Me It Was Friday Analysis

Identity is one aspect of a human that makes one different from everyone else. This is the essential core of all humans. Each person is born in his own country and with his own unique and personal identity. However, as each one grows, his or her identity is consistently changing. What would happen if these factors created no distinction between one another? Would there be a clear contrast between people, or would everyone just be identical? It is evident that if there was no personal identity, then everyone would be the same and there would be no contrast or distinction between people. In Leila Ahmed’s “On becoming an Arab,” Jean Twenge’s “An Army of One: Me,” and Andrew Bacevich’s “When I Woke Up Tuesday Morning, It Was Friday,” each author discusses aspects of one’s identity. To Ahmed……, Andrew Bacevich explains the problems that America is having with foreign goods and oil, and how President Carter deals with the situation. To Twenge, the influence of education teaching self-esteem has created a lower educational standards and a raise of narcissism in a person. A person’s personal identity is formed and affected by their influence with their surroundings and the
events that occur in their life. One’s history if his or her country is important so he knows his own identity. However, with the want to be someone your not and the necessity to always change to fit in, the uniqueness of one’s personal identity is being altered, and the relevance to his country becomes less and less important. People form their identity based upon the values and cultures of their country. The way an individual is brought up and taught reflects upon the person he is. An important component of a person’s character is their ability to express themselves. While discussing the nature of language, Twenge states, “We speak the language of the self as our native tongue” (Twenge 760). Twenge is arguing that the people display their true self as the “native tongue.” People communicate their ideas, experiences, and what they believe is real through their language. People avoid doing things that are frowned upon by their country. People speak the native tongue of who they are. Ahmed shows a direct correlation between language and who an individual is, “’You’re an Arab!’ she finally screamed at me. ‘An Arab! And you don’t know your own language!’ ‘I am not an Arab! I said suddenly furious myself. ‘I am Egyptian! And anyway we don’t speak like this!’” (Ahmed 26) The teacher criticizes Ahmed because she does not know her own language. This shows that one’s language of his or her country defines who he is, and people judge the individual based on the knowledge he has of his own country’s culture. Along with the culture of one’s country, personal identity is formed and affected by their influence with their surroundings and the events that occur in their life. One’s personal identity is created by the improvised events he or she experiences and creates.
One’s events depends on the surrounding he or she is in Whether positive or negative, people remember major occurrences in their life which can shape who they are. There is only so much one can change about one’s self. To many, life encounters have become both good and bad scars. This behavior can change one’s perspective on life, but cannot change one’s experiences. These scars that people educe are mentally and emotionally embodied into who they are. Though people try to hide the scars they posses, they will always have something, such as their parents, that will constantly reinforce those lessons that they have endured. One can change anything about themselves, besides their authentic
core. People are continuously changing because they want to exemplify everything they see around them, and what their country shows as an ideal person. As a result, people lose or manipulate the core essence of their personal identity. People are willing to manipulate and sacrifice their own identity in order to emulate someone who their country glamorizes If everyone possessed the same identity, there would be no distinction between each other. As a result, the essence of having a personal identity is destroyed. People come in all shapes, sizes, and colors that make them different from everyone else. However, what distinguishes them as special is their country, and personal identity. A person’s unique identity is established from birth, but as one grows, so does his or hers individual personality. If there was no personal identity, everyone would be the same and there would be absolutely no distinction between one another. One of the two major influences that affect one’s personality is his or her surroundings and upbringings and the experiences he or she has had. One’s surrounding affects a person’s personal identity by displaying what society wants, as well as, displaying events a person would have experienced through shows. This affects peoples’ identity because they must change who they are in order to fit in. However, by doing so, people lose their personal identity to become nothing more than a rock amongst multiple rocks. People forget to see how unique they individually are by conforming to their surroundings. Nevertheless, people can restore their personal identity by realizing the necessity to stay true to their own self and understanding the lack of morals changing their selves is portraying.