Reflective Writing 1

I have demonstrated certain themes, which I have learnt in my CLYSY class already this semester; themes such as personal culture, identity, human rights perspective and historical influences, which we all experience throughout society today.

I am usually a very positive person, which is why I chose such ambiguous photos of my perspective of these certain themes within society. Personal culture is what makes us unique it centralizes the ideas of whom we are, where we come from and where we are going  (Lawler, 2015). These themes have been consistently shared in students’ photos. I chose a photo which is morally important to me and my future, I cropped my face into a photo of a policewomen because ever since I was a little girl I have always wanted to be in the police. It has been my lifelong dream to have a successful career in the police force. (Ryan, Ingram & Musiol, 2010) has described personal culture to be a way in which different ethnic groups have certain traditional norms however they have also mentioned that it can also include individuals aims and goals in life. I am a very caring person who thinks about others needs, which is why I chose a picture, which incorporates others for my identity. I believe without the existence of different cultures within our communities we wouldn’t be who we are today, know different skills and have the ability to communicate with other cultures. I depicted a photo, which portrays a vase of different types of flowers in it. The flowers are all different colours, which represent people’s ethnicity, and the length of the flowers represents someone’s lifespan. I see myself as one of thousands within society and that everyone within society influences me in certain ways, which impacts my identity. We can say that society influences individuals through interactions with others in society through community groups, activities, networks and institutions which I believe is important to ones social and personal development (Leary & Tangney, 2012). The most popular theme for the identity photo was ethnicity, however I feel as if I portrayed more than one theme in my photo because it surrounds the idea of everyone embracing others norms, culture and personalities. As people grow, societies grow and become more diverse. We are influenced by certain cultures and ethnicities, which we experience on a day-to-day basis, I feel as if the existence of other cultures means that we are more accepting of each other’s differences. I believe that religion is starting to phase out because of specific advancements within society, such as technology, which has been termed as secularization. Other people focused on certain themes like gender equality, slavery and racial discrimination however I’ve always had an opinion on religion and how it isn’t as popular as it was in the past so I thought it was important to share my view and concerns with the CLYSY class. As explained above there have been similar themes, which have been depicted in people’s photos in various ways, they are all important to each person, which is why I chose my photos because they are important to me.

References:

Lawler, S. (2015). Identity : Sociological Perspectives. Retrieved from http://reader.eblib.com.au.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/(S(bmgxmilhgq2ncqa5hx0gspj0))/Reader.aspx?p=1598278&o=222&u=m3%2fuM%2fOS%2fGdcRWTZGi0ToQ%3d%3d&t=1428359321&h=B0A1E267B988F1DCFA960B642891716E20E9B11F&s=18012671&ut=715&pg=1&r=img&c=-1&pat=n&cms=-1&sd=1

Leary, M., & Tangney, J. (2012). Handbook of Self Identity, Second Edition. Retrieved from http://reader.eblib.com.au.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/(S(nk1i0251zwhunoibi2mb4s1q))/Reader.aspx?p=836860&o=222&u=m3%2fuM%2fOS%2fGdcRWTZGi0ToQ%3d%3d&t=1428360049&h=578841352BA8A22800BEAB388BFA14823ACFC19D&s=18012671&ut=715&pg=1&r=img&c=-1&pat=n&cms=-1&sd=1

Ryan, M.,  Ingram, B., & Musiol., H. (2010). Cultural Studies. Retrieved from http://reader.eblib.com.au.ezproxy.aut.ac.nz/(S(hm2qykwpuk3ydk1x0lucodnm))/Reader.aspx?p=480480&o=222&u=m3%2fuM%2fOS%2fGdcRWTZGi0ToQ%3d%3d&t=1428358756&h=2BE2BE0C83B78177FB0ED839991A16FE959EF2CD&s=18012671&ut=715&pg=1&r=img&c=-1&pat=n&cms=-1&sd=1#