6/9 Blog: What is Identity?

Beyond “identity” by Rogers Brubaker and Frederick Cooper explores the concept of identity in social and political systems. Brubaker and Cooper examine comparable terms to identity and raise questions about how we form our identities. Their work highlights inherent characteristics which contribute to our perception of identities as well as behaviors which make similar contributions. There are certain assumptions which can be made with regard to the term “identity”. There are also ambiguities. Beyond “identity” covers many of these characteristics which describe the complexity of identity.

I enjoyed reading this journal article as an introduction to our course. They did an excellent job demonstrating how some terms like “self-understanding” may be a component of identity, but they are not a definition of identity itself. I also found it useful to read what aspects of identity they found to be implied. Brubaker and Cooper suggest that by nature identity is unchanged throughout time. We may have revelations which lead to a newfound understanding of our identities, but those revelations are due to preexisting realities. I disagree with this notion because then our identities should be more definitive and require less self reflection. I agree most with Cooper and Brubaker’s analysis that there are “strong and weak understandings of identity”. Strong does not mean better. Weak does not mean worse. However, there are depths to which we form our identity. Brubaker and Cooper do an excellent job comparing weak and strong understandings of identity. Their journal article demonstrates the combination of weak and strong understandings necessary to conceptualize identity. 

So, what is identity? To begin answering this question, I take an introspective approach in trying to determine my identity. As I attempt to answer this question, I realize that after having read Brubaker and Cooper’s journal article I am unsure of how to answer that question for myself. Their article describes a plethora of activities, qualities, possessions, and other facets of one’s life contributing to identity. Each of these facets weighs differently in determining an individual or group’s identity. The weight of each facet is determined either by the individual themself or an outside individual. Thus, I believe that there are two forms of identity: an introspective identity and external identity. We each have an identity as we understand it and a second identity as others perceive it. Often, identity conflicts are due to the misperception of one’s external identity. 

As I searched introspectively for an answer to “what is identity?”, I reflected on my experience as a barback in Washington, D.C. last summer. I considered part of my identity as a barback to be conscientious, diligent, and persevering despite a multitude of challenging conditions. To many guests of the bar, part of my identity was an obedient, joyful, and diligent worker. Although outsiders could understand some of the diligence involved in being a barback, they could never understand the difficulty of being obedient and lack of joy involved in doing my job. I do not blame any outsiders for failing to understand the reality of being a barback. They visited the bar for pure enjoyment or relief while my experience was defined by different sentiments.

Through self reflection, I realize that identity is a duality of one’s own characteristics and public perception. Identity is difficult to define because weighing the importance of self determined characteristics with those determined by outsiders is challenging. I seek to learn more about the duality of identity in this course. The Brubaker and Cooper reading provided me with an informative introduction into the duality of identity because the journal covered an enormous amount of factors in identity.

Roofers Union: Where I worked as a Barback