"I"

These days, Identity is something that quite a few people take for granted. Identity is, however, something which some people search all their lives for, longing to find who it is that they really are.

Why do we, as human beings, strive to find our own identity?

Part of it, is self image and the desire to stand out in a crowd. Another is self esteem - if you are comfortable with who you are you are generally more confident within yourself. That doesn't mean to say that you're an outgoing person - you could be a quiet person, but happy with that and therefore you'd feel no need to either strive to be loud (something you are not) or you'd constantly feel threatened or anxious that you are quiet, and wonder what people may think of you.

On the other hand, you could be a very loud person who is not comfortable with being so; perhaps it is a defence mechanism or a way of compensating for some other quality that you feel you wrongly lack.

Anthropologically speaking, the concept of identity is much more general; comprising of background, country of origin, ethnicity, and for Forensic or Biological Anthropologists, a person's identity can be seen in unique markers that can be found on your body or skeleton - your fingerprints are unique to yourself, for example.

Philosophers explore the concept of "I" and what we mean by this word. Whilst at Warwick University, studying English Literature, I explored this idea, and discussed how we as human beings create our own identity, through a performance piece I was required to do for an exam. The below vlog (a crossover vlog between The Human Condition and my Arts blog, Fiery Rockets - www.fieryrockets.blogspot.com) discusses my group's findings and difficulties in tackling this subject.

 

The Greatest Story Ever Told

Beeston Castle, Cheshire, UK

"It takes a thousand voices to tell a single story."

I was fourteen years old when I first heard this Native American saying. Right away, the phrase hooked me, and it's been with me ever since.

I love stories. Among many other things, I'm a writer. I love to explore how people react to situations and why. I guess that's why, as I've gotten older, I've become fascinated with the fields of Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology and their affiliates. In addition, looking far back into our ancestry, and seeing how civilisations used to behave, amazes me in equal amounts.

From devouring books on Ancient Egypt and the Mayans, to watching fictional forensic anthropologist, Temperance Brennan on Fox's Bones, I have spent many years of my life looking for stories and the reasons for them. I guess that's why I chose English Literature as my degree - by it's definition it seeks to explore stories, both modern and classical. During my time at Warwick University, I was able to dabble in each of the above subject areas through the medium of English Literature. But it wasn't enough. I've since found myself enthralled by books on all of them, and strangely longing for a reason to write something on my findings.

I seem to have an insatiable thirst for knowledge and time and time again I've imagined how great it would be to go back to university and do degrees in all of these subjects. But that's not possible. So I'm going to study. And I'm going to write. But this time, you will be my audience.

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Masks in Manchester Museum, UK

First, let's begin with some definitions and an introduction to these areas. Although related in my mind, their professors are experts in very different fields:

Social and Cultural Anthropology

This discipline sees Ethnographists or "Participant Observers" seeking to explain the stages of social and cultural evolution. They do this by integrating themselves into another culture, usually over a period of years. By living with them, they can come to understand customs, traditions, beliefs and behaviours.

Biological Anthropology

Biological Antrhopology looks into the physical development of the human species and it's origins. What makes us human? And how did we get to where were are now, physically? Biological Anthropologists have a lot to do with how we understand evolution, specifically for our own species.

Forensic Anthropology

Like the aforementioned fictional Forensic Anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan of Bones fame, Forensic Anthropologists work on crime cases, where a human being has been killed and the body is either too decomposed to be identified (in which case the anthropologist uses other techniques to identify the body) and/or to figure out exactly how that person died.

Egyptian Mummies - Manchester Museum, UK

Archeology

Many people are familiar with this term, which usually brings up images of Tony Robinson on Time Team. Archeologists build up a picture of the past from the material remains that were left behind. It is due to my long standing obession with Ancient History that I have a love for archeology; archeology finds the evidence needed to provide us with a knowledge of ancient history, and to provide us with the beautiful artifacts we see in today's museums.

Ancient History

I remember being 9 years old when I first studied the Ancient Egyptian's at school. Ever since I've been mesmerised by their culture and belief systems. So much so, that I have a rather large Ankh tattooed on my back. In more recent years, my obession has extended to the tribes of Ancient Maya, the culmination of who's 2012 prophecy is just around the corner.

Psychology

The science of the brain. Having always been interested in how people think, I took Psychology for A-level, and the knowledge it provided me with certainly served me well whilst trying to carry out Freudian interpretations of texts for my English Literature Degree. But Psychology is so much more than Freud, and hopefully I will soon be giving you an insight into more of what that could be.

Sociology

Much for the same reasons as stated with regards to Psychology, I also took Sociology as an A-level option. Many people in my class were rather shocked the day they realised that it wasn't a "doss" subject!

For me, the study of all of these all adds up to an explaination of something very importatn and relevant to every living person today - The Human Condition. All of the above can help give some little explaination of the situations we find ourselves in as a race. The Human Condition is the subject of all of my art. It's the reason I dance, write, direct and produce various shows and art forms, and so I feel it's time for me to pay a little homage back to it.