Two Realities - Aeron Stockwell

One might say they’re kind, or caring. Another might say they’re musical or creative. Once more someone might say they’re quiet and smart. On the surface that might be a true representation on how you see them.

That all changes at a night . When it gets darker, so does life. Major to minor. Creativity receives a dark undertone when They start thinking about things that could, should, or would happen. Or whether they won’t. Quiet is the aftermath of the night before making them be more observant for their own good. 

And it all happens like the flip of a switch. 

The piece I created was an expression of personality in the way that I see myself, and the way others could see me. It’s comprised of an outline of me, a light area on the right with personality traits, and a dark space on the left symbolizing the side of me that a very few people get to see. I paired this Image with flash fiction that gives little to the obvious, that being the lighter side of the paper. However, the writing dives deeper into the darker side of the image. Essentially it’s my anti-personality. A jumbled mess of irrational thoughts that contradict my normal thought patterns.

     

It's generally accepted that people react based in influences. While it was originally thought by Sigismund Freud that someone is who they are, and there isn't anything you can do to change it, over time we as a society have come to learn that this simply isn't true. I believe that people can change given a great enough impact, and that you can also contribute to the formation of your own personality.
“Personality is your core”, a simple statement by a member of the Invisibilia Podcast, ("Personality"). Given the statement that your personality is your core, how are our personalities formed? Personality is formed by your influences, and an influence could be any part of your culture. With that, it’s safe to say that your identity is analogous to your personality; meaning they’re nearly one in the same, or interchangeable. 

But how much control do we have over the development of our identities? That’s a question that’s based on perception. Looking at culture alone we don’t have any control on our influences being as though we’re born into it. However, you can influence your own culture. This idea coincides with the four elements of belief. These four elements are explained by Tali Sharot on the “Hidden Brain” podcast as,“ the old belief confidence in that belief, the new belief, and the confidence in the new piece of data”, ("Right").

Though the information given by class resources is quite interesting to me, I don’t feel that it’s made an impact on the way I see myself, or others for that matter. I’ve always assumed that personality is based on your influences because of the people that I’ve met or had interactions with. Someone I know that’s had a non-ideal childhood is more likely to be isolated by nature than someone who had a great childhood with a lot of friends. In turn the people with a more ideal childhood might be more likely to go out with friends on a normal basis. But I also believe that given a strong enough impact a person’s habits can be changed for better or for worse at any time. 

Anyone can openly make a choice to change something about themselves. Whether that be there looks, or something more personal such as actions, or the people you surround yourself with. To put it in my perspective, One massive change I made to better my influences was distancing myself from a volatile group of people in place of a more stable and supportive group. While it was hard at first, I can confidently say that these actions have made me a happier person, and a less irritable one as well.

Based on what’s covered in class, and my own experiences I believe that my views are justified. Personality is formed by influence, and can be changed no matter how long you’ve lived on the earth. Anyone can change their habits for better or worse if they put their mind to it.