Identity and Community

September 12^th, 2012

The Conversion of the Jews-reflective essay

Mr. Menard/American Literature

11b4 111150 Ho InHee

 People oftentimes think communities nowadays are free and loose. Modern communities do seem less binding, less limiting than those hundred years ago. No religion imposes one to embrace every principles of it. Actually, no religion imposes one to believe in it. One is free to even disbelieve certain religion or be an agnostic. Similarly, in a broader view, people can solely devote themselves to a community, selectively adopt its laws, or totally go against it. So compared to the society hundred years ago, are people really freer in forming their identity? Or do they even know their identity fully?

Identity, on its surface, seems definable. I can tell I am a Korean and a Christian. But when I’m told to elaborate more on my identity, I get puzzled. I do not know where I should start, and how I should proceed. Perhaps I do not know my identity fully. But frankly, if anyone was asked same question (what is your identity) not many would be able to answer easily. In fact, most of the time in daily lives, people aren’t much aware of their identity. Then if people don’t exactly know their identity, how can they tell that they are freer in forming identity than hundred years ago? If they never can know their identity fully, are they ever allowed to make any speculation about their identity?

People become aware of their identity most when they are suddenly confronted by a new community. When an American girl moves to China, she is likely feel a great confusion of her identity. Why? Because the environment around her has drastically changed. The girl gets to meet the majority with apparently different life styles, values, and cultures. The difference, which she didn’t have to feel so much in her homeland, makes her feel excluded and isolated. There she starts to question: who am I? What am I doing here? These sudden questions flowing into her mind can be an evidence of a common image of identity existing in one community. Having shared quite a part of an identity with the members in her home community, the girl finds herself isolated in the new community. The new community, just like the home community, has its own common identity and the girl has to adapt to the new community, updating her identity. This American girl would have to learn a new language, respect elders, and keep away from boys. She might even have to dump all her slinky cloths. And yes, she would have to learn the common identity in the new community.

Then why do people think they can more freely form their identity than before? Perhaps because they have more opportunity to choose which community to be involved. They can now choose the country to live in, religion to devote in, and job to work in. But when choosing certain community, people implicitly accept to follow the common law. If a person feels he or she can never give up eating beef, that person wouldn’t probably go live in India. People choose a community that they consider is the most plausible to adapt. And once they get in the community, they emulate the common identity. Of course there are myriads of different communities around the world, and one is involved in more than one communities. The total combination of possible involved communities has significantly increased, and this may be the reason why the identities got diverse. But this doesn’t mean that individual identity is less affected by the community. Community still affects individuals just much as hundred years before. It’s just that the affects became less compulsive and less conspicuous. If one doesn’t follow the common law of the community, he or she is excluded straightaway. One is free to leave or transfer community, but in order to stay in certain community, he or she has to adapt to and emulate the majority in the community.