This is a journey of self-discovery to understand the fundamental meaning of what makes me, me? All of us have a unique identity and culture. An Identity are a sets of social expectations related to ourselves and others that are grounded in the interplay between similarities and differences and pertain to the personal, relational, and communal aspects of lives (Hall, 102). In other words, it is our identity that makes us who we are. On the other hand, Culture is defined as a historically shared system of symbolic resources through which we make our world meaningful (Hall, 4). Culture is how we as individuals make sense of the world. So what is Cultural Identity? Cultural Identity allows us as individuals to feel a sense of belonging to a particular …show more content…
Even though my Catholic upbringing played a huge role in shaping my identity, it was not my only identity. As Hall states, “We all have multiple identities” (Hall, 107). I am a daughter, sister, niece, cousin, wife, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, student etc. those are my multiple identities. My Indian heritage also has played an important role in defining the person I am today. The values and beliefs I learned from my parents were taught to them by their parents and passed down from generations and is deeply rooted in my Indian culture. The Indian culture is called a “Collectivist culture” (Josselyn, Mod. 1) where you are taught to place the needs of others before your own. It teaches you values such as to be generous, helpful, dependable, and attentive to the needs of others (Josselyn, Mod 1). Although this culture has its pro’s it also has its con’s. For example, Indian wives are expected to place the needs of their husband and family first, which meant no sharing of household responsibility between the husband and wife, which may have been practical in the older days when women were full time house wives, but in today’s day and age with workingwomen this can quickly result in a burnout and cause detrimental health effects. So despite the good values I learned from my Indian culture and carry with me today and one day pass it on to my children, I do not agree with all the Indian
In today’s society there are many words that are used or said without giving it complete thought. For example, the word “identity” is something to which I have never really given much thought or even considered how I identify myself.
I classify my race, ethnicity, and culture as a white, Irish-Italian- American, woman. My mother was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and my paternal grandparents are from Sicily, Italy. I imagine being first generation Irish and second generation Italian helps me relate with my ethnicity.
Culture and identity are two very strange ideas. They are received at a very young age, yet they are very hard to give to someone else. They will affect you for the rest or your life, yet for the most part you are born into them. However, they soon become very important to us and we cannot, no matter what we do, live without them. They are a part of us, and a vital aspect of society. However, it took me a very long time to recognize that I had an identity and a little while after that before I knew what it was.
Identity is defined as being oneself and not acting or being something else. The identity that one forms throughout their life time is a slow and tedious process, each and every event in one’s life whether it’s larger or small scale has an effect on developing ones overall identity. In the play Only Drunks and Children Tell the Truth by Drew Hayden Taylor, Janice it caught between two identities and struggles to find a happy medium. Being adopted into a white family at a young age, Janice has become accustom to many of the white traditions and ways. Janice’s native family has recently gotten in touch with her and has put a great deal of pressure on her to regain some of the native culture she was born into. With pressure building Janice begins to question her identity and begins to show signs that she wants nothing to do with her native roots. Drew Hayden Taylor does an excellent job in this play showing how stereotypes and pre-conceived notions affect ones identity and their relationships within society. Each character within the play shows how their identity has been shaped through the relationships they have acquired throughout their lives; Tonto’s identity is heavily influenced by his father and best friend Rodney, Barb is influenced by the customs and traditional ways of her mother, and Janice after being adopted at a young age has formed an identity revolving around that of her adopted parents but she faces a great deal of pressure from her native birth family.
Before beginning the explanation of how an identity is formed, one must understand what an identity is. So, what is identity? To answer this, one might think of what gives him individuality; what makes him unique; what makes up his personality. Identity is who one is. Identity is a factor that tells what one wants out of life and how he is set to get it. It tells what kind of a person one is by the attitude and persona he has. And it depends upon the mixture of all parts of one’s life including personal choices and cultural and societal influences, but personal choices affect the identity of one more than the others.
It is stereotypical for people to assume that the only religion in India is Hinduism, but that is not the case, there are many religions practiced in India, such as, Islam, Buddhism, Christianity and other important religions. In the essay of “The Myth of the Latin Woman: I just Met a Girl Named Maria” by Judith Cofer, she explains that there are many people being stereotyped constantly and it is a “constant struggle against the misconceptions perpetuated” (255). This represents that there are many foreigners that perceive people from common stereotypes, even though there are common misconceptions that true natives can relate about their culture. This represents that even though among the large population of Indians, there are a few that do not have the luxury of staying strong with their belief because they do not have the same opportunities as other Indians that Muslims and Christians may have. To fully appreciate the landscape of Indian faiths, one would have a better grasp of them by being native and having a lifelong understanding of the culture overall.
Cultural identity is the feeling of belonging that an individual feels towards a particular set of group. It is the part of an individual's concept and perception of self. Cultural identity is often related to nationality, religion, ethnicity and locality or any social group with its own culture. Cultural identity has two distinct dimensions to it - a psychological dimension and a sociological dimension. According to psychology, cultural identity is the "identity of a group or culture, or of an in digital as far as she/he is influenced by her/his belonging to a group or culture".
My personal cultural identity is a lot different compared to the society I am surrounded by. I am considered an outsider in my society. I am an outsider living in a constantly changing environment where there are many different kinds of people and many different cultural identities. In my culture we know how to respect people and their belongings, know how to work hard, use what we have while being thankful for it at the same time, and last we know how to stay true to ourselves in this very fast pace world of ours. I am a cowboy.
What is cultural identity? Many people may ask. Cultural identity is the identity or feeling of belonging to a group. It is part of a person's self-conception and self-perception and is related to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality or any kind of social group that has its own distinct culture. However, although one can be categorized in one cultural identity, everyone has their own independent cultural identity shaped by different things. So no one can have the exact same cultural identity. This topic made me question myself about my own cultural identity. I had to think about what made me who I am today, and what is important to me. I feel that my cultural identity was shaped by the places I grew
My culture identity, as I know it as is African American. My culture can be seen in food, literature, religion, language, the community, family structure, the individual, music, dance, art, and could be summed up as the symbolic level. Symbolic, because faith plays a major role in our daily lives through song, prayer, praise and worship. When I’m happy I rely on my faith, same as when I’m sad, for I know things will get better as they have before.
Who am I; my beliefs, values, morals, and views on society have assisted in molding me into the person that I am considered to be today. I was raced with specifics values, traditions, and norms. Being raised in a small town made being socially aware very easy. I was raised under the southern Baptist Christian religion. Church was always the same and it had a majority of women in attendance although the men and elderly people ran the church overall. It was always the same, repetitive habits and events that occurred in my town but after a while I became accustomed to always being near or known by others.
I have never really sat down and thought about my cultural identity, at least until I started this class. I never thought about how my identity was different than that of other members in my community. I also never put much mind to the communication challenges that I could face when speaking with members of my community. To be totally honest, there is more cultural differences that I have faced and actually paid attention to, and now I seem to understand the importance of how one culture differs from another.
My cultural identity has been shaped by the occupations of my parents, growing up in southern culture, and living in the self-enhancing American culture.
A person’s identity is shaped by many different aspects. Family, culture, friends, personal interests and surrounding environments are all factors that tend to help shape a person’s identity. Some factors may have more of an influence than others and some may not have any influence at all. As a person grows up in a family, they are influenced by many aspects of their life. Family and culture may influence a person’s sense of responsibilities, ethics and morals, tastes in music, humor and sports, and many other aspects of life. Friends and surrounding environments may influence a person’s taste in clothing, music, speech, and social activities. Personal interests are what truly set individuals apart. An individual is not a puppet on the string of their puppet-master, nor a chess piece on their master’s game board, individuals choose their own paths in life. They accomplish, or strive to accomplish, goals that they have set for themselves throughout their lifetime. Individuals are different from any other individual in the world because they live their own life rather than following a crowd of puppets. A person’s identity is defined by what shaped it in the first place, why they chose to be who they are, and what makes them different from everybody else in the world. I feel that I have developed most of my identity from my own dreams, fantasies, friends, and idols.
In this reflective paper, I discuss several aspects of my race, ethnicity, and culture that has made me who I am, and impacted my overall individual identity.