Personal Narrative: The Quintessence Of American Culture

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The quintessence of American culture is freedom. We have the freedom to control our words, to dress however we desire, pursue any variety of education, work in any career field, and to ultimately be whoever we want to be- all of this is how individuals use their freedom to shape their identity. This idea of controlling one’s identity has been clearly seen throughout American history, through both media and historical figures. We see how characters like Holly Golightly from “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” completely reinvented herself into what she desired to be, and more modernly, how President Donald Trump went from a business man to a roaring politician in a short period of time. These examples of the transition of one’s identity reflects just how much power we have in our personal agency. The song “Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise” by the Avett …show more content…

When given a compliment, I wouldn’t have the confidence to accept it and would go to extreme efforts as an attempt to live up to what I felt were expectations. This constant struggle I faced would manifest into insecurity, anxiety, and self hatred. Those common challenges led to me taking full control of the aforementioned freedom to control one’s identity. This journey of self discovery included taking on different identities, which looked like involving myself with different social groups and stereotypes. This season of my life was messy and taught me nothing about who Emma is. As I have grown and matured, I’ve gained a new confidence. The way that people view me is not something that I must live up to, because regardless of what I feel are inadequacies, they see something else. There are many people who I have crossed paths with during my life who have left a profound effect on who I am.. Did they form my identity? Absolutely not. However, they helped, and in some cases, continue to help me dig deeper into the essence of who I

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