A large cup

large cup 'n' saucer

A large amount of speculation about identity found its way into a paper I wrote last year for Discourse. Here I suggested a continuum along which identity is performed. One pole represented the fixity of what I called ‘anchored’ identity, the other the less stable ‘transient’ identities. I’m currently revisiting this, but set it out again here to see how it looks now.

Examples of anchored identities are: gender, position in family, religion, age, social class and geographical location. They relate to aspects of our lives over which we have little control and are least likely to change. On the other hand, transient identities change over time, being influenced by maturation, changing cultural conditions and peer group affiliations. These identities are defined in relation to media narratives, ideologies, popular culture, iconic objects, social activities and networks.