“Identity” could be my favorite Developmental Asset. I’ve certainly enjoyed focusing on it this week. I could make an argument that it’s the most universal. Depending on one’s socio-economic status, a teen will have -- or need -- varying degrees of experience and support with some of the other assets. But most likely, every teen will explore the issue of personal identity during the entire span of teen years.
Born to Rock provided a smorgasbord of identity issues, and not very subtle ones, either. Goths! Republicans! Gay Teens! I appreciated that. (I kind of struggled the week we discussed Lord Loss as a constructive use of time.) I realize, since this issue is so huge, that perhaps it’s like shooting fish in a barrel, finding teen books with identity themes. But really, Born to Rock was a poster child of sorts for identity issues. I realized that another book I mentioned earlier in the semester, Black Swan Green would also support this asset. Linda opined that she would not necessarily recommend it to a teen, but I never got a chance to check back with why. I was discussing it last night with my husband, because he just finished it. We were talking about the character Jason and how much he struggled in the book. Again, because I am awash in all things identity this week, I realized there are many great examples of teens attempting to hang on to, form, or get rid of their identities. Jason alone has three: poet, cool/popular kid, class whipping post. But when I mentioned to Bob that my instructor would not recommend the book, he suggested that maybe it’s because the book takes awhile to get going…like Anasi Boys, I realized. So maybe that’s why?
I think it was last week that I mentioned my experiences in the South Carolina High School- how there was self-segregation in the cafeteria, and just in general throughout the school community. I honestly felt sure, just based on some vague notion about how I feel our society now reacts to racism, that this scenario would be radically different today. Well, not only was that notion not confirmed by Linda’s observation, this story on cnn.com today illustrates that society changes more slowly than I thought. But it does change.
Which brings me to my blog entry’s title. Reading a story about an integrated prom made me realize that teens – as well as adults—in society, are also working on changing our collective identity. What a radical shift for this community, to see themselves as one group. Well, at least some of them do. Notice the so-called White Prom did take place, under the very weak excuse that it was “already planned”. Still, this is a radical shift for this school’s community. Maybe next year there really will be just one –collective – prom.
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Oh so much to say.
First, I think probably every book written - teen, adult, children's - has some aspect of positive identity. People have to relate and connect with characters in books, movies, TV, etc. and if at least one of those characters didn't show signs of some identity struggle I'm not sure that connection would be made. Does that make sense?
I'm also thinking that while we are talking about this in the context of teens, that learning one's identity doesn't go away. As adults we know who we are but that doesn't mean we don't change. That change has an impact on identity. Right? I think that's one reason why teens like reading adult books because they find that adults also struggle with identity.
Then there's the question of the "Swan" book. Yes, my statement was partly because of the difficulty in getting going with it. But, also because I'm thinking that what resonates with you and your husband resonates because you are reading as adults. What about teens, would they see the same things? Is their experience broad enough to connect?
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