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Cristian Hansen

Professor Gannon Daniels

English 101

14 December 2024

What Made You, You!

Who are you? That is a question that many of us have asked ourself at least once in our

life time. Have you ever considered the reason why you identify yourself the way you? Identity

is once of those things that we gain from the day we are born till the day we die. It is what

defines who we are. Our identity is form due to many things that happen around us that affect us.

From our childhood at birth, our experiences at school, the people surrounding us, and our

cultures are things that have contribute to the way we identify ourselves.

One may believe that we obtain our identity later on in life as we become adults, but

reality is that our identity starts the day we are born. It all start the day our mothers bring us to

this world and our parent/s give us our name which will stay with most till the end of time. “The

Self- Who Am I?: Children’s Identity and Development through Early Childhood Education” by

Pamela A. Raburu, Raburu quotes “Identity is a legal concept within the UN Convention on the

Rights of the Child. It is every child’s entitlement from birth. The child shall be registered

immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to name, the right to acquire a

nationality and, as far as possible, the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents”

(United Nations, 1989, Article 7.1). Here we are shown how our identity and who we are meant

to be does not start with us, but by the forces surrounding us. From the day we are given our

name and is documented in our birth certificate everyone around us will identify us by that
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specific name. Now as time goes by, we start to learn our first language and skills which Raburu

explains in “The Self- Who Am I?: Children’s Identity and Development through Early

Childhood Education”. “Early childhood is a significant period for the mental functions of

children, and the developments include the emerging of the abilities and skills in areas such as

language, motor skills, psychosocial and learning. Young children’s earliest years are the

foundations for their physical and mental health, emotional security, cultural and personal

identity, and developing competencies” (Raburu 95). You first language is what is going to

separate you from other groups within your community or school. For example, if your first

language is English you are identified as an English first language speaker or if Spanish is your

first language you are identify as an ESL (English Second Language). This will play a big role on

how we learn to interact with others which would lead to the type of social group we want to

identify ourself with later on in life. “However, language is also an important part of one's

identity and is required for all aspects of interacting with the surrounding world. Identity is what

one projects into the world and how one wants to be perceived by others” (Jessica Vizuette).

As an individual develops, they start to associate themselves with a variety of social

groups such as family, friends, school’s clubs and more in which they all play a role on how they

will be identify socially. Gene Beresin, MD, MA, talks to us in “Discovering Who I Am: The

Critical Role of Identity” how we develop our identity and mold ourself depending on our social

environment. “Peers and social groups are important for helping kids establish who they are.

Kids know exactly what they can and cannot do, what they like and don’t like, how they talk.

The confirmation and reinforcement from others solidifies this self-awareness” (Beresin).

Beresin talks about how depending where we are and who we are with we know exactly how we

should act to be able to get someone else approval, for example we are with dad or mom we
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know to act a certain way, now in a school club we would know what is required of us to fit in so

we change who we are to fit in and obtain that approval. This shows us how strong of a role our

social environment plays when we need to identify ourself around certain individuals.

The way others look at us may be another reason why we decided to be who we are now

or will be. Everything that happens to us, everything we go through will always have some kind

of impact within ourselves either it being positive or negative. Sherman Alexie a citizen of the

Spokane Tribe of the Spokane Reservation and author of “The Joy of Reading and Writing:

Superman and Me” talks to us about his experience growing up being a student of a Non-Native

American teacher. Alexie explains to us in “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me”

how he was seen by his teachers and fellow Native Americans. “We were Indian children who

were expected to be stupid. As Indian children, we were expected to fail in the non-Indian world.

Those who failed were ceremonially accepted by other Indians and appropriately pitied by non-

Indians. I refused to fail. I was smart” (Alexei 130). We can see how being view and label by

others can impact someone and make them feel like a failure or in this case helped them make

themselves part of a successful social, therefore being identified as a someone who was able to

make it in life.

Cultural identity is another of those things that make an impact in one’s life growing up.

From the way we dress, what we believe, what we eat, and even celebrate all play a role on how

an individual is identified. ‌Eva Naik is an Author at Campus Time and opinions editor. She has

written multiple articles base on her life experience growing up surrounded by different cultures.

In “Cultural Identities are a Balancing Act” she gives specifical example of time she experiences

difficult situation when figuring out who she was. “When it comes to what shaped me into who I

am today, one of the first things that comes to mind are my experiences as a child of immigrant
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parents” (Naik). Naik explains to us how being surrounded by many other cultures made her feel

out of place and have some sort of disconnection with others, one can say she would identify as a

lonely individual due to her experience at the time. “Between speaking Hindi at home and

English everywhere else, as well as some of my other traits — such as the way I look, the foods I

ate or didn’t eat — that seemed to stick out like a sore thumb in comparison to my peers; I felt

simultaneously out of place with my peers in the US and disconnected from my family back in

India” (Naik). The problem with being around different cultures is the fact that the person may

feel a sense of emptiness or feel unwelcome. “Recurring cultural disconnect can lead to feeling

like they aren’t enough, or that they truly have no place within a culture” (Naik). Victoria Wilson

writer of “What is Cultural Identity and Why is it Important?” explains to us how cultural

identity may harm someone and place them under pressure due to having others around them

make them feel that they have to do things or be someone because that is what is expected of

them. “For instance, the person who pursued a career in science (from our example earlier) might

eventually have this experience because instead of finding a career path that felt right to them,

they did what their family expected of them. This tension, which is often called a cultural

identity crisis, can create discomfort and even distress” (Wilson). Distress is something that may

lead to others identifying us as unstable individual which may be a lot to deal with for many. If

we do start to feel stress, unwelcome, or lost; Victoria Wilson helps use understand that there is

coping skills that one can utilize to help regain our identity comfort back. “Pause and begin

building your awareness around your own cultural identity” (Victoria Wilson). By pausing

ourself we can take a step back and evaluate and analysis our current situation, and take a closer

look on what we may fix in order to be ourself once again.

In conclusion, everything and anything can and might affect who you want to be in life. It

is up to you how you to decide how you want your surroundings, cultural, and how you want

people to look at you. There are things that we may not be able to control such as the day we are

born and given our name, but remember there is so much more that we can control. If you ever

feel like you can’t deal with the pressure around you remember we are all unique in our own

way. Now ask yourself who are you and why.

Works Cited

Alexie, Sherman. The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me Framing the Reading. 1997,

openlab.citytech.cuny.edu/iddings-eng1101-d335-fa2017/files/2017/08/Superman-and-Me-from-

Writing-about-Writing.pdf.

Beresin, Gene. “Discovering Who I Am: The Critical Role of Identity.” Clay Center for Young Healthy

Minds, 19 Oct. 2015, www.mghclaycenter.org/parenting-concerns/discovering-who-i-am-the-

critical-role-of-identity/.

Naik, Eva. “Cultural Identities Are a Balancing Act.” Campus Times, 5 Feb. 2024,

www.campustimes.org/2024/02/05/cultural-identities-are-a-balancing-act/.

Raburu, Pamela A. “The Self- Who Am I? Children’s Identity and Development through Early

Childhood Education.” Journal of Educational and Social Research, vol. 5, no. 1, Jan. 2015,

https://doi.org/10.5901/jesr.2015.v5n1p95.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. United Nations, 20 Nov. 1989,

www.unicef.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/UNCRC_united_nations_convention_on_the_ri

ghts_of_the_child.pdf.

Vizuette, Jessica. “Language and Identity: The Construction of the Self.” Arcadia, 6 June 2022,

www.byarcadia.org/post/interaction-between-language-and-society-101-language-and-identity.

Wilson, Victoria. “What Is Cultural Identity and Why Is It Important?” Exceptional Futures, 2021,

www.exceptionalfutures.com/cultural-identity/.