Identity In The Scarlet Letter, By Nathaniel Hawthorne

As Nathaniel Hawthorne says from his book, The Scarlet Letter, “ No man, for any considerable period, can wear one face to himself and another to the multitude, without finally getting bewildered as to which may be true.” What he is intending to do is make us ask ourselves who we truly are and why we may contrast around different groups. We don’t act the same around our friends as we would around our family, teachers, or strangers. Along with ourselves, our culture affects us as well. We are all raised differently. If our identity remains the same with every group we might be considered “weird” or “awkward.” Our parents or guardians may have taught us to be a diverse person, acting a certain way around certain groups just to fit in or please …show more content…
How we react to situations may alter depending on who is around us. We can compare our minds to a file cabinet. Full of knowledge, various behavioral reactions, and traits; our complex amount of traits can be compared to different files. The technical term for these “files” are known in psychology as schemas. Schemas are mental structures that guide how we think and what we do. The Circle of Psyche says, “Each one of us has a number of self-schemas.” For example, if we are at work and a customer becomes aggressive, we may react in a more calm manner than we would if a friend gets the same attitude with us. We are more likely to become impatient quicker around people we are more comfortable with. Our brains will naturally pull the file necessary for the position we are in. Therefore, our reactions and responses change due to the case. Our demeanor changes constantly because we don’t want to be as comfortable with strangers as we are with our friends or family. We change our characteristics for ourselves to fit in, but who we truly are stays the same, even if the interaction …show more content…
For example, why do we feel the need to be a different person around different people? Well, everyone experiences contradictory traits, but it’s not the same as someone who doesn’t know themselves or stay true to themselves. Some people may be mistaken for being “two-faced,” however, it is okay to be unique and carry multiple traits. It’s part of what makes you, you. Another question was, what if we become so used to having multiple masks we lose our true self? Or what if we never even find ourselves because we’re too busy trying to please everyone, or we care too much about others opinions? The truth is, we must first find and accept ourselves to be able to honestly show that face to everyone, and if slightly changing because of the different groups we are forced to face is how we learn, then that experience can help us face who we truly