Writing Homework Help

Prewriting: 

We have read several essays about how identity is influenced by culture. Now it is time for you to write your own essay about these issues. Culture is complex, and popular perceptions about culture, ethnicity, and race often have a profound impact on how we see ourselves and how we interact with the world around us. Think about your own construction of identity, and how it is influenced by the various cultures or subcultures you are a part of.   

Writing Task: 

Write an essay about how one of the cultures you are part of (or identify with) is connected in a significant and influential way to how you form or express your identity, and discuss that connection using narrative and examples illustrate the point you are making.  

• Remember: Culture can be many things! Ethnic culture, subcultures, popular culture, religious culture, regional culture, and more!

Sample Topics: 

Note: You are not limited to these topics.  These are simply examples of topics that would fit this question.

• How a culture/subculture you identify with has shaped/changed/influenced your own identity and outlook on the world.
  • Is the subculture you identify with different from the one you were raised in?  If so, how have these differences been significant to you? 
• How racial stereotypes negatively impact the quality of life for minorities in America
• How issues of language or education can have a significant impact on how we see ourselves or how others perceive us. 
• The influence of advertisements or media on the creation of feminine/masculine/non-binary identities.
• The influence of music and music subcultures on the development of identity, for example, what it means to identify as punk, hip hop, a goth, a scene kid, a metalhead, a raver, etc…
• The impact of Fandom and “geek culture” on your identity and interact with the world 
• How important is it for immigrants or the children of immigrants in America to hold on to traditional foods, native language, and family customs?  How does one balance holding on to your cultural identity while assimilating into “mainstream” American culture?