The image you have of yourself is different than everybody else's image of you. Every single event in your life has led to who you are now, how your outlook on life is and what your view on yourself is. The fascinating thing is that only you truly know every aspect of your identity. The truth is that everyone sees you differently, every single person you meet will have a different vision of you. People only make an image of you based in what they know. Shocking right? Not really, everyone probably knew this already, but it’s good to be reminded.
Some people stay for a lifetime and some only stay for a minute. In the time they spend with you they create an image of who you are. The longer they stay, the more accurate the image. But you never really know exactly what people think of you or what image they have created of you. The people whose been in your life the longest probably know the most about you, but they might still view you as someone you would never view yourself. I often think that everyone sees me the same way as I see myself. But I have realised that they don’t. I want people to know that I’m a good person and I want them to have a good image of me. But I, and everyone else must remember that you can’t please everyone and should not feel obligated to either. It might be hard to think like this because some people might view you as someone you are not. However, we all just must accept that friends, lovers, teachers, parents, neighbours and enemies all will have a different view on who we are. But I think some people might even know you better than yourself. Isn’t it weird to think that maybe no one will ever see your identity the way it really is? Amelia Kvist, Vasa, Finland
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Identity is a complex thing. From birth to death our identities develop and change. However, something that never changes with our identities is the way they’re written on papers and cards proving our existence.
I am a Swedish-speaking Finn, which means my mother tongue is Swedish. Finns are divided into three different groups Samis, Swedish-speaking Finns and Finns who speak Finnish as a mother tongue. This is also a reason why I don’t like referring to myself as a Finn since it’s so close to the Swedish word finne which refers to the last category. I much rather call myself a Finnish person or just say I am from Finland even though I know that a Finn is simply a person from Finland. Now I know I know it probably sounds like Finland is a very split country with people who doesn’t want anything to do with each other, but we are all from Finland and that is my nationality, that is what shapes me and my identity. Elin Kjellman, Vasa övningsskola (2nd year student) Food in Finland The food culture we have in Finland is quite interesting, compared to other countries. Here we have food like pea soup, cabbage rolls, mämmi (Finnish Easter pudding) and potato salad. Other countries might think we have a weird food culture, but the truth is that we eat the same food like in most other countries. The food we have here in Finland is really good, i would say. It depends on where you are in Finland maybe, but the food is cheap on some places, and more expensive on others. Here in Vasa, we have stores like Minimani, who have -60% on some products after 9 o’clock. That’s very good, because you can get some really good food for a good price. I really like the food we have here in Finland, because it’s such a variation! Here in our school VÖS, there’s almost always good food, and I think that is very important for both teachers and students. You can choose between ‘ordinary’ food, and vegetarian food, so if you want, you can eat both! How is the food in your country? Does your country have some kind of special food culture? Eddie Hiekkanen Vasa, Finland Identity - How to give this an exact description? People through years have encountered a few “ issues” or were hesitant to give this word an exact definition due to its contrariety and dissension. The perception of identity can be different from person to person, in other words from the point of view of others, like, based on nationality, languages, culture and it’s country manners. I would like to take a stand on my identity, personality - like hobbies in real life and my social life. How are they connected, are there any parallels between, how both of them can affect each other.
In general, I lead a pretty active lifestyle , especially then it comes to communication and hobbies. In school i talk with my friends on various topics, discuss some events or news which took place recently. On weekends me and my classmates go to fast food places, like McDonald’s and Burger King in order to eat and relax. I also run often, participating in running competitions. Jogging is also a part of my spare time activities. All that builds and shapes my identity outside the virtual world. On the other hand when I get home, i’m logging into my computer in order to look through all the messages I received during a day. On the internet, considering close communication with foreigners or people whom you know solely by meeting online, can conversation and communication standards sometimes be radically different. You simply behave differently and can become more courageous, quizzical, crafty and even wily, depends on the person or a group you are talking to. Let’s pick up a few examples. If i met a foreign guy online, and you both have contrariety of opinions, then it can lead either to a highly intellectual confrontation of the two sides, or develop into banal insults of each other. Roughly speaking opposition between two different point of views. Even your language and habits can change by exhaustion of thoughts while chatting with people online, since you do not know the person. By that you get more confident and less nervous, like your thoughts are delivered and performed better. As said it depends on the discussion topic and the opponent of course. That’s what I call the social media life of mine. What I’m trying to say is that some people are magnificently good at transferring their social life (only positive aspects) into everyday life. Let’s assume that I “suffer” or endure form social anxiety(fear for social situations, causing stress or making you feel very uncomfortable) and if it were not for the experience in communication that I gained in social networks when talking to other people, then I would still be afraid to speak in front of the class while reviewing a book. If you have a dream to get into politics, but you have problems with the perception of the crowd, big audience, then the method of social life is mixed with your daily routines is just for you! Lucas Björkman, second year student at Vasa övningsskola Finland is a bilingual country with both Swedish and Finnish as official languages. According to myself I think that the factor that I speak Swedish although I live in Finland is the factor that makes me feel like a part of the Nordic countries and have given me my strong Nordic identity.
The languages are in fact connecting the Nordic countries in a strong way. Swedish Norwegian and Danish are all similar and if you speak one of them you can at least understand the other ones. Also in Island, they learn Danish in school so then we can communicate with them in our mother tongue as well. There are also many cultural resemblances between Sweden, Norway and Denmark. For example, the music and humor reminds much about each other. For me as a Swedish speaking Finn who knows Swedish much better than I know Finnish it is much easier to follow news from Sweden than from Finland. This means that I am again coming closer to the cultures and the understanding of the other Nordic countries. As a Swedish speaking Finn, I also have many relatives in Sweden because it is easy to move to Sweden and get a job when you know the language. This results in me getting to Sweden at least once a year to visit them and my Nordic identity is once again growing stronger. If I would just speak Finnish I don’t think I would feel the same Nordic identity as I am doing now which would be sad. That’s why I think it is important that everybody in Finland is learning Swedish in school so they can understand the languages of their neighbours and join the fellowship. Ellen Åberg, Vasa övningsskola (2nd year student) Growing up, you’re hopefully constantly surrounded by loving people. You have people that care about you, and you’re never left alone. As newborns we don’t know who we are. We see ourselves as a part of our mother whom we are closest to. Since we haven’t found our own identity yet, we start adjusting and learning from others. Our own “self” is built by our surroundings during our first years in life.
Some say that we become our parents. Don’t worry, you can’t look at your parent and see yourself in the future. Of course our parents have a big influence in how we behave and what we become like. Our parents teach us a lot, and they are a big part of us. But when we grow up, we start creating our own will, our own thoughts, our own mind and we become our own person. What other things are building blocks for our identity? Well, we are constantly being pointed in a direction by the culture we live in, the norms, our religion and the political thoughts. For example, even though some Christians might not believe in God literally, and might not consider themselves religious, they still grew up learning what’s right or wrong, and a lot of those moral thoughts came from the Bible or the norms in our society. Identity can also change during your life time. I mean you’re always going to be you but how you think and feel changes during your life. Your personality change can be caused of a traumatic happening in your life, or you can be lost for a while and find yourself later in life. We might be holding on to one opinion, but then we learn to look at it from another point of view, and our minds open. Lumi Storm, Vasa övningsskola (2nd year student) In the Finnish curriculum we have an English course (ENA4) that focuses on the individual as an active part of the community, both locally and globally. It goes without saying that the question of IDENTITY is a central topic of the course. We have discussed many different aspects of identity throughout the course, such as: Who are we? What are the factors that define and shape our identity? Can a person have multiple identities? As a final task of this theme, my students have written their own blog posts where they discuss identity from many different perspectives as well as ask questions. Please take a look at these posts and feel free to make comments and answer the questions. No login necessary, just write your name, your school and your comment. We are looking forward to reading you! Frida Crotts, Vasa övningsskola. Teacher of English and French. |
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