Simran Week One: Common Language Affecting Identity
Language allows humans to communicate and understand each other. A common language can set apart an individual from a group. According to Merriam Webster, an individual is “a particular being or thing as distinguished from a class, species, or collection.” These distinctions can be overcome through language since language acts as a common bond between people. People do not only have the ability to talk to each other, but they also share the ability to understand and learn from one another. They can recognize the beliefs of others, learn about experiences others have gone through, and hear about others’ values. A language allows people to appreciate others’ qualities and traits and build relationships with others. This allows people to become part of a community instead of being separate individuals.
The community a person is part of affects the person’s identities in multiple ways. A community is essential to how we view ourselves. According to dictionary.com, identity is a “condition or character as to who a person or what a thing is; the qualities, beliefs, etc., that distinguish or identify a person or thing.” Everyone must have a different identity. For instance, a person cannot simply have his identity consist of being a builder. He would have to define himself in a more specific way such as a builder who specializes in working with wood and who enjoys swimming. If the person had no language to communicate with others, he might not know that other humans can also be builders. He might believe that he is the only builder and therefore think that being a builder is unique enough to be the only thing his identity should consist of. Language allows people to define their identity in contrast with other people.
People’s identities are also defined by their relationships with others. Language allows people to build relationships with others and then describe themselves according to those relationships. For instance, parts of an identity could include being a friend, a neighbor, and a teacher. A person’s identity can also include the larger communities that the person is part of. For instance, my identity can include being a student at American High School and being an American. Without a common language, it is more unlikely that people would have relationships outside of the family. Therefore, a language helps people form their identity by allowing them to define their identity in relation to other people, based on their relationships with others, and the communities they are a part of.
“Group of People Talking.” Training Journal, Training Journal, www.trainingjournal.com/articles/features/tj-magazine-lets-talk. Accessed 31 Aug. 2021.
