Wide eyed and bushy tailed, we begin our lives as impressionable adolescents on a journey to find out who we are. Though we may not realize it in the moment, we go through the stages of life one step at a time while making countless memories along the way. But there is always one memory in particular, a moment that we can look back on that remains near and dear to our hearts forever. Whether it be a night out with close friends, a funny moment at the lunch table, or an impactful life event that effected you or your loved ones- we have changed from it, grown from it, and thus it has played a significant role in shaping our identities. An important factor of this has to do with our environment, but more closely, our experiences. In Ferris Bueller’s …show more content…
While every student in his school carries on with their daily routine, Ferris decides that there is no harm in taking a day of leisure and fun to do whatever he likes. Ferris Bueller’s day defies Appiah’s argument stating “one thing that matters to people across many societies is a certain narrative unity, the ability to tell a story that hangs together” (73). Appiah is arguing in a sense that one’s individual identity should tie in with the rest of society. Though it is agreeable that Ferris’ day is far-fetched spur of the moment, this individual experience of his proves that conformity is not the only way to find one’s identity. Ferris understands the risk of missing school but believes the risk is outweighed by the benefits of exploring the social world in which he can learn first hand what skills and knowledge that a classroom cannot provide him …show more content…
Throughout the day, he has the accompaniment of his friends, though he is in not reliant on them. Appiah believes, “We are social in many ways and for many reasons: because we desire company, because we depend on one another for survival, because so much that we care about is collectively created” (71). Though Appiah makes a valid point, it is not always the case especially in Ferris Bueller’s life. Ferris’s friends are considered more of accessories than vital people that define his character and he is anything but dependent. For instance, when Ferris becomes the main attraction at the New York City parade, his friends had nothing to do with it, and did not shape his decision to go through with it in any way. This stunt was entirely his own doing. Ferris is clearly a very independent character, whose actions are not consulted by his friends. That is not to say that he does not enjoy his friends’ company, rather he is not dependent on it for his identity
In the iconic film, The Breakfast Club, five random high school students must spend their Saturday together in detention. Each teen is in detention for a different reason. The Jock (Andrew), the Princess (Claire), the Brain (Brian), the Basket Case (Allison), and the Criminal (Bender) must put aside their differences to survive their grueling eight-hour detention with their psychotic and rash principal Mr. Vernon. While in detention, they are expected to write about “who they really are” in one thousand words. Throughout the day, their actions reveal their innermost struggle involving their cliques and their home lives. As the movie progresses, we find out the reason each teen is in detention that culminates in a climactic discussion about
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’
Breakfast Club film contained a wide variety of behavior and stereotypes. Each person had their on personality and taste at the beginning of the film. I believe that communication played the biggest part in the movie. It shows the way that people from totally different backgrounds can communicate and even agree on issues. The various types of communication and behaviors within the film will be discussed.
Identity is very important in a person’s life. It can induce pride or shame, provide a community or provide a way to distinguish one’s self from others. But, where does this identity come from? It is easy to assume we are who we are because of who raised us, but this is not the entire case. Andrew Solomon, author of “Far from the Tree” introduced two different forms of identity, vertical and horizontal. He defines vertical identity as the attributes acquired and shared by the people we are raised by and horizontal identity as the attributes different from those who raised us, but are shared and acquired through a peer community. These two types of identities generally do not intersect and, depending on the circumstance, one can greatly impact
One of the biggest fears in today's world is the idea of not fitting into society. Evan Hunter's story “On the Sidewalk Bleeding,” explores the theme of the importance of personal identity. This will be shown through an analysis of how external reality plays a critical role in defining who people are, how personal identity is a crucial aspect of how individuals grow and the fact that no matter how hard you try, you can never erase the troubles of your past. One aspect of identity that is evident in Hunter's story is how external reality plays a critical role in defining who people are. While individuals may wish to be many things, the world plays a role in who people are and how people perceive others.
Lindsey, for example, is one of those people. Not the type to go face to face with reality, she cloaks herself in a big jacket so she can hide from the world. Originally known for being the smartest kid in school, she doesn 't want to be seen as the smartest anymore. The confusion she is facing causes her to push her friends; and family away, Leaving her vulnerable to poor decisions. To try and makes herself feel better she tries to become friends with the “cool kids”. These “cool kids”, are known for their bad habits of smoking, doing drugs, and treating others poorly. While she seemed to become more confused about her own image, a friend realizes her issue and decides to help her seek what she desires. Lindseys friend Nick, introduces her into his drumset. He explains, “it 's my drum kit. This my passion. This is the essence of who I am now. But before I had this, I was lost too.” When she heard this she understood that she needed to find her own drum kit. The Man with the drums evolved, into the person that she will
Thinking back now, I can see we were just at that age when we knew a few things about ourselves – about how we were, how we were different from our guardians, from the people outside – but hadn’t yet understood what any of it meant. (36)
Adams, G. R., & Marshall, S. K. (1996). A developmental social psychology of Identity: Understanding the person-in-context. Journal of Adolescence 19, 429 - 442. Bosma. I am a nascent of Bosma.
Among carpenters, it is a well-known fact that building a house upon a solid foundation is imperative. When beginning the construction of a home, the foundation is always the first step leading to success, for without it, the house will become unstable. During extreme weather, such as floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and other conditions, a slight fault in the foundation of a home will most likely guarantee significant damage, if not complete destruction. Similar to a house, a person’s identity must rest upon a firm foundation; otherwise, it may not be capable of withstanding the ominous conditions of the world. When trials and burdens threaten to crumble people’s identities, their foundations must stand their ground and overcome the various tribulations. Although there are billions of inhabitants of the world, no two people share the same identity; rather, each person has unique memories, stories, events, and artifacts influencing who they have become. Some people’s identities may reflect a difficult childhood of discrimination, poverty, and hatred similar to the one described by Malcolm X in his article, “Nightmare.” Other people may associate with Katie Pederson and her article, “Identity,” in which they are defined through a simple artifact such as an identification card. In addition, numerous unfortunate people may struggle from the devastating effects of memory loss similar to those Floyd Skloot experienced, and they are helpless as their memories and identity slowly slip away from them. Still other people may find themselves desperately searching for acceptance and identity similar to the homeless man in Gina Berriault’s article, “Who Is It Can Tell Me Who I Am.” Unlike the homeless man and Malcolm X, I was fortuna...
They are all middle to upper middle class Caucasian adolescents living in a suburban environment. Sam, Patrick, and the other 3 members of their clique are all seniors in high school and Charlie is only a freshman. Through the experiences of Charlie and his new friends, The Perks of Being a Wallflower provides excellent examples of cliques and crowds, dating scripts, the identity status model, externalizing problems, internalizing problems, and
Steve Jobs once said, during a commencement speech at Stanford, “Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice” (Goodreads). Every single person on earth is a unique individual with their own thoughts and actions. In life every person goes through a stage of growth and development, both mentally and physically, where they are striving to become a more complete human being not constrained by their youth. This stage usually develops during adolescence, happening in the teenage years of one’s life. It also happens that this is occurring during the time of school when children are starting to study harder material and deal with more complex social situations.
I have blamed people for that and have lost friends for that. However, I see that I am more self-aware because of it. Like my journey of becoming more self-aware, Nick Carraway experiences similar feelings when he fights against culture in New York. This culture he engages in engulfs him and changes his personality drastically. Even though Nick enjoys his friends’ parties, his lifestyle, and his nostalgia, the careless world he lives in expands the cynicism within him when he needs support the most.
The role of identity plays an important role in all adolescence which can help shape their future. In psychology, identity is the conception, qualities, beliefs, and expressions that make a person or group. The movie, “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”, illustrates how teens struggle with identity. Charlie is an anti-social freshman who is befriended by a group of high school seniors, who introduces him to the world of drugs, love, sexulatity, friendship, and lies. His friends play a huge role in his development. Throughout the movie, Charlie was able to build upon his character and develop friendships that gave him a new perspective that life needs, to live life rather than watching it.
“Parents can only give good advice or put (us) on the right path, the final forming of a person’s character lies in (our) own hands.” Anne Frank. Thirteen years ago, I made a significant decision which highlighted a character trait, resulting in an important life lesson. A dusty, red classic 1968 Austin Healey Sprite was too tempting for my six year old hands. Being in the phase where I decorated everything including my school papers with hearts over my “I’s” and with smiley faces, the blank canvas of the right rear fender called to me. In a moment of weakness and finding myself alone in the garage of my childhood home, I succumbed to the temptation. Watching my finger create a bright red smiley face brought a devious amount of pleasure.
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.