ON IDENTITY, FOR RHETORIC

1. How is identity a social process?

Identity itself is an interactional accomplishment. It is a social process because our own view of ourselves, our identity, is produced, molded, and continually negotiated by the interactions we have with others and our social performances. It is also how we orient ourselves with the people around us, the environment, through communication and the many constraints of social norms.

2. How is identity constructed through communication? What are the processes in identity construction in and through communication?

The identity is constructed through communication through assertion, definition, and mutual communication with others. It is through this negotiation process that people will be able to attain mutually desired identities. This comes about or is made through internalizing the identities attached to someone by others through group discourse and communication, as well as through social norms, and the human desire to be social. It is also through the addition of new ascriptions from other that an identity may change.

3. What is the layered or framed perspective on identity? What does each frame encompass? How do the frames interpenetrate? Can you think of a situation that shows interpenetration between and among identity frames?

The layered or framed perspective on identity help us to understand that (rather than just one layer) identity is a multifaceted social entity nested in different levels. Hecht identified four frames, namely: the personal frame, the enacted frame, the relational frame, and the communal frame.

The personal frame encompasses our sense of being – how we see ourselves. This includes our self-image and self-concept. The enacted frame encompasses the performance and outward expressions of ourselves, our identity, to others. This includes how we form messages to express ourselves. The relational frame defines identity as something that is embedded in our relationships with others, that our characteristics are defined by our relations with others around us. The communal frame explains that identities are a shared vision of our “personhood” in relation to a collective we belong to – where our identity can be described by the characteristics ascribed to us by a community or group. 

A situation which may showcase interpenetration between and among these identity frames is when an individual might have a negative view of themselves in their personal frame and this is reinforced by their peers reinforcing the negative view through the relational frame. How the individual acts is then shaped by their identity, by how they view themself – they might act shy and reserved.

4. Jung and Hecht (2004) wrote about dialectical tensions in the interpenetration of the frames. What does this mean? Drawing from your observations and personal experiences, what example can best explain this dialectical tension?

Jung and Hecht wrote about dialectical tensions as the concept of identity gap. This refers to how among the four frames of the identity there may exist discrepancies or inconsistencies. These may arise from poor communication and relations with others that subsequently cause a degradation of mental health. Their studies particularly focused on the gap between personal and ascribed relational identities and the gap between personal and enacted identities.

An example I can think of that might best explain or show this dialectical tension is lifted from my own experience. I personally like to view myself as tough-skinned – that I don’t cry easily or I’m not particularly sentimental. However, my actions showcase otherwise. I cry easily when frustrated or sad because of anything from arguments to failures to sad movies. I view myself as tough-skinned in my personal frame but in my enacted frame, I am actually very soft-hearted, “iyakin“, and sentimental.