MCLS 6202 Enquiry and Issues in Society and Culture Lecture 5 Identity:

1. MCLS 6202 • Enquiry and Issues in Society and Culture • Lecture 5 • Identity: • Enquiry into Issues of HK Today

2. Three Issue Areas on Identity in the Curriculum of Liberal Studies • Self Identity in the theme on “Understanding Oneself”: Concepts of “self-esteem”, “self perception”, self reflection, “self-discipline”, self concept, self image, self awareness, … • Role identity in the theme of “Interpersonal Relationship”: “How are adolescents’ role developed and roles embedded within different relationship?” • Social identity in the theme of “Identity”: “Hong Kong residents’ identity”, identity of “local, national and global citizens”, “multiple identities”, …

5. http://hkier.fed.cuhk.edu.hk/journal/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ej_v39n1-2_1-24.pdfhttp://hkier.fed.cuhk.edu.hk/journal/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ej_v39n1-2_1-24.pdf 29 July 2011 5 May 2011

6. 30 April 2012 25 May 2012

7. 錯誤1:國民身份的認同基礎 「同根同心」、以地緣及血緣等原生因素為本的族裔本位的認同基礎 政治不正確，有違憲法 7

8. 中华人民共和国宪法 序言 中华人民共和国是全国各族人民共同缔造的统一的多民族国家。平等、团结、互助的社会主义民族关系已经确立，并将继续加强。在维护民族团结的斗争中，要反对大民族主义，主要是大汉族主义，也要反对地方民族主义。国家尽一切努力，促进全国各民族的共同繁荣。 The People’s Republic of China is a unitary multi-national state created jointly by the people of all its nationalities. Socialist relations of equality, unity and mutual assistance have been established among the nationalities and will continue to be strengthened. In the struggle to safeguard the unity of the nationalities, it is necessary to combat big-nation chauvinism, mainly Han chauvinism, and to combat local national chauvinism. The state will do its utmost to promote the common prosperity of all the nationalities. 8

9. 費孝通（1989）: 所謂中華民族「主流是由許許多多分散孤立存在的民族單位，經過接觸、混雜、聯結和融合，同時也有分裂和消亡，形成一個你來我去、我來你去，我中有你、你中有我，而又各具個性的多元一體」 9

10. 「截止到1990年，共識別、確認了56個民族，其中55個少數民族。目前大約還有73萬多人的民族成份尚未最終確定」（金炳鎬，2009，頁218）「截止到1990年，共識別、確認了56個民族，其中55個少數民族。目前大約還有73萬多人的民族成份尚未最終確定」（金炳鎬，2009，頁218） 10

11. 「同根同心」、以地緣及血緣等原生因素為本的族裔本位的認同基礎「同根同心」、以地緣及血緣等原生因素為本的族裔本位的認同基礎 政治不正確，有違憲法 與歷史事實及現今國情不符 與香港作為國際大都會的多元文化主義的經濟、文化、社會脈絡相矛盾 錯誤1:國民身份的認同基礎 11

12. Understanding the Concept of Identity The concept of identity The etymology of the word: The English word “identity” is originated from late Latin identitas. It is formed from two Latin word, idem=same and entitas=entity. (Oxford English Dictionary) Accordingly, the notion of identity implies two seemingly contradictory meanings, namely Sameness: It implies a person is identical to or same as someone else Distinctiveness: As an identifiable entity, it implies that a person possesses the distinctiveness and definiteness, which can help her to differentiate from someone else. Furthermore, it may also implies these distinctiveness are consistent over time and across space.

13. Understanding the Concept of Identity Two levels of identity Personal identity: It refers to the distinctiveness and uniqueness, which individuals assign to themselves. These assigned meanings may include self awareness, self presentation, self image, self concept, and self esteem. Social identity: It refers to the sameness or similarity, which an individual think or feel they share with other members of a particular social group. The social groups may range from in-born membership such as kinship, clansman-ship, gender, ethnicity, or race; to institutional membership such as citizenship, nationality, profession, or memberships of any voluntary associations

14. Theories about Identity Phenomenology of the Self: In the perspective of phenomenology, it is assumed that humans are not only living within the world of discrete and concrete experiences in particular concrete space and time, but also in the stream of consciousness. It is within this stream of consciousness that a man would grant his attention and intention to an object in reality (or ‘the world’) and elevate it to become a “phenomenon” within one’s subjectivity. And Husserl has labelled this fundamental inter-connection between consciousness and objects in reality the ‘intentioanlity’.

16. Theories about Identity Phenomenology of the Self: The concept of intentionality: “The term ‘intentionality’ is taken from the Latin intendere, which translates as ‘to stretch forth’.” It indicates the process of how the mind “stretching forth” into the world and “grasping” and “translating” an object into a phenomenon. (Spinelli, 2005, p.15)

17. Theories about Identity Phenomenology of the Self: The process of intentionality has been differentiated by Husserl into two components, namely noema and noesis. The concept of noema (intentional-object) indicates the objects being intended to, conscious of and grasped, i.e. the what; The concept of noesis (intentional-Act) refers to the act of intending, stretching forth and bringing to consciousness, i.e. the how.

18. Theories about Identity Phenomenology of the Self: Internal time consciousness (Durée) It is also assumed that human’s intentionality and stream of consciousness will endure over time. As a result, it will constitute the “internal time consciousness” or what Henri Bergson called the ‘durée’.

19. Theories about Identity Phenomenology of the Self: As human directs her stream of consciousness or intentionality upon herself, i.e. makes her selfhood as the intentional-object or a “phenomenon; there emerges the self awareness and self consciousness. Furthermore, as the self consciousness endures over time and gains its duration of “internal time consciousness”, there constitute the self identity, i.e. there constitutes the identical concepts of self at different points in time. Hence, the concept of self identity refers to the continuous and coherent concept a person endowed upon oneself.

20. Theories about Identity Anthony Giddens’ theory of self-identity in late modernity

22. Theories about Identity Anthony Giddens’ theory of self-identity in late modernity Giddens defines “self as reflexively understood by the person in terms of her or his biography.” (Giddens’ 1991, p. 53) Identity, according to Giddens, indicates a person’s sense of “continuity across time and space.” (ibid)

23. Theories about Identity • Anthony Giddens’ theory of self-identity in late modernity

24. Theories about Identity Anthony Giddens’ theory of self-identity in late modernity Self-identity, therefore, can be defined as a sense of “continuity as interpreted reflexively by the agent.” (ibid) More specifically, a person with a reasonably stable sense of self-identity is, therefore, the one with “the capacity to keep a particular narrative going. The individual’s biography, if she is to maintain regular interaction with others in the day-to-day world, cannot be wholly fictive. It must continually integrate events which occur in the external world, and sort them out into ongoing ‘story’ about the self.” (Giddens, 1991, p. 54) In short, self-identity can be discerned as coherent and continuous narrative one imputed to oneself.

25. Theories about Identity Symbolic Interactionsim and Self Identity The “looking-glass” self: Charles Cooley coined the concept in 1902 to indicate the developmental process of the self as an interpersonal process. It is a reflexive and glass-looking process consisting of “the image of our appearance to the other person; “the imagination of his judgment of that appearance; and “some sort of self-feeling, such as pride or mortification.” (Cooley, 1902, p. 184; quoted in Broom, 1981, p. 98) Accordingly, to Cooley self identity is not some inborn attributes but social products generated from interactions with other fellow humans. Furthermore, the self is not a passive receiver of others’ judgments on oneself. It will interpret and react to these judgments.

26. Theories about Identity Symbolic Interactionsim and Self Identity Finally, Cooley specifies that the others or the looking glasses, from which one takes reference are not assigned with equal importance by the self. As a result, some others are characterized as “significant others” (i.e. parents) while others are simply “referent others” (i.e. ordinary friends)

27. Theories about Identity Symbolic Interactionsim and Self Identity Symbolic interactionist’s conception of the self Built on Charles Cooley’s concept of the “looking-glass” self, George H. Mead and Herbet Blumer, two founding father of the symbolic interactionsim (a prominent theoretical perspective in sociology) specify that the self is not a static structure but a dynamic process through which attributes, meanings, judgments that others passed onto oneself will be interpret and reinterpret. That is they “saw the self as process not a structure.” (Blumer, 1969, p.62)

29. Theories about Identity Symbolic Interactionsim and Self Identity Symbolic interactionist’s conception of the self “The process of a self provides the human being with a mechanism of self-interaction. …Such self-interaction takes the form of making indications to himself and meeting these indications by making further indications. The human being can designate things to himself – his wants, his pains, his goals, object around him, the presence of others, their actions, their expected actions, or whatnot.” (Blumer, p. 62)

30. Theories about Identity Symbolic Interactionsim and Self Identity Symbolic interactionist’s conception of the self “With the mechanism of self-interaction the human being ceases to be a responding organism whose behavior is a product of what plays upon him from the outside, the inside, or both. Instead, he acts toward his world, interpreting what confronts him and organizing his action on the basis of the interpretation.” (Blumer, p.63)

31. Theories about Identity Symbolic Interactionsim and Self Identity Symbolic interactionist’s conception of the self The negotiated self: In the perspective of symbolic interactionsim, individuals are perceived as “an active agent in the construction of his or her own self-concept. The self that emerges is a negotiated self. …An important goal in this (negotiating) process is the enhancement of self-esteem.” (Brinkerhoff et al. 1991, p. 144)

32. Theories about Identity Symbolic Interactionsim and Self Identity Symbolic interactionist’s conception of the self The situated self: Another group of interactionists, known as structural symbolic interactionism, such as Stryker (1968, 1980) and McCall and Simons (1978) emphasize the importance of the institutional structure in which individuals are situated. It is suggested that the self emerged from this situation will be conditioned by social expectations or even obligations prescribed to the positions, in which the individual is assigned into.

33. Theories about Identity Theory of categorization and social identity Henri Tajfel and his followers most notably John C. Turner look at formation of group identity formation as a social process of categorization. They approach identity formation with the concept of categorization. It refers to “the cognitive process that allow human to streamline perception by separately grouping like and unlike stimuli. Tajfel demonstrated that people categorize social as well as nonsocial stimuli and that people use social categories to identify themselves and others.” (Thoits and Virshup, 1997; p. 114) Tajfel illustrate the concept with research focusing on race, ethnicity, class, and nationality and empirical examples of back and white, Jews, Pakistanis, and French- and English speaking Canadian.

35. Theories about Identity Theory of categorization and social identity Accordingly, Tajfel defines social identity as “that part of an individual’s self which derives from his knowledge of his members of a group (or groups) together with the value and emotional significance attached to that membership.” (Tajfel, 1981, quoted in Thoits and Virshup, 1997; p. 116) Turner also defines “social identity as “self-categories that define the individual in terms of his or her shared similarities with members of certain social categories in contrast to other social categories.” (Turner et al, 1987, quoted in Thoits and Virshup, 1997; p. 117)

36. Theories about Identity Theory of categorization and social identity For Turner, social identities are in-group versus out-group categorizations. It spawns out of the distinction between the we-group and the they-group. This perspective has elevated the identity study from the individual level of role identity to the collective level of identity based on ethnicity, nationality, social class, and other social groupings. As a result, identity theory can apply to analyze macroscopic phenomena such as racial prejudice and discrimination, conflict between ethnic and national groupings, ethnocentrism, etc.

37. Theories about Identity Institutional identity and the theory of the technology of the self According to the conception of Michel Foucault a prominent French scholar of the twentieth century, social categories or conception could be imposed upon individuals by institutionalized mechanism, which Foucault called discourse (“a totality of effective statements”)(Foucault, 1972, p. 27-28)

38. Theories about Identity Institutional identity … In a series of historical-archaeological studies, Foucault demonstrated how specific identities were imposed upon particular groups of individuals by means of institutional discourses of modern medicine, psychology and psychiatry, punishment and correctional system, and sexuality. Through these institutional discourses, identities such as the sick, the insane, the condemned, the sexually improper, … are constituted and institutionalized.

39. You are insane You are sick You are condemned You are sexually “wrong” &/or immoral

40. Theories about Identity Institutional identity … In Foucault’s theory of the formation of discourse, the processes through which these identities of the unhealthy, the insane, the condemned, the morally improper,… are constituted and institutionalized, are outlined as follows: (Foucault, 1972) The formation of “Object”: It refers to the process through which a particular category or identity is defined, differentiated and constituted. The formation of “Enunciative Modality”: It refers to the organization in which particular personnel are designated with the authority to pass on judgment of a particular identity to members of the public.

41. Theories about Identity Institutional identity … In Foucault’s theory of the formation of discourse, … The formation of “Concepts”: It refers to the institutionalization of the field or discipline in which statements of a particular discourse appeared and circulated in authoritative or even legitimate way. The formation of “Strategies”: It refers to the context in which particular theoretical and discursive themes are chosen and legitimatized while the others are marginalized or silenced.

42. Theories about Identity Institutional identity … The concept of power/knowledge in discourse formation: According to Foucault, the formation of discourse is not simply a process of constitution of a particular system of knowledge, but it is a process through which the “power/knowledge” emerged. “It is in discourse that power and knowledge are joined together. …Discourse can be both an instrument and an effect of power… Discourse transmits and produces power; it reinforces it.” (Foucault, 1978, p. 100-101)

43. Theories about Identity Institutional identity … The concept of power/knowledge in discourse formation: … “Power and knowledge directly imply one another; that there is no power relation without the correlative constitution of a field of knowledge, nor any knowledge that does not presuppose and constitute at the same time power relations. These power/knowledge relations are to be analyzed, therefore, not on the basis of a subject of knowledge who is or is not free in relation to the power system, but, on the contrary, the subject who knows, the objects to be known and the modalities of knowledge must be regarded as so many effects of these fundamental implications of power/knowledge and their historical transformations.” (Foucault, 1977, p. 28)

44. Theories about Identity Institutional identity … Power and identity: Power as subjection and subjugation: In the afterword entitled “Power and the Subject” in the book by Druyfus and Rabinow (1982) Foucault underlines “I would like to say, first of all, what has been the goal of my work during the last twenty years. It has not been to analyze the phenomena of power, nor to elaborate the foundations of such an analysis. My objective, instead, has been to create a history of the different mode by which, in our culture, human beings are made subjects... Thus it is not power, but the subject, which is the general them of my research.” (1982, 208-209)

46. Theories about Identity Institutional identity … Power and identity: Power as objectification of subjection: The technology of power Objectification and technology of power transforming of human beings into subjects of human sciences, e.g. philology, linguistics, biology, economics. Accordingly human beings are disciplined into difference institutionalized identities such as English native speakers, economic man, genetically healthy persons; Objectification and technology of power turning human beings into subjects of “dividing practices” by medical science, psychological and psychiatric sciences, institutions of law and order, and schooling institution. Accordingly, human beings are institutionalized into identities such as the sick, HIV carriers, insane, convicted, uneducated, …

47. Theories about Identity Institutional identity … Power and identity: Power as objectification of subjection: The technology of power… Objectification and technology of power turning human themselves into subjects via doctrines and institutions of religion and morality. Accordingly, human beings inscribed into identities such as nonbeliever, immoral, …

48. Determinism/Structure • Institutionalized Identity • Social Categorization Theory Individualism Collectivism • Symbolic Interactionism • Phenomenology of Identity Voluntarism/Agent

49. Perspectives in Identity Study In light of all these theories about identity, two sets of dichotomous perspectives seem to have emerged. The first theoretical dichotomy consists of: (Calhoun, 1994, 1997, Jenkins, 2008) Essentialism: Essentialism approaches identity as essentials or attributes, which are naturally endowed or structurally determined. This perspective takes gender identity, national identity or class identity as given facts and preexisting reality. Hence, the formations of identities are conditioned, shaped, or determined by sets of essentially fixed traits, such as biological sex, skin color, birth place, position in relation of production, etc.

50. Perspectives in Identity Study The first theoretical dichotomy consists of: … Constructionism: Constructionism approaches identity as socially constructed reality, which are negotiable and maneuverable. They are on the one hand collectively constituted in social process or even social movement, and individually constructed in deliberately presentations and articulations.