Identity And Identity In Literature

The issue of identity has been a field of interest for many researchers. They have presented many perspectives on identity, on its shifting nature, politics and complexities. To understand this complexity, it is important to establish opposites like I and him (Said, 1978; Gregory, 1994; Thrift, 1995). Identification of oneself is always related to this fact ‘who I am not’ and other people easily accept the identity of an individual which may not match to his (individual) identity even. According to Merriam Webster’s dictionary identity is a set of personal qualities by which a person is known as a member of a certain group (245). This is very simple definition of identity, it do not explain complexities of identity such as identity in shift,

The issue of identity is the most discussed issue in today’s world because of globalization process. In the world of literature, identity has a great importance, it is literature which has made it a very important theme for its reader. It helps its readers in constructing identities because works of literature encourage its reader to see things/issues from their own perspectives (Jonathan Culler 2005: 112). Identity is basically what we call ourselves. Vygotsky (1978) illustrates self as a very complicated phenomenon and it is created by individuals, as the outcome of their interactions with others and with culturally changed world Identity always need continual transformation and maintenance (Hegel). Baldwin discusses that this ongoing change in identity shows that self is an idea, and if someone needs to explore his self it needs to have an interaction with the outer world (2004: 224). From past ten years, many researchers/scholars working in different field of political science, arts, humanities, literature, political science, comparative politics and psychology are taking keen interest in identity. In nationalistic identity plays a vital role (Smith

Geographers like Relph (1976), Seamon (1980) and Tuan (1997) discuss that this old notion of identity soon became problematic because people saw huge change in the geography. They further argue that people are not fully free in their lives, in fact, they are closed in an unseen cage they are caged physically, environmentally, mentally and emotionally. According to them there is a bond between outside ambiance of a world and individuals inside world. This geography does not accept the idea of fixed identity anymore. So this postmodernist idea rejects the traditional idea of fixed identity. It focuses on the fact that identity is not stable rather it is in flux and fluidity now (Pile and Thrift, 1995). They saw identity with cluster of difference and vibrancy, with fluidity and contrast. Difference plays a vital role in the fluidity of identity as Soja and Hooper say that the politics of identity include power, difference and change (1996:187). People have multiple identities and in the construction of identity there is a key factor called difference. This difference comes from different sides like place, origin, gender, culture and ethnicity. Difference maintain a ground for identity and then it is accepted as a negligible group of people who are trying to change the current system of power to