Krysta’s Blog

How do we determine who we are? What can we compare ourselves to?  

   It would be pointless for me to compare myself to someone in a different society, because they live a different lifestyle and their society would have different expectations for them. Most often I find that I compare myself to people around me, however I am not sure how useful this is. I think that identity is something that is difficult to compare with other people. You may think that you know someone’s identity, but that does not mean you do. People are sometimes private about parts of their identity so even if someone appears to have similar qualities as you they may not. The reverse is also true; people who you believe are not like you may have the very same qualities deep down. Another reason it is difficult to compare identities is because no one has the exact same environment or is given the same opportunities even if they live in the same town. You may feel that you have achieved the same things and have gained the same qualities as someone but the ways that you got to that point in your life is very different. The journey is part of your identity as well. This is summarized in the following quote by Ursula K. LeGuin, “It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end”. 

   One way that I use to measure my identity is by comparing who I am and who I would like to be. People always have some idea of what qualities they would like to have. This is a very useful way for me to measure my identity because I have a very good idea of who I currently am and who I see myself being. The most important part about measuring your own identity is being honest with yourself about who you really are. Chances are if you can’t be honest with yourself you aren’t the person you want to be. I found a interesting but long blog post which discusses the importance of setting goals and knowing who you want to be. To view this blog CLICK HERE.

Video: Dennis Prager: Comparing Yourself to Others

   The above video is a radio show where the host, Dennis Prager, talks about how people are always comparing themselves to others. He says that most people think that their lives are worse than others because they are not aware of other people’s problems. Another good point he made was that some people who have experienced a lot of trouble in their lives can act like everything is fine. I liked many of the points made during this video. It shows that you can’t compare yourself to others because you simply don’t know enough about their lives.

  There are many articles that state that comparing yourself to others is not ideal and usually has very little value. To read a short article about comparing yourself to others CLICK HERE.

   This week we talked about an individual’s identity. One thing that stood out to me in our discussions was how people reply when they are asked “Who are you?”. My reply to this question would be “Krysta”. Now that I think about this response, it doesn’t really say anything about me. A person’s identity can not be summed up by a name. Our identities are complex and constantly being reshaped as we are influenced by our environment and the people around us.

Video: Define Yourself (Influence of the Media)

   In society today we are under constant pressure to change our identity so that it resembles the identity we “should” have. This increasing pressure makes people a little less unique each time they attempt to fit the mold. In order for a person to discover their true identity they need to find out what they want and who they want to be. The only way to do this is to ignore the pressure society is constantly putting on them. The following quote expresses that it may be hard to break away for the majority of society but having control over your thoughts and actions is worth it. “The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.” Friedrich Nietzsche. For more quotes on identity CLICK HERE.

Video: Shrek (Onions Have Layers)

   The above video shows Shrek trying to explain to Donkey that there is more to Ogres then what many people think. He compares Ogres to onions by saying they both have layers. I think this is true of people too. Our identities are not just based on what can be seen from the outside. People can not be identified by labels like: athletic, smart, loser, etc. People are multi-dimensional and could be many things at one time. The array of experiences we encounter during our lives influences us and each different experience inspires a new dimension to our identities.