One idea that fascinated me about last week's reading was the idea of spin control. People are always telling us to "be true to yourself" and "follow your heart", but in reality, every single one of us conforms to society and masks those parts of ourselves that we deem to be embarrassing or out of the ordinary. I think this demonstrates the fact that other people will always have a huge influence on our identity, no matter how much we like to believe that our "self" is our own creation.

Our interactions with other people are the main influence on our identity. Through interactions with our friends, family, and even the media, we learn what is considered to be good or bad behavior. If the theory of spin control is true, then we change our behavior to highlight the things that people have told us, either implicitly or explicitly, are good things. Thus, the interactions we have with other people determine our behavior.

Behavior is the basis of who we are because it establishes the ascribed piece of our identity, which in turn influences our avowed identity. As humans, we are always trying to determine how other people see us. Therefore, the identity ascribed to us by others will continually shape the way that we view ourselves.

I understand the desire to take credit, and also responsibility, for who you are and all that you have accomplished but the fact of the matter is that everything you have done has been encouraged or influenced by the people who surround you. Nobody has the willpower to completely block out the culture around them and so as a result, everybody is shaped, at least in part, by the interactions they have with others.