Identity
- bluemel4
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Identity
"As individuals we don't identify ourselves- neither our persons nor our souls, if you wish- with fingers or other extremities. No, the face we have is the image projecting who we are; our identity in every aspect."
Identity is such a complex issue, do you think using the face as the core of our projected self was said for Matthias's benefit? Did it put too much emphasis on what the face means in terms of identity? What about amputees that were once athletes, wouldn't they have a completely different set of priorities and definition of self? A marathon runner would rather save their legs than face. Their identity is built on the ability to run, in other words, their "extremities."
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A suddenly disfigured person may struggle with identity for a while, but can eventually learn that it isn't what they lost, but what they have had all along.
It sounds like Dr. Braun was using psychological triggers to possibly further trauma in Matthias.
Now the book sounds even more intriguing!
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- bluemel4
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After thinking about it I felt like this doctor had an opportunity to focus on other aspects of Matthias' identity and soften the blow. When I was younger, we always did these exercises exploring who we were and stretching the way we think of ourselves. We had to come put with a list of what makes us who we are. For example, sister, singer, short, aunt, optimistic, runner, gammer, etc. We are not only our faces, but our relationships, hobbies, and how we connect to the world.
- rssllue
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In my opinion, the face would be an extra label saying what a person was, but not who they actually were.
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"Life is about recreating myself..."
For me, I can create and change and redo my personal identity, because I like to feel in control of who I am as a person. I know this may sound extremely egotistic and self-centered, but it's kind of just my stable comfort in my life.
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-- 17 Sep 2016, 20:19 --
As for what Dr. Braun said, I think he just really doesn't know how to talk to people. lol. I think if Matthias wasn't as strong-minded as he was, that could have screwed him up.
- katiesquilts
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If we are never able to see our face without it being altered by a distortion of perception, how can we say that it is our identity? In my opinion, our face is more like the identity by which we are known by others.
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- MerryLove
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I believe that Dr. Braun was wrong to say this to Matthias right before the big reveal. I think that saying this made Matthias even more conscious of the fact that he had lost his identity since a stranger was looking back at him from the mirror. Losing one's identity due to amnesia is one issue. Couple that with not being able to recognize yourself when your memory does return and the problems the individual faces increase exponentially. Trying to understand the 'what happened to me's' and the "why me's' would drive you crazy.bluemel4 wrote:Dr. Braun said something interesting while removing the bandages from Matthias's face:
"As individuals we don't identify ourselves- neither our persons nor our souls, if you wish- with fingers or other extremities. No, the face we have is the image projecting who we are; our identity in every aspect."
Identity is such a complex issue, do you think using the face as the core of our projected self was said for Matthias's benefit? Did it put too much emphasis on what the face means in terms of identity? What about amputees that were once athletes, wouldn't they have a completely different set of priorities and definition of self? A marathon runner would rather save their legs than face. Their identity is built on the ability to run, in other words, their "extremities."
I agree with you that people may identify with other aspects of their body more than the face but I think those instances are few and far between. We look at ourselves and develop a self image which is hard to shake. Imagine getting up every day and looking in a mirror that only showed your body...would your image of self become your body? I don't know.
- kileiah
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I'm in agreement here that identity is too often correlated with appearance. When it comes to a face or body, something we are all born with and don't define for ourselves, it seems trivial to base a sense of self on how these things look. That said, there are things we can choose to change how these things look, like through how we dress, and a body is a physical vessel of ourselves in this world... but I'm not so sure that I would be a very different person because I had a different face.MerryLove wrote:Unfortunately, faces are taken more seriously into a person's identity than maybe they should be. Many times they can keep a person from getting to know another. But while eyes or facial expressions can provide a window into emotions, they are certainly not a person's identity by a long shot. A person could have themselves made a completely new face, but it would not change their identity. Identity is made up of our choices and beliefs, and our actions in situations and towards others. It is not made up by our looks, even a part as descriptive as the face.