Identity is not fixed, but rather a fluid and multifaceted thing that is constructed over time. We all learn and embody a multiplicity of identities, whether they be cultural, political, sexual, or some aspect of our psychosocial being, and draw on them depending on the different contexts in which we find ourselves. Most of us, for example, assume a quite different identity when we are with our family than when we are with our close friends, and perhaps another when among strangers. This could be due to expectations we feel imposed on us or because we feel more free to “be ourselves” in some contexts. In these cases, the shifts in identity are conscious and intentional.
In other cases, we can assume identities unconsciously. Often, this is based on instinct, environment factors, and subtle feedback we are receive from people around us. Most men and women, for example, adopt different modes of behavior when in the presence of members of the opposite sex, particularly if there is physical attraction present. We can fall into stereotypical gender roles in these contexts, with the men, for example, trying to impress the women with wit or risk-taking behavior. Similarly, if we find ourselves in a physical altercation, we might employ certain forms of posturing to intimidate our opponent, or act out something we saw on television or in the movies. Even though these modes are more performative in nature, the actor may not be always be conscious of the shift.
As students, we are sometimes asked to debate subjects from positions that we may not personally hold, or to play “devil’s advocate.” In our professional lives too, we are often expected to assume a role that might conflict with our usual selves, particularly if we deal directly with clients. Dressing in a particular way, consciously adapting our language and bearing, talking according to a script, are all visual and behavioral changes we employ to fulfill the expectations of an employer. Similarly, certain cultural traditions demand the assumption of a new identity to a certain degree of performance: Halloween, costume parties, religious ritual, public speaking, role-play in the bedroom, and so forth. Certain locations and situations can also trigger changes in outward identity. A classroom, a church, a police station, for example, are all settings that require subtle changes in attitude and expression.
In As You Like It, Shakespeare is famously wrote the line “all the world’s a stage,” and he was not the first or last to make this connection between theatre and daily life. In a seminal sociological work, The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, Erving Goffman uses the metaphor of theatre to explain the performative character in how we express and interpret one another’s words and actions. According to Goffman, we all put up a “front” similar to actors in order to influence other’s perception of us, even to the extent of choosing costume and set. I have found myself doing this explicitly at times, when, for example, I want to announce something to friends and family, confront an acquaintance, or end a relationship. In such situations, I will, if possible, very carefully choose what I wear, the setting where the interaction will occur, and rehearse how I hope it will play out. As Goffman writes of everyday social intercourse with others, a person “attempts to guide and control the impressions they form of him, and employs certain techniques in order to sustain his performance, just as an actor represents a character to an audience” (264).
Today, in creating and experimenting with identity, we are heavily influenced by media. While traditionally this has been explored in terms of conventional mass media such as television, film, and magazine, this increasingly extends to the web and social media. This media consumption is part entertainment, learning, and communication, but also part research for constructing identity (Worsham). It helps us find models for who we want to “be,” whom and what we stand for and stand in opposition to, and how to assume and act out these new identities we are exposed to. The entertainment media has produced powerful, iconic characters and archetypes that heavily influence us, especially when we are younger and more impressionable. It is a natural part of personal development to “try on” these identities and see how they sit with us and those around us.
Since personal identity is a construction, the question of authenticity is a difficult one. Is there a “real me” under the layers of identity I have built or absorbed over time? While we cannot escape the performative aspects of human interaction – language and gesture themselves are mediums through which we have to “perform” our thoughts and ideas – there are likely degrees of authenticity. There are times, whether in particular environments, among particular people, or in some other state of affairs when the fronts I put up are, to some degree, peeled away. The more physically and emotionally comfortable we are in a setting, the more likely we will act in a more natural, unaffected manner.
If identity is a construction, it is also a continuous performance of sorts, one which does not cease when an audience is no longer present. Most of us, even when alone, are constantly engaged in internal dialogues with other people, real or imaginary, or in flights of fantasy, where we play the hero, the villain, or something in between. We have active minds, constructing the world around us and our place in it, and in this sense the world is indeed a stage and we are all actors in it, whether we like it or not. We can only hope to find a role well suited to our unique individual talents.
