Essay Assignment #1: 

Writing to Express Dimensions of the Self

First Draft Due September 18th (minimum 3 pages for draft / final paper is a minimum of 5 pages):

BRING 4 COPIES OF YOUR DRAFT TO CLASS!!!

"Personal writing is as old as human history, rooted, as it is, in the deeply human need to tell one's story. In our own time, the need is particularly urgent since we are surrounded by a culture in which individuality is ignored, and therefore denied." [Nelson, Learning From Within: Ira Progoff and the Power of Personal Writing, Media and Methods 48 (1978)] 

A number of the readings we will explore together this semester will address issues of identity, how others perceive us and how we see ourselves, whether through gender, ethnicity, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, nationality, attire, personality, material belongings (or lack thereof), and/or social groups. Because one's sense of identity can be complex and ever evolving, people sometimes tend to look for identifying markers, so to speak, that often carry with them assumptions, stereotypes, and misunderstandings. 

Furthermore, many of us often “read” meaning into those identifying markers, not only about the other, but also when it comes to ourselves. (e.g. “She's Latina, so she must speak Spanish” – or, “I'm Latina, so I should know how to speak Spanish” or, “Because he is wearing dirty clothes with holes in them, he must be a homeless person." Some "identifying markers" are often those that are rather "superficial" or "on the surface" (something more easily seen, detected, noted by others), such as one's clothes (as mentioned above), one's accent, one's hairstyle, one's color of skin, walk or way one carries oneself, and so forth. Oftentimes, others will form opinions about us because of these superficial characteristics, which is where assumptions, stereotypes, and misunderstandings can so often take place.

And yet, sometimes we utilize these "superficial" characteristics to also identify us, perhaps consciously, perhaps without even thinking deeply about it. For example, a person may dress a certain way in order to be taken more seriously or one may dress a certain way in order to gain respect amongst their peers or "look cool" or attractive. What about earrings? piercings? tattoos? the way we cut our hair? the way we walk (saunter, stroll, pace, etc.). Do any of those "superficial" characteristics that we take on or adopt say anything about us? In what ways might we try to identify ourselves or give ourselves outward identifying markers? And what do those identifying markers say about us? And in what ways do those identifying markers perhaps mis-identify us? Or, we may be attracted to a certain symbol, image, or theme without even realizing why, all the while being drawn to it because it "says something" about who we are.

This inscription of meaning that we and others give ourselves often stems from a long history of social, political, religious, psychological, and/or cultural practice. This by no means suggests that such practices are negative; in many cases, our practices are deeply embraced, but misinterpreted or misunderstood. And in some instances, some feel confined and/or restricted by the perceptions that others, their society, their families, and sometimes even the person, him or herself, has about his or her own culture, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, and/or sense of identity (just to name a few). And sometimes, instead of embracing the multiplicity inherent within ourselves, for fear that we may be misread, misinterpreted, misunderstood, and perhaps even mistreated, we hide it, ignore it, overlook it, or just simply don't pay attention to all the "signs" that point to it.

For example, when I was in undergraduate school, I took a painting class. It wasn't until near the end, when I had all my paintings lined up in the studio that a friend of mine took a look around and said to me, "Why do you paint so many doors and windows?" that I even realized that I did. I looked around at my twenty-something canvasses and realized that the majority of them had, as a central focus point, either a door or a window, or were composed of both. It surprised me. I didn't realize I was drawn to windows and doors as a theme, less mind paint so many! I pondered this for a bit, but never really came to any conclusions (looking back, I think I just didn't want to know). A few years later, when I became more seriously interested in photography, I unknowingly began doing the exact same thing -- I started taking hundreds of photographs of doors and windows. Though looking back through old photos that I'd taken as young as when I was in my pre-teens, I was, even then, taking a lot of pictures of doors and windows! I am still attracted to photos of doors and windows, like to paint, draw, and photograph doors and windows, and probably always will. However, I have since figured out what doors and windows mean to me or what my attraction to them says about me. So, if I were writing this essay, I could choose doors and windows (or one or the other) as my "artifact" to represent a dimension of my self.

What you want to do at this point, for the purpose of this assignment, is to try to think about these broader issues as it pertains to your own personal sense of identity and your complex and multiple dimensions of your individual selves. To this end, begin by choosing some cultural, ethnic, artistic, social, religious, or political artifact that holds great significance for you, whether positive or negative. 

By artifact, I mean any piece of art, any image, poem, piece of clothing, icon, piece of music, etc. that symbolizes or represents some dimension of who you are. It can practically be anything, but it must be something that one can either see, hear, feel, touch, or smell . . . (engages one of the five senses), and cannot be a person. The focus of this essay is on YOU, not someone else, which is why it is important that it NOT be another person and  represents you. If you are having difficulty with this, talk to me.

Working with some artifact in mind, write an essay describing how the artifact has notable significance in your life and why. Some questions you may keep in mind may be as follows (and these are just some suggestions to help you get started – you may use others):  

• How does it reflect and/or inform a dimension (or dimensions) of your self? What does it say about you? How might it mirror parts of who you are or, perhaps, who you are not, but have often been perceived to be? 

• What was your first contact with this artifact and what was your first reaction, response and/or feeling about it? 

• What came first? An initial gut reaction or response to the piece itself or an experience that then made you have a significant feeling about the piece? (for example, you may not have had any feeling about a violin the first time you merely saw one, but after having heard a master play it, you may now feel incredibly drawn to just the sight of one).   

• In what way has this piece had a profound effect on you? How might it have helped shaped who you are or your perception of the world around you?

• In what ways is your identity linked to this piece? What, if any, identifying markers do you associate with this piece? When you see, hear, touch, feel, or smell this piece, what assumptions, thoughts, feelings, etc. do you make or have?

• What meaning do you ascribe to this object? And what meaning might others ascribe to this object(in relation to you? and alone, not in relation to you?)?

** Always, always back up your thoughts with some example, quote, or explanation.