Address how identity is mediated in the contemporary world

‘How is identity mediated in the contemporary world’ means how we can come to an understanding of who we are, both as individuals and collectively as a society. There are often a lot of differing definitions of the term ‘identity’, but the Oxford dictionary defines it as ‘The characteristics determining who or what a person or thing is’[1]. How do we form our identity in today’s world? How do we show and reveal our identity to others in today’s world? These are two key questions that need to be sufficiently answered in order for the answer to be coherent to this question.

In order to sufficiently provide a response to the question, it is pivotal to address how identity formation has changed. The range of identities available to each individual has sufficiently increased due to globalisation and this has been massively helped by the rise of the internet. As Yvonne Jewkes stated, “cyberspace opens up infinite new possibilities”[2]. Therefore, the internet has given everyone a new platform to express and discover their identity[3]. The internet has contributed towards deterritorialization, which is an innate feature of globalisation and this has led to cultures, traditions, values and beliefs becoming spread out throughout different countries. Deterritorialization is when different countries become increasingly similar, which is often achieved by economies merging[4]. An example of this is the European Union[5]. Therefore, the importance of ‘nation states’ has decreased, as cultures throughout different countries have become increasingly similar[6].

Globalisation is an important part in the theory of postmodernism and as postmodernists point out, people now have the choice in not just choosing their identity, but choosing how to express it too[7]. The Western World is currently living through individualised societies because of liberalisation. People are now free to express themselves in whatever why they choose to, without the fear of being judged.

Another big factor which has led to a large amount of identities available is secularisation. Whilst this is not a global process, it has nevertheless happened in the Western World. Secularisation has occurred for many reasons[8], mainly the improvement of science, but the government has played a part too. Policies in Britain such as the Divorce Reform Act of 1967, the Abortion Act in the same year and the legalisation of gay marriage in 2014 has not only given people more freedom, it has enabled people to pull away from the teachings of the Church[9]. This is significant as Christianity is the traditional religion of Britain. Therefore, people are no longer constrained by religion, which gives them the choice to pick their own identity.

One of the biggest questions regarding contemporary identity formation is the role of the internet in identity formation. Does the internet reveal our true identity or does it distort it? Nevertheless, the internet has enabled people to discover and express their identity. Whilst some are very sceptical about the internet, it can be argued that the internet provides individuals with freedom. The internet is pivotal in identity formation in the contemporary world. The definition of identity is very broad, but political views, religion, sexuality and gender is all part of one’s identity. The internet has given people the platform to research politics to help them shape their views[10] and it has done the same for religion too. Moreover, the internet has helped LGBT people in liberalised societies reach out to those in countries where people do not have the same level of freedom[11]. This has enabled those to put political pressure on countries that do not have the same level of liberalisation as the Western World does.

The internet however, is not the only reason as to why people can select their own identity an express themselves more freely now. British society has come a long way in a relatively short space of time in becoming more tolerant and acceptable of those who are perceived to be ‘unique’. Britain has certainly become more liberal[12]. Examples of this include, the right for women to vote, the equal pay act, legalisation of homosexuality and much more. People are now free to express themselves as they choose to[13]. Immigration has helped massively too. Physical appearance is a big part of one’s identity and increasingly, people are expressing themselves in ways that people have never expressed themselves before. Even little things such as the colour that people dye their hair. It is a big part of someone’s physical appearance which is therefore, part of their identity.

Historically, identity formation has been completely different. The vast majority of people in this country would have been raised in a nuclear family and they would have attended Church[14]. Therefore, religion would have been a big part of their identity. The socialisation process would have been very similar for the majority of people. There was less individual identity freedom and in some ways, one’s identity was formed for them. However, this is completely different now. The nuclear family has declined and there are many more common family types, such as single parent families and reconstituted families[15]. This means that within a generation, there is a big difference on everyone’s upbringings and as socialisation plays such a key role in forming one’s identity, there is now a wider range of identities available.

The range of identities available has unarguably increased. The perfect example to illustrate this is gender identities. There are so many gender identities recognised now and it is such an important social issue at the moment, which is reflected by the social media giant Facebook. They have provided users on their site the option to select one of seventy one genders to be displayed on their profile[16]. This just shows how progressive society has been in not just allowing but also accepting people expressing themselves how they choose to.

Identity formation has changed so rapidly that it has led to differences between different generations. Unfortunately, the stereotype surrounding young people and their identity expressions has been met with a lot of stereotypical words such as ‘snowflake’[17]. These stereotypes have been used by the older generation towards the younger generation on social media sites such as Facebook[18]. The younger generation are perceived to all be very liberal and tolerant as well as being offended at any criticism that one may face. This could be down to differences in identity formation. For example, the older generation are likely to have come from a close-knit background[19] and are therefore likely to be conservative in the way that society changes, as they had a very structured upbringing. This is one reason, but politics has played a large role in this too. For example, there is a huge generational gap on political referendums as well as political parties. There was a big generational difference on the EU Referendum, as the majority of young people voted to remain, whereas the majority of the older generation voted to leave[20]. Moreover, the majority of younger people tend to be liberal so are more likely to vote for Labour or the Liberal Democrats and the older generation are more likely to vote for political parties UKIP or the Conservatives[21]. This is problematic, because what it is leading to is the polarisation between different generations. Therefore, whilst there is more identity formations available in the contemporary world, it does not necessarily mean that it has not come at a price.

Identity is a very broad term. So far this essay has looked at individual identity formation, but it is also important to look at other kinds of identity, such as national identity and how that has changed. Within the contemporary world, national identity has changed massively. A key feature of late 20th and early 21st century Western World politics has been this emphasis on free-trade. This is the reason why Britain joined the European Economic Community in 1973 which later became the European Union[22]. This decision highlights the significance of globalisation because this example illustrates deterritorialization perfectly. However, it is also one of the reasons Britain voted to leave the EU as it is believed that Britain can agree free trade deals with countries outside of the EU[23].

National identity and one’s personal identity are sometimes inextricably linked, especially for those who are patriotic. The way that their nation operates actually influences one’s personal identity. One’s political views inevitably shapes what they believe in which is a feature of one’s identity. The merging of economies which is essentially the reason for the European Union has changed Britain’s national identity. This is because we are more integrated as we do not operate as an independent country, as the EU plays a significant role. A lot of people’s identity involves their nation and a lot of people feel that deterritorialization inevitably loses a countries national identity. This is why Britain voted the way it did in the EU Referendum[24].

Everyone would agree that identity formation on any scale has changed massively. Now that society is more liberal, this has provided endless opportunities for a large range of identities available. The term ‘identity’ is so broad and it entails so much. One’s physical attributes, their religious, political and moral beliefs, their sexuality, their gender and much more. Existing identities such as national and religious identities have changed, but for the younger generation today and future generations, there is a lot more freedom for one to express themselves in the same way that they view themselves.

[1] English Oxford Living Dictionaries, identity (2018) <https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/identity> [accessed 2 May 2018].

[2] Yvonne Jewkes, Dot.cons: Crime, deviance and identity on the Internet (Cullompton: Willan Publishing, 2005), p. 2.

[3] Uğur Gündüz, The Effect of Social Media on Identity Construction (2017) < https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319872238_The_Effect_of_Social_Media_on_Identity_Construction> [accessed 18 April 2018].

[4] Steven L.Taylor, 30-Second Politics (London: Icon Books Ltd, 2012), p. 122.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Yoctan Vilchez, Has globalization diminished the power of the state? (2016) <http://www.atlascorps.org/blog/has-globalization-diminished-the-power-of-the-state/> [accessed 1 May 2018].

[7] Manel Hamouda & Abderrazak Gharbi, 'The Postmodern Consumer: An Identity Constructor?' International Journal of Marketing Studies, 5.2, (2013), 1-9 (p. 3).

[8] Vexen Crabtree, Secularisation Theory Will Modern Society Reject Religion? What is Secularism? (2008) < http://www.humanreligions.info/secularisation.html> [accessed 17 April 2018].

[9] Bill Coxall, Lynton Roberts and Robert Leach, Contemporary British Politics, 4th edn (Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan, 2003), p. 21-22.

[10] Peter Dahlgren, ' The Internet, Public Spheres, and Political Communication: Dispersion and Deliberation', (2006), 147-162.

[11] Kenneth Roth, LGBT: Moving Towards Equality (2015) <https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/01/23/lgbt-moving-towards-equality> [accessed 17 May 2018].

[12] Stephan Shakespeare, Evidence Britain is becoming more socially liberal (2014) < https://yougov.co.uk/news/2014/11/12/evidence-britain-becoming-more-socially-liberal/> [accessed 11 May 2018].

[13] Ibid.

[14] David Phillips, 'The Family Ideal', Cross†Way Issue Spring 2009, 112, (2009), 1-2.

[15] Michelle Blessing, Types of Family Structures (2018) < <https://family.lovetoknow.com/about-family-values/types-family-structures > [accessed 11 May 2018].

[16] Rhiannon Williams, Facebook's 71 gender options come to UK users (2014) < https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/10930654/Facebooks-71-gender-options-come-to-UK-users.html> [accessed 11 May 2018].

[17] George Harrison, THE KIDS AREN'T ALL RIGHT What is a snowflake, what is the origin of the term and who are ‘Generation Snowflake’? (2018) < <https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5115128/snowflake-generation-meaning-origin-term/> [accessed 11 May 2018].

[18] Ibid.

[19] The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 'Doing Better for Families', (2018), 1-37 (p. 7).

[20] Jon Kelly, Brexit: How much of a generation gap is there? (2016) < http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-36619342> [accessed 12 May 2018].

[21] James Tilley, Hard Evidence: do we become more conservative with age? (2015) < https://theconversation.com/hard-evidence-do-we-become-more-conservative-with-age-47910> [accessed 11 May 2018].

[22] BBC: On this Day, 1973: Britain joins the EEC (2005) < http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/january/1/newsid_2459000/2459167.stm> [accessed 13 May 2018].

[23] David Charter, What has the EU ever done for us? (London: Biteback Publishing, 2017), p. 190.

[24] Ibid.