Who Am I: Identity Construction of Otherness on a Social Media

Abstract

Staying the same without change is a reverse of growth. To develop in one’s life requires fluidity of identity with satisfaction of ‘who we are’ emanating from what is being done at the moment, or what is being planned to be done in the future but not merely on what has been done. In view of this, the concept of identity is a very fuzzy one that is dynamic but not static. As we grow and develop in our daily lives, so does our identities. This study aims to bring out the flirtatious nature of identity. The data for the study was gathered from birthday messages that were sent to me. These messages left me wondering ‘who am I’ really. In an attempt to analyse the different messages, I came to realise the fluid nature of identity, the rationale for this paper. The main findings of the paper suggest that the ‘self’ is ever changing over time.

DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n23p1805