Identity Crisis

My mother asks me from time to time, "Who are you? Do you like yourself?" Usually, I'm able to answer without much difficulty, but her questions always make me wonder afterwards. I'm an individual. How well do I represent the whole; the whole being young people from ages 18 to 25?

Identity is inarguably important. A secure sense of self-relevance is imperative in all social, professional, and spiritual things, and I wonder just how many young people have no idea how to answer my mother's questions.

Technology, of course, has molded this generation's identity forming process. A few decades ago, identities were formed in various ways. What do you do for a living? What do you believe in? Which political party do you favor? What school do you attend? Such things are still relevant, but the internet has been tossed into the mix.

MySpace, Facebook, LiveJournal, and infinite other online communities have become a haven for young people; a haven from the outside world, where young people can create images for themselves that may or may not be entirely honest. PBS did a documentary on the secret lives of the youth, and while some of the stories may be a little extreme, I wonder if this, also, is a representation of potential identity crisis afflicting the upcoming generations.