Oral on Identity and Belonging

603 Words3 Pages
Our identity is set personal characteristics that defines an individual as a whole. But where does our identity actually come from? Does it come from within that makes us who we are, or is it the environment that ultimately moulds our identity? In this speech, I will try to examine and explain how society affects our personal identity and constantly tries to change it. But to first answer this question, we have figure out what the social norms of society actually are. Examples of social norms include being polite, and treating people with respect. On a daily basis, society teaches us what is right, how to dress, how to act, how to talk and ultimately what is considered to be cool , which is all normal. And it is through these social norms which influence us to change ourselves to better fit into society. But, when an individual’s behavior and actions deviates too far from what is generally considered normal in society, then questions are raised and that person is looked upon very differently. There are many cases where Alice Pung the author and main character in unpolished gem does not conform to the regulations of society, and therefore, is given odd looks by the people around her. An example of this is when it was a History dress up day at her primary school. She was expect to wear a dress but instead her mum dressed her up in a Chinese Traditional Mao suit as she did not own any dresses at the time. This causes her class mates to make fun of her as well as her teachers unfavorable reactions. This made Alice feel bad about herself, as she did not reach the expectations of society. So much so, that Alice tries to adapt and change her own identity so that she can conform to the Australian Society. Another example is from the movie identity thief were the main character Diana steals identities of people and uses their finances as a way to buy herself
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