Aug
7
Outcome 2 – Ideas and Arguments: Identity and Belonging
For a word document version of much better presentation and formatting than what is shown here email me at [email protected].
Outcome 2 – Ideas and Arguments
Focus Questions and Topic Sentences/Prompts
The challenge of Outcome 2 is in part to consider complex ideas and form certain arguments and conclusions for the chosen context. The terms Identity & Belonging immediately suggest to us two basic questions:
• Who are we?
• Where do we belong?
Philosophy has struggled for a very long time to address these questions! Other subjects, as well as life experiences, have enabled thinkers to create more questions to help and challenge us understand these basic questions. You can surely think of some of your own:
• How do others influence our actions, beliefs and sense of self?
• Are the differences between individuals more important than the similarities?
• Why do we hurt those whom we love the most?
• Is there something about ourselves that cannot be changed?
• Why do we lie to ourselves and others about our true beliefs?
• What is more important: our individual nature, or the society that nurtures us?
• Is our happiness dependent on our relations with others?
• .
• .
• .
In Outcome 2 you will be asked to respond to a prompt that considers some of these challenging issues. Prompts easily form topic sentences in their own right – they are single sentence answers/conclusions to the questions above. Again, you can surely think of some of your own:
• “Identity must be conformed or sacrificed in order for indivuduals to be able to truly join with society.”
• “Our sense of self and our sense of belonging must constantly adapt to the circumstances of society.”
• “One of life’s greatest challenges is the journey we all take to discover who we really are.”
• “An individual’s environment is as integral to our sense of identity as our inherited qualities.”
• “Group membership is fundamental to an individual’s sense of security and well-being.”
• .
• .
• .
Concept maps
The ideas and arguments for the context of Identity and Belonging are clearly very, very broad and complex. Your challenge is to try and make sense of some truths. One way to do this is to use concepts maps to link ideas, and make a web of related issues and ideas to consider. Below is a list of some key terms that you might collect together into groups of ideas, and then you might go back and rewrite or redraft more questions and topic sentences for the context of Identity and Belonging.
• Adaption
• Sacrifice
• Integration
• Society
• Conformity
• Conscience
• Influence
• Inheritance
• Security
• Morality
• .
• .
• Rejection
• Expectations
• Wisdom
• Environment
• Negotiation
• Acceptance
• Prejudice
• Rebellion
• Peers
• Integrity
• .
• .
• Choice
• Assimilation
• Discovery
• Loyalty
• Evolution
• Emotions
• Values
• Fulfilment
• Respect
• Family
• .
• .
One Certain Study Area for Answers to Identity and Belonging
To present strong and certain conclusions to the context of Identity and Belonging one should certainly aim to learn the answers to basic questions. Evidence can be drawn from personal experience (anecdotal evidence), from history and literature (textual evidence), and inferred from famous quotes (idiomatic truths), but I believe the best information for this context comes from the research of professionals. Professors of history, sociology and philosophy have much to offer in wisdom and insight as to the nature of humanity.
However, one field of study has excelled above all others in the answers it has provided through studies of Identity and Belonging, and that field is psychology.
For notes, model essays and scaffolded plans for such evidenced aruments in a word document version of much better presentation and formatting than what is shown here email me at [email protected].