Identity And Identity Essay

Someone’s identity defines who they are, what they are perceived as, and what they do in relation to everyday life, careers, and other people. Do physical things like material possessions or the way someone dresses compose an individual’s identity? Realistically, who is to name what someone’s identity is comprised of. Though our identities depend a great deal on our experiences and beliefs rather than physical things, numerous aspects about ourselves produce our identities. These major categories that define one’s identity are appearance, faith, gender roles, race, and culture. Sadly, appearance plays a massive part in the way we as a modern society perceive someone. Being such an enormous part of the perception that we receive from our peers, the idea that physical appearance shapes identity falls inward onto us. For example, in “Mirrorings” up until Lucy Grealy moves to London for reconstructive surgery, her entire identity is her illness (Grealy). While it is easy to do, she let other people’s nasty opinions of her change the way she felt about herself (Grealy). She outright believed that she

While it is controversial in today’s society and the current events unfolding across the nation, race is part of our identity. Race is what we use to describe “a group of persons related by common descent or heredity” (Ammer). The fact that we can be grouped with similar peoples is a huge part of identity. Our identity makes us who we are and so does common descent and heredity. Race also ties into culture, because our cultures and ethnicities most often come from our racial backgrounds. Our culture effects our identity by determining what traditions we practice, holidays we celebrate, and could even effect things we enjoy and dislike. These observations made about race and culture surely shape who we are because without them we would be grim, spineless