Nicolas
Siino
Professor
Young
ENGW
Writing Skills Workshop
September
26, 2014
From
Difficulty to a Sense of Identity.
According
to James Baldwin,
"An identity would seem to be arrived at by the way in which the person
faces and uses his experience.” Identity helps define one as an individual. In
"Tame the Wild Tongue," by Gloria Anzaldua defines her identity by
her use of variations of Spanish. In "Black Power," James McBride was
unable to identify himself because he was black, his mother was white, and he
grew up in a time associated with the Black Power movement, whites against
blacks. My identity has
been defined by the fact that I have had to overcome many obstacles. For
McBride, Anzaldua and myself difficulties help to create a sense of identity.
The dictionary defines identity as "who you are, the way you think about yourself, the way you are viewed by the world and the characteristics that define you." Gloria Anzaldua struggled with language to find her identity. When she spoke English her friends called her a “cultural traitor.” However at school she was punished for speaking Spanish. Depending on her situation, she had to speak one of eight dialects: standard English, working class and slang English, standard Spanish, standard Mexican Spanish, North Mexican Spanish, Chicano Spanish, Tex Mex, and Pachuco. For Anzaldua the struggle for identity continues, but she is proud to be Chicano. She writes, “We know how to survive when other races have given up their tongue, we’ve kept ours” (254).
McBride had to overcome certain obstacles in order to get to know himself. He struggled with difficulties reconciling the rise of black power with the fact that his mother was white. He felt fear of the Black Panthers because he thought they would kill his mother. For example when he saw a Black Panther standing near his mother he was so upset that he punched the man’s son. This shows that he identified more with his mother than with another black child. By analyzing his thoughts and emotions he was able to discover that his identity as his mother’s son was more important than race.
Like Anzaldua and McBride, I found a sense of identity through difficulties. Since I was an infant I have suffered with rheumatoid arthritis, a disease that is debilitating. However, I have learned to rise above it. RA has affected my hips, knees and ankles, which has made it difficult to walk, run, and perform simple tasks. I was always told not to worry about being the last person to finish a race or having to take multiple breaks during gym class, but I did worry. Over the years, I felt that combating these issues was so much harder than living with physical pain. RA has brought a lot of issues into my life that I can’t control. However, I constantly remind myself that the one thing I can control is my attitude. My favorite sport and one I loved to play was football. Being part of a team and having comradery was something I took pride in. As my disease progressed, I could no longer participate in the sport that helped me forget about the pain. Once, I entered high school I felt that things were more within my grasp. I volunteered my time as an assistant coach for my younger brother’s football team. It was very rewarding to have children look up to me with respect and value my guidance and determination. My experiences have helped me grow, mature, boost my confidence and increase my self esteem. This has given me great satisfaction that I have actively done something for my health, not just taken an injection, but physically and mentally contributed towards conquering my RA. I am more than this disease; I will not let this overcome my life, my conversations and my attitude. No one will ever take my identity or any of the things I have accomplished away from me.
As one lives life, identity continues to be refined and change the way a person is and who that person becomes. At age 18, I developed Crohn's disease, which is an inflammatory bowel disease that causes inflammation of the intestinal tract. I was hospitalized at the end of my senior year of high school for one month and had to endure a major surgery. Even so, I triumphed from my experience. Developing Crohn's disease caused me to reevaluate my strengths and weaknesses. I had to change my diet and had to overcome the pain of injecting myself with the drug Humira. Now Crohn's is something besides my RA that defines me, but this made me a stronger person. According to the author George R.R. Martin, “Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.” Safeguarding one’s identity is essential, since this is the one thing that no one can ever take away.
I am who I am, and this mindset has been so crucial to my own personal happiness. I felt at times so many different people were telling me who I was and how I was supposed to feel, it was imperative for my own sanity that I maintained some element of my own identity. Having Crohn's disease and RA has defined me and this is something no one will ever change. Just like the way Gloria felt in the "Tame the Wild Tongue" she embraced the Chicano Spanish language and did not conform to society. Gloria Anzaldua believed in a individuality and her language relates to her cultural heritage which defined her. "Identity was partly heritage, partly upbringing, but mostly the choices you make in life.” Patricia Briggs. Identity is important because it helps us to know who we are and what we stand for in a given situation or society.
The dictionary defines identity as "who you are, the way you think about yourself, the way you are viewed by the world and the characteristics that define you." Gloria Anzaldua struggled with language to find her identity. When she spoke English her friends called her a “cultural traitor.” However at school she was punished for speaking Spanish. Depending on her situation, she had to speak one of eight dialects: standard English, working class and slang English, standard Spanish, standard Mexican Spanish, North Mexican Spanish, Chicano Spanish, Tex Mex, and Pachuco. For Anzaldua the struggle for identity continues, but she is proud to be Chicano. She writes, “We know how to survive when other races have given up their tongue, we’ve kept ours” (254).
McBride had to overcome certain obstacles in order to get to know himself. He struggled with difficulties reconciling the rise of black power with the fact that his mother was white. He felt fear of the Black Panthers because he thought they would kill his mother. For example when he saw a Black Panther standing near his mother he was so upset that he punched the man’s son. This shows that he identified more with his mother than with another black child. By analyzing his thoughts and emotions he was able to discover that his identity as his mother’s son was more important than race.
Like Anzaldua and McBride, I found a sense of identity through difficulties. Since I was an infant I have suffered with rheumatoid arthritis, a disease that is debilitating. However, I have learned to rise above it. RA has affected my hips, knees and ankles, which has made it difficult to walk, run, and perform simple tasks. I was always told not to worry about being the last person to finish a race or having to take multiple breaks during gym class, but I did worry. Over the years, I felt that combating these issues was so much harder than living with physical pain. RA has brought a lot of issues into my life that I can’t control. However, I constantly remind myself that the one thing I can control is my attitude. My favorite sport and one I loved to play was football. Being part of a team and having comradery was something I took pride in. As my disease progressed, I could no longer participate in the sport that helped me forget about the pain. Once, I entered high school I felt that things were more within my grasp. I volunteered my time as an assistant coach for my younger brother’s football team. It was very rewarding to have children look up to me with respect and value my guidance and determination. My experiences have helped me grow, mature, boost my confidence and increase my self esteem. This has given me great satisfaction that I have actively done something for my health, not just taken an injection, but physically and mentally contributed towards conquering my RA. I am more than this disease; I will not let this overcome my life, my conversations and my attitude. No one will ever take my identity or any of the things I have accomplished away from me.
As one lives life, identity continues to be refined and change the way a person is and who that person becomes. At age 18, I developed Crohn's disease, which is an inflammatory bowel disease that causes inflammation of the intestinal tract. I was hospitalized at the end of my senior year of high school for one month and had to endure a major surgery. Even so, I triumphed from my experience. Developing Crohn's disease caused me to reevaluate my strengths and weaknesses. I had to change my diet and had to overcome the pain of injecting myself with the drug Humira. Now Crohn's is something besides my RA that defines me, but this made me a stronger person. According to the author George R.R. Martin, “Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.” Safeguarding one’s identity is essential, since this is the one thing that no one can ever take away.
I am who I am, and this mindset has been so crucial to my own personal happiness. I felt at times so many different people were telling me who I was and how I was supposed to feel, it was imperative for my own sanity that I maintained some element of my own identity. Having Crohn's disease and RA has defined me and this is something no one will ever change. Just like the way Gloria felt in the "Tame the Wild Tongue" she embraced the Chicano Spanish language and did not conform to society. Gloria Anzaldua believed in a individuality and her language relates to her cultural heritage which defined her. "Identity was partly heritage, partly upbringing, but mostly the choices you make in life.” Patricia Briggs. Identity is important because it helps us to know who we are and what we stand for in a given situation or society.
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