Brett Ross Blog 2

Brett Ross

03/01/18

Blog Post #2

Identity

For this month, one reading that stood out to me was in chapter six which was about identity and perception. In particular, the statement that was most relevant to me was, “If, from the moment of our births to the moment of our deaths, our “selves” never changed, we would never grow or become different as a result of life’s experiences (Warren and Fassett, 2015, p. 102). I thought this statement was relevant to me and other young adults experiencing college. For the first eighteen years of your life you live with your parents and your identity is in somewhat part of their identity because you are involved as a group. Once you get to college, it is the first real time where one’s identity changes, if you will, because of all the new experiences we have made as oneself alone. I think that this statement is prevalent because it applies to all people who attend college, or even live on their own. It shows that this statement is a part of culture, and to an extent has been a part of previous cultures across generations. For example, the first time that I went home after I had been in college my dad had told me that he could tell a major difference in how I held myself as a person and I think that was due to the new experiences I had from living on my own and figuring out who I am.

Rita Landino of psychcentral.com wrote, “Intellectual and social stimulation from the college setting can mix with the normal developmental patterns of becoming an adult in American society to produce profound changes in young people.” This shows how the culture of moving to college is normal and expected. I think this statement is so important because the culture and transition of moving to college is the first experience that really shapes a young adult. This shows that it is a cultural aspect because people know and expect what will happen to a young adult during college. It is just as recognizable as the culture of gun control or feminist movements. I would say that this statement does not only apply to moving to college, which is another reason why I think it is so relevant. The experiences we have are always changing us and shaping our identities which in turn shapes how we think of other cultural movements and concepts.