Identity: What Forms the Core?
When asked about themselves, the majority of people have a few “I Am” statements that they think of instantaneously. I am a student. I am a dancer. I am queer. I am weak. I am strong. Any given person is always significantly more than just the statements that they think of and are likely not the only person who identifies with those statements, but they will list them nonetheless. Generally the “I Am” statements that a person gives are the components of their identity that they cling to most strongly. In Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown, Molly anchors her identity to the fact that she is strong and capable, her own hero. Ziggy, the main character of Try by Dennis Cooper, alternately places the fact that he is …show more content…
This fact permeates his life in every facet. Interactions with friends, family, and romantic interests as well as Ziggy’s use of free time is influenced by the fact that Ziggy has been sexually abused. This is especially prominent in the zine that Ziggy single-handedly makes focused on sexual abuse. Despite being titled, “I Apologize, A Magazine for the Sexually Abused” the magazine is clearly meant for Ziggy himself as “four or five copies have sold…” and “This’ll eventually be I Apologize No. 20.” (Cooper 1.) He devotes large amounts of time and effort into a piece of media that is consumed by almost solely him. This is indicative of Ziggy placing a large emphasis on his history of being sexually abused simply because it is his main hobby. However, Ziggy also shows this identification in less private …show more content…
He can comfortably talk about it with most anyone, in the same way that most people talk about identifiers like career or favorite television show. This is shown in a conversation with a potential love interest named Nicole when Ziggy tells her, “’I’m definitely weird Nicole. My main dad-the one I still live with-has been beating me up, raping me since I was, uh… ten’” (Cooper 8.) The fact that he can so calmly address that which the majority of people would find terribly horrific is indicative of him having integrated that concept into his daily life. Ziggy again normalizes his history of sexual abuse when he sends his best friend Calhoun a pornographic tape of Ziggy and his Uncle Ken from when Ziggy was a rather young child. He informs Calhoun that he had him watch the video “’For your take.’” (Cooper 27.) Calhoun was made to watch the video simply so Ziggy could gain a second opinion on its content, in the same way that most people send a friend a draft of a questionable paper. Ziggy treats his sexual abuse more like he is an artist than a victim, however his ability to normalize this raises many questions, in particular how he came to treat this as his normal.
In both Try and Rubyfruit Jungle the protagonists act in ways very different from what is considered appropriate. Molly being a strong willful woman in a time when that would be considered
When asked about themselves, the majority of people have a few “I Am” statements that they think of instantaneously. I am a student. I am a dancer. I am queer. I am weak. I am strong. Any given person is always significantly more than just the statements that they think of and are likely not the only person who identifies with those statements, but they will list them nonetheless. Generally the “I Am” statements that a person gives are the components of their identity that they cling to most strongly. In Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown, Molly anchors her identity to the fact that she is strong and capable, her own hero. Ziggy, the main character of Try by Dennis Cooper, alternately places the fact that he is …show more content…
This fact permeates his life in every facet. Interactions with friends, family, and romantic interests as well as Ziggy’s use of free time is influenced by the fact that Ziggy has been sexually abused. This is especially prominent in the zine that Ziggy single-handedly makes focused on sexual abuse. Despite being titled, “I Apologize, A Magazine for the Sexually Abused” the magazine is clearly meant for Ziggy himself as “four or five copies have sold…” and “This’ll eventually be I Apologize No. 20.” (Cooper 1.) He devotes large amounts of time and effort into a piece of media that is consumed by almost solely him. This is indicative of Ziggy placing a large emphasis on his history of being sexually abused simply because it is his main hobby. However, Ziggy also shows this identification in less private …show more content…
He can comfortably talk about it with most anyone, in the same way that most people talk about identifiers like career or favorite television show. This is shown in a conversation with a potential love interest named Nicole when Ziggy tells her, “’I’m definitely weird Nicole. My main dad-the one I still live with-has been beating me up, raping me since I was, uh… ten’” (Cooper 8.) The fact that he can so calmly address that which the majority of people would find terribly horrific is indicative of him having integrated that concept into his daily life. Ziggy again normalizes his history of sexual abuse when he sends his best friend Calhoun a pornographic tape of Ziggy and his Uncle Ken from when Ziggy was a rather young child. He informs Calhoun that he had him watch the video “’For your take.’” (Cooper 27.) Calhoun was made to watch the video simply so Ziggy could gain a second opinion on its content, in the same way that most people send a friend a draft of a questionable paper. Ziggy treats his sexual abuse more like he is an artist than a victim, however his ability to normalize this raises many questions, in particular how he came to treat this as his normal.
In both Try and Rubyfruit Jungle the protagonists act in ways very different from what is considered appropriate. Molly being a strong willful woman in a time when that would be considered