Identity In Hamlet

From the second you are born, you become. Infamously referenced in William Shakespeare’s play script, Hamlet, “To be, or not to be: that is the question” (III.I.56), this state of being has been discussed throughout all time and disciplines. Like the main character, Hamlet, it is common for an individual to contemplate their state of existence and its very worth as they approach critical points of identity and purpose. Our lowest points do not only serve as markers of crisis, rather, they too reveal the state of our identity. Written and sang about, a universal event of identity crisis is the dissolution of a romantic relationship—a breakup. Such was the case for my best friend, whom in attempt to maintain her anonymity I will refer to as Blue

Jan Doering, studies individuals undergoing a process of “saving face” (2010: 73), and shares Dr. Goffman’s definition as “‘an image of self delineated in terms of approved social attributes’” (Goffman 1967 as cited in Doering:2010). More than ever, due to the breakup and the loss of identity, Blue Jay felt a need to put forth her best face, which Tinder threatened, and had to rebuild her “tainted image” (Peña, 2016), or save face. But, Blue Jay’s short lived time on Tinder, about a week and a half, allowed her to take control and explore the underdeveloped scripts on virtual

Scripts “provide us with lines of action, sequence of events, symbols for communication towards particular goals” (Orzechowicz: Friendship Initiation), or perpetuated patterns that people generally pursue in given situations. While scripts are generally written for heteronormative relationships, whether it be romantic or platonic, virtual dating scripts are relatively underdeveloped and left for users to navigate and discover. After establishing her goal, making meaningful friendships, Blue Jay had to develop an approach of pursuit. She said, “I would just swipe, and wait for them to message me first. Some where actually interested in getting to know me, while others just wanted to hook up” (Peña: 2016). Blue Jay’s methodology of initiation was to wait, which is a common script for woman to follow in conventional situations, however, when a user showed a sense of homophily, or similarity (Thompson: 2009) in humor, she would approach them first. Once she established a sense of a possible connection, she took control of the experience and ignored any potential fears by meeting them in person, which was “was the most positive part of the experience” (Peña: 2016). Navigating through the the uncharted waters of online dating reinforced her sense of control over her identity and connections, but