Book - Vague Identities

Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities

Vague Identities
Designed by George Diril
2021

VAGUE IDENTITIES
6

WHAT DEFINES OUR IDENTITY?
What defines our identity?
We all, the people, live in somewhere in this world and all of us have some official status which are
partly define our identity. Nationality, citizenship, religion and gender are just some of the most
crucial. These identifications mostly come from where we were born or which community we are in.
Are these all enough to identify a person? Do these all truly reflect the reality? What or who defines
exactly who and/or what we are? What we, personally, feel? Who we are? Do we have an identity?
What is identity?
This statement was asked to people from entirely different places, ethnicities and backgrounds. In
this book, you will find a variety of ideas from those people.
Definition of identity
Who a person is, or the qualities of a person or group that make them different from others.
Cambridge English Dictionary
7

racial
religion
culture
sexual
tribal
roots
citizenship
origin
gender
politic
nationality
ethnicity
family

VAGUE IDENTITIES
10

WHAT DEFINES OUR IDENTITY?
“It will never be fully defined
anyway, nor will it be able to
define itself.”
Anonymous
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VAGUE IDENTITIES
Human beings naturally tend to adapt places
they are living in. Their bodies, their houses,
the families they are a part of their countries
etc. Sometimes this adapting process lead to
another phase that we call an identification but
what happens when you can’t adapt? You become
the odd one.
The suffer starts at this point. Where the ones
who are different get excluded. This exclusion
makes you feel like you have to call yourself
something: a definiton. But why do we need a
definition which won’t really define us? When we
think we are uniting and glorifying ourselves
under a name what we are actually doing is
ignoring everything what makes us unique and
settle under one name, degrade ourselves. On
the other hand, we can call it ignoring all the
other things we can be.
Every individual has their own mindset with
conscious ideas, a life full of experiences, mixed
and unidentified emotions and pure claimings
for their dreams and destinations. All these
complex structuring of people is making it not
enough to identify a person. Even though we
know that it is not enough to identify ourselves
with a name we tend to need it. To become
together with others and not feel alone or
maybe to find something relatable with your
own story. What is ignored at this point is:
Although we think that our own stories will
converge and resemble at some point, the only
partnership we have in these communities is the
common elements of our stories. These elements
are the products of our cultures. Our
country’s cultures, the culture and likes chosen
by our sexual communities, or the culture of our
smallest community our family. While being
within the same themes is sufficient to create a
community, it will not meet the description of
an identity.
Briefly, although people always need to define
themselves because of their instincts, they are
individuals who progress, learn, feel and
change. It will never be fully defined anyway,
nor will it be able to define itself. It is “change”
itself that really defines us. Although we are
comfortable under some definitions at the stops
we stop, our common feature is that we are all
fluid.
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VAGUE IDENTITIES
14

WHAT DEFINES OUR IDENTITY?
“I started to identify myself,
express my thoughts depending
on the person.”
Anonymous
15

VAGUE IDENTITIES
From the early times, people define themselves
or others somehow. This definition is usually
about our characters. The character gets
shaped under some conditions. Like where we
were born, or what type of family that we have.
When we identify ourselves we mention these
kinds of things.
For example, I was born in Istanbul but my
whole family came from Diyarbakır. For someone
who lives in Turkey, it is common to think
that at this point I am Kurdish because my
whole family came from the center of Kurdish
people. But unlike general me and my whole
family is Armenian. So, I am what I say, what I
do.
Even my name is very unique which shows up in
both Turkish and Armenian. What if my name
was something that was very universal like Lara
or something like that. My whole life would be
different in that case and my whole life would
change. I had too many difficulties because of
my name when I was a kid. Now, I can defend
myself if something happens because of my
identity, because of my name.
live or where I was born my answer is always I
was born in Istanbul, Turkey but I am Armenian.
So it breaks the ice.
To sum up, from an early age to today I am
struggling with my identity. I learned how to
deal with people and their thoughts. While
doing this the way I identify myself gets shape
by unintentionally. I started to identify myself,
express my thoughts depending on the person.
So I had an identity dependent on the person
that I talked to. By the time, if I gain their trust I
show my real identity. I guess I have multiple
identities or maybe I do not have one yet. I
guess it is okay to say that defining our identity
is about who we talk to. Because if you are a
minority you do not want to deal with
hidebound.
Being Armenian or generally being a minority
somewhere comes with its problems which you
have to deal with. And when you survive you
gain something that becomes your identity.
Also, it has another point which is about Turkey.
When I meet someone who is not living in Turkey
and I say I live in Turkey I get really different
reactions to it. There is a bias about Turkey and
its people. So when someone asks me where I
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VAGUE IDENTITIES
18

WHAT DEFINES OUR IDENTITY?
“Identity is a personal feeling
and let me feel safe, but it
is influenced from the people
around me.”
Anonymous
19

VAGUE IDENTITIES
The term “identity” has two meanings: 1. “be
similar” or “the same as” 2. “personality”. In
this case, we speak about the second meaning
of the word, and about the question “who we
are”. My personal identity is very complicated
to explain, especially if I want to remain in the
classical categories.
My citizenship is Italian, but I live in an area
where we speak a German dialect and Ladin, my
mother tongue. Our culture is Austrian Tyrolean
and goes upon the border crosses of this century.
In my hometown we speak an old language
called “Ladin”. So, for me, the language is the
most important definition of my culture. But
also, of my identity? Of course, I think! When I
travel in distant countries and spend many
times to answer at the question “where are you
from?”. I try to explain all the details of the
history of my birthplace, and it makes me proud
of my origin. But for me, these categories are
not enough to describe my identity.
Identity is a personal feeling and let me feel
safe, but it is influenced from the people around
me. The necessity of explain myself to other
persons is the origin of the identity, because I
am different than the others. To be a part of a
group and to stand on my own feet, explains my
identity.Find the identity is a process of the
single man and of every community, small or
big, it makes no different. Personally, it could be
a big challenge to find the own identity and to
not fall in the trap to mean that I, or other
persons have a definited identity.
Is the Identity the real mirror of my being, of my
realty? In part it could go in this way, but it is
not enough. So, after many reflections, I will say
my personal theory: we are much more than our
identity! Who makes a definition about who I
am? I like the idea of a development in the
identity. In every situation of my live, I need to
know who I am, but also the awareness that my
identity is in a process of developing. The
challenges of my live changes also my identity.
So, I think that my identity must be open, for the
future.
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22

WHAT DEFINES OUR IDENTITY?
“It is often said that some do
not like to be labeled, whether
by nationality, religion, sexuality
or otherwise. But without
labels how are we to identify
people, places and things?”
Anonymous
23

VAGUE IDENTITIES
Identity is a very personal topic. To identify
oneself means taking ownership of who someone
is and informing others on whom that person
is or is not. Oftentimes the basis for identity
is telling others who they are not, or what
they are not. This allows one to understand
more clearly who they are and maybe also dispel
preformed stereotypes.
As humans we inherently carry biases and
prejudices – words, labels and identities sometimes
reinforce these ideas or completely dispel
them. To tell someone who or what they are not
creates a clear basis for identity when opposites
are highlighted.
In these opposites, identities emerge and can be
understood more clearly. Black or white. This or
that. To tell someone what they are not allows
for them to take ownership oWf who they are in
the present.
Similarly, in trying to understand identity,
generalizations can be made about groups of
people. This too can be detrimental for collective
and personal, specific identities as no two
people are completely the same.
It is often said that some do not like to be
labeled, whether by nationality, religion, sexuality
or otherwise. But without labels how are we
to identify people, places and things? Words
matter. Words help us, as humans, understand
the world around us. Most times these identifiers
are man-made, such as nationalities and
citizenships, but other times they can be
personal, like one’s religion or lack thereof.
More specifically, to think about an indigenous
person – a modern country may not formally
acknowledge their identity in the present day,
but that does not mean their identity, ethnicity,
or heritage is in any less way valid. If anything, it
can add on to who they are as a people.
Sometimes formal identities, or those cast down
from others, are not enough to identify someone
to their fullest. It then becomes imperative for
that one person to enlighten others on their
identity.
Humans do have identities. Identities are the
basis for humankind, but the problem often
comes from others incorrectly identifying them.
Dispelling rumors, prejudices and other errors
in identification, either purposefully or not, is
essential in allowing people to take ownership
of who they are and define themselves as best
as they can.
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VAGUE IDENTITIES
26

WHAT DEFINES OUR IDENTITY?
“Like Tolle says, there is a holy
‘essence’ in all of us, something
that makes us all unique
but equal at the same time.”
Anonymous
27

VAGUE IDENTITIES
The book “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle
is mostly about how we as humans don’t really
live in the present but are always concerned
about our future and past. Tolle also talks
about identity though. His approach to the
topic is that we all mostly define ourselves over
external things – categorizing ourselves to feel
like we are someone. Our mind and thoughts,
our “ego”, is tricking us into believing that we
are nothing without categories. That we are our
job, our knowledge, our properties, our social
status, our appearance, our relationships.
His approach to the topic is that we all mostly
define ourselves over external things – categorizing
ourselves to feel like we are someone. Our
mind and thoughts, our “ego”, is tricking us into
believing that we are nothing without categories.
That we are our job, our knowledge, our
properties, our social status, our appearance,
our relationships.
I don’t think that is true at all. Like Tolle says,
there is a holy “essence” in all of us, something
that makes us all unique but equal at the same
time. To exclude all the external facts that
seemingly define us is scary and difficult, but we
must take this step, in order to really connect
with ourselves and each other – to see who we
truly are without defining and categorizing (and
judging). All of these parameters to judge
ourselves that I mentioned above (like your job
and your level of attractiveness for example) are
just structures that we, that society created
itself. None of it is natural or given from the
universe or god or whatever you believe in so it
just simply cannot be who we truly are.
I personally think it is hard to free yourself from
all the things we think define us, make us who
we are – positive or negative. I can think that my
difficult past makes me a stronger person with
more depth, or I can assume that I am worth
more because I work in a high paid job and live
in a big house.
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WHAT DEFINES OUR IDENTITY?
Credits
Free University of Bozen-Bolzano
Faculty of Design and Art
Bachelor in Design and Art - Major in Design
Designed by
George Diril
Book | Vague Identities
Course
Project Visual Communication
Course Title
Order & Eccentricity (Summer Semester 2020)
Supervision
Project Leader: Prof. Antonino Benincasa
Graphic Design: Prof. a.c. Emilio Grazzi
Theories and languages of visual communication:
Prof. Emanuela De Cecco
Cover Design & Illustrations
George Diril
Testimonials
For privacy purposes, authors of the testimonials
are not shown.
Fonts | Fonts Sizes & Leading
Body Text: National Regular — 11/12 pt
Caption Text: National Regular — 7/9 pt
Title Text: National Extrabold — 32/36 pt
Subtitle Text: National Regular — 23/24 pt
Running Header: National Regular — 10/18 pt
Running Footer: National Regular — 16/24 pt
Format
200 x 250 mm
Layout Grid
6 Column Grid
Module Proportion
1.250 : 1
CPL | Character per line - Body Text:
51 characters including spaces
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Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities
Vague Identities