What Is the Role of ‘Race’ and ‘Ethnicity’ in the Formation of Identities?
- Submitted by: chpolly
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- Date Submitted: 07/23/2011 09:21 AM
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In my opinion a persons ‘race’ and ‘ethnicity’ can play a large part in the formation of their identities. Both race and ethnicity can have stereotypical values that people link with them without realising, i.e. the poem on Section 7 of chapter one of (Questioning identity: gender, class, ethnicity) book states, “’Ah, but you’re not pure’, ‘Pure? Pure what.’ ‘Pure White? Ugh’”- This poem is about a half case woman that lives in Scotland, and it shows that stereotypical Scottish people may not see her as belonging to their group or identity, due to the difference in skin colour and racial background. I feel that this may make Jackie Kay (the writer) act differently, so that she forms her own identity within the Scottish society so that she can feel a part of it, and accepted by it. This may also be the case for other individuals that live within Britain but that may have different ethnic values, i.e. religion etc.
I believe that race and ethnic group labels in Britain are not clearly based on criteria that everyone initially believes, and as a result, people like Jackie Kay in the poem I mentioned above can be labelled in a way that they deem incorrect.
A person’s ethnicity, i.e. their beliefs and culture values can also play a major part in forming their identity. For example the country now has a wide range of racial cultures with different religions. I believe that something such as a persons religion can enforce them to act a certain way, which in turn changes their identity.
However I also feel that in Modern Britain someone that doesn’t have a stereotypically British belief or religion can also now fit in to our society and culture and still be accepted as British, even thought their ethnicity may be very different to ours, due to changing views of people and the growing ethnical diversity.
As I mentioned in part (a) Freud also discussed the theory that sometimes we have unconscious thoughts that we can’t control, which also help to shape who...
I believe that race and ethnic group labels in Britain are not clearly based on criteria that everyone initially believes, and as a result, people like Jackie Kay in the poem I mentioned above can be labelled in a way that they deem incorrect.
A person’s ethnicity, i.e. their beliefs and culture values can also play a major part in forming their identity. For example the country now has a wide range of racial cultures with different religions. I believe that something such as a persons religion can enforce them to act a certain way, which in turn changes their identity.
However I also feel that in Modern Britain someone that doesn’t have a stereotypically British belief or religion can also now fit in to our society and culture and still be accepted as British, even thought their ethnicity may be very different to ours, due to changing views of people and the growing ethnical diversity.
As I mentioned in part (a) Freud also discussed the theory that sometimes we have unconscious thoughts that we can’t control, which also help to shape who...