My Understanding of Identity

Tim Belicose

9/2/15

Prof. Young

Writing Workshop

              Identity

            Identity is a very descriptive word that may accompany many different definitions of itself. A general overall definition of itself would be how you and others perceive you. This would involve things like race, gender, language, presentation, actions, and sometimes even friends. The word "identity" can allow an individual to understand another individual’s characteristics, and various personalities within them that leads to a better acknowledgement of their life.

            Now, a standard definition of identity could be the one that I stated above, but everyone has different opinions. My opinion of what identity means is the way someone thinks about you and the way of how you judge yourself. For example, when a cop pulls you over and asks for your license, u want to have a good "identity" in which you have done nothing bad in the past. If a cop sees that you have had a couple of tickets in the past, he may think of you differently and may even treat you with a different attitude unlike if you had a clean past. This is not the only example of this and this is how society works nowadays. If a majority of people around you like what you do and how you act, you will be treated with respect. If that’s the opposite and you have a questionable identity people will react to you negatively or with a bad attitude. Although, there are many occasions in which people judge individuals just by how they look. This is where this phrase can accurately come in: "Don't judge a book by it's cover." 

            Identity is not defined by just appearance or presentation but personality and language as well. An individual could wear the most dissatisfying outfit you have ever seen and could look like an ignorant thug but what could matter the most is how that person acts. That person could be as nice as anyone else and deserves equal respect like anyone should before you really get to know who they really are. When you "judge a book by it's cover", you are not giving that person a chance to show their true personality. In some cases, the person may be exactly what you expect, but that is not what always happens and I think the true definition of identity should be applied in a situation that could be like this. Precautions should be made when analyzing the identity of a person.

            Everyone has a different perspective on the way we perceive the world around us. If we usually think positive about the world around us, then we are most likely a person that retains a good identity. If we are negative about the world, we will most likely have an identity that almost no one wants to associate themselves with. The definition of identity is the way someone thinks about you or how you think about yourself. Although, you can not forget the fact that there is more than just and individuals appearance; personality matters more.