Thursday, April 01, 2010

Like crystals, the self

is multidimensional- the more facets, the more beautiful and complex. Certainly crystals may feel solid, stable, and fixed, but just as crystals have differing form depending upon whether they grow rapidly or slowely, under constant or fluctuating conditions, or from hightly variable or remarkably uniform fluids or gasses, crystallized selves have different shapes depending on the various discourses trough which they are constructed and constrained.

The coherent self  
whether simple or complex- serves as a foundation or anchor for making decisions about how to act with other people, a standard with which to evaluate one's own behavior, and a baseline from which to grow and change. Over time of course, selfidentity shifts as we encounter new situations, new conversations partners and new challenges. .. Reflect on the question: How am I different now than I was 5 years ago, 10 years ago, 20 years ago? No matter how you change, however, you usually want to present yourself to others as a person worthy of respect.

Think about it as a part of your world. How does it look like? How do people pretend and act? Can we understand them better and can we give all people respect in all cases? Also try to see the first one as a place in the city, complex is almost always more beautiful.

(first quote from Fracturing the real-self <-> fake-self dichotomy, Communication Theory. Tracy, S.J., & Trethewey, A. 2005, in Facework. Bridging Theory and Practice. Demenici, K., & Littlejohn S.W. 2006. Second is from Facework.)

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