From comic book heroes to the ordinary teacher, masks have been a part of our life, whether we are traveling through the worlds of Marvel or just searching for evidence about who we truly are. Kenneth Gergen in his essay, “The Defense of Masks,” talks about the necessities that forces people to employ masks which will tend to hide their true identity. Things such as being with those you are comfortable with or being in front of the chairmen for an important business firm demonstrate that individuals will act differently depending on the certain situations they are in. Some might say that staying true to who you are is invariably the wiser choice, as seen in Shakespeare’s Hamlet where Polonius tells his son, “To thine own self be true.” However,
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Gergen first starts off his claim by stating, “I doubt that people normally develop a coherent sense of identity, and I believe that, to the extent that they do, they may experience severe emotional distress.” He then forms a study where he tries to evaluate the different types of masks, such as a person’s outward appearance and inward feeling towards themselves, furthermore, trying to document when those specific masks are being used. Through his studies, he finds that the majority of motives for a person’s utilization of masks are solely based on seeking approval through others. Different masks are generated through the approval that was given by a specific person, such as gaining the approval of a boss or a friend. Gergen also finds that our identities are molded through the different social circumstances we face, in order to gain the approval of the socialistic norms. He concludes by saying that although we will tend to be concerned about the different objects that could alter our true personality, we should never be ashamed of the different interests and appearances we hold because it is the natural way for us to find our true …show more content…
One of the people that I talked to was my father. Although we did not touch directly upon the subject of whether we possess different masks for different occasions, he showed me that he was forced to use masks to benefit himself. When he was coming to the United States to finish off his medical degree, he wanted to attend the University of California Davis and he was given an interview with them. However, he was denied even before he could ever receive an interview with them, as a result of only wearing jeans and a UC Davis sweater. He was later allowed an interview with Stanford, so he dressed up in a full suit and tie learning from his past mistakes. After the interview, he was accepted into Stanford’s medical school. Remarkably, we discover that when you are in front of an audience, you must know who you are presenting yourself too and how they recommend you appear. Regardless if the presentation is of your true demeanor or not, people will always be putting on a mask to land that job they desire or to gain the approval of another, exactly how Gergen explained. Through these points, it displays that it is necessary and crucial for a person to exploit their multiple masks in their everyday lives. When put in specific situations, people will always utilize masks according to the situation they are in whether they know it or not. Although it might come off as
Gergen first starts off his claim by stating, “I doubt that people normally develop a coherent sense of identity, and I believe that, to the extent that they do, they may experience severe emotional distress.” He then forms a study where he tries to evaluate the different types of masks, such as a person’s outward appearance and inward feeling towards themselves, furthermore, trying to document when those specific masks are being used. Through his studies, he finds that the majority of motives for a person’s utilization of masks are solely based on seeking approval through others. Different masks are generated through the approval that was given by a specific person, such as gaining the approval of a boss or a friend. Gergen also finds that our identities are molded through the different social circumstances we face, in order to gain the approval of the socialistic norms. He concludes by saying that although we will tend to be concerned about the different objects that could alter our true personality, we should never be ashamed of the different interests and appearances we hold because it is the natural way for us to find our true …show more content…
One of the people that I talked to was my father. Although we did not touch directly upon the subject of whether we possess different masks for different occasions, he showed me that he was forced to use masks to benefit himself. When he was coming to the United States to finish off his medical degree, he wanted to attend the University of California Davis and he was given an interview with them. However, he was denied even before he could ever receive an interview with them, as a result of only wearing jeans and a UC Davis sweater. He was later allowed an interview with Stanford, so he dressed up in a full suit and tie learning from his past mistakes. After the interview, he was accepted into Stanford’s medical school. Remarkably, we discover that when you are in front of an audience, you must know who you are presenting yourself too and how they recommend you appear. Regardless if the presentation is of your true demeanor or not, people will always be putting on a mask to land that job they desire or to gain the approval of another, exactly how Gergen explained. Through these points, it displays that it is necessary and crucial for a person to exploit their multiple masks in their everyday lives. When put in specific situations, people will always utilize masks according to the situation they are in whether they know it or not. Although it might come off as