomas. Logan, UT: Utah State UP, 2007.