DEVRY INSTITUTE, NORTH BRUNSWICK

The Relationship Between Space and Identit

Re!ecca "i#$e%oa
DeVry 2/6/2014

The Relationship between Space and Identity

The relationships between space and identity are connected by symbols. A symbol can be anything physical that gives information about an idea, a value, or even an emotion. The connections between these different realities are made and defined only in the context in which they become known. A space can be considered symbolic because it holds meaning to people, in such a way that it gives an identity to the individual. In the essay This !ld "ouse# by $avid Sedaris, he expresses examples of this connection of space and identity. Although Sedaris is unable to relate to the modern house he was raised in, he does catch a liking of the grander more refined past that he learned from a television show. %hen Sedaris states, Sure I looked out of place beside a Scandinavian buffet, but put me in the proper environment and I&d undoubtedly fit right in# 'p. ()*+, it illustrates his new identity. Sedaris ventures out in search of a home that represents history to accommodate his liking. Sedaris goes on to write about how he imagined his home to look, An apartment of my own was unthinkable at that time of my life, and, even if I&d found an affordable one, it wouldn&t have satisfied my fundamental need, to live in a communal past, or what I imagined the past to be like-a world full of anti.ues. 'p. (/0+ 1learly he is traditional, eccentric and longs for the past. "e is stuck in time and is has made it obvious he will be unhappy otherwise. After Sedaris imagined

what home would be like, he finally felt more comfortable with his identity. 2ears later, he reali3ed he had more in common with the home than he originally thought. The man&s eyes wandered around the parlor, and through them I saw what he did, a dirty room full of 4unk. It had never been anything more than that, but for some reason-the heat, maybe, or the couple&s heavy, almost contagious sense of despair-every gouge and smudge 4umped violently into focus. 5ore depressing still was the thought that I belonged here, that I fit in. 'p. (/6+ It&s almost as if he is unhappy with himself for being stuck in a less modern era. The anti.ues from this house become a part of Sedaris& new found identity. "owever, in the essay Silent $ancing# by 7udith !rti3 1ofer, she shows an altered side of the relationship between space and identity. In 1ofer&s work, she struggles to find identity in a foreign country. She shows how the neighborhood she grew up in distorted identities from an ethnic standpoint. %hat was once a 7ewish community transforms into a 8atino community. 1ofer writes about the battles they endured while trying to familiari3e herself with the predominately 7ewish neighborhood. 8ater on in her essay, she shows how the 8atino community became more accepting which made her feel comfortable. 9the women of :l ;uilding shopped mainly in other places-stores owned by <uerto Ricans or by 7ewish merchants who had philosophically accepted our presence in the city and decided to make us their good

customers, if not real neighbors and friends. These establishments were located not downtown but in the blocks around our street, and they were referred to generically as 8a Tienda, :l ;a3ar, 8a ;odega, 8a ;otanica. 'p. =/+ In this instance, 1ofer, her family, and the other 8atino&s who moved to the barrio didn&t move into a place where they were familiar with. Instead, they found a place and made a home over time. Regardless, mother was always content with her identity. There are many examples that space and identity relate. A single person or even a group of people can change the identity of space. It helps build a person&s identity as well. It is not 4ust limited to a one way relationship. The two must work together in order to co-exist.

References

!rti3 1ofer, 7. 'n.d.+. Silent dancing. Retrieved !ctober />, ()/?, from http,@@www(.hawaii.edu@Afacoba@readings@cofer.htm

Sedaris, $. '())B, 7uly >+. This old house. The Cew 2orker. Retrieved !ctober />, ()/?, from http,@@www.newyorker.com@reporting@())B@)B@)>@)B)B)>faDfactDsedaris