A Desirable Mixture
"Self" as illustrated thorough Body Art!
Experiences and observations are two integral factors in how the "self" is defined.
Graham Green states that, “For writers it is always said that the first 20 years of life contain the whole of experience-the rest is observation”. If this statement is true, I only have two more years to experience life! I disagree with Green in that I believe the compilation of both life experiences and observations add to this sense of “self”. People are not restricted to a certain amount of years before they start observing life rather than experiencing it, but these two happen simultaneously throughout life. The experiences people have are remembered because they are influential, and observances show how others are perceived and in turn how the “self” can be seen. The writing that people put on their bodies can be indicative of these times in their lives, their history, their sense of “self” and of their personality. Long lasting embellishment such as tattooing and scarification to me seems like very poignant forms of this decoration that shows the importance of these experiences and observations.
In the web site created by Graham Steffen, I saw pictures of individuals who had made such permanent impacts on their bodies. The author himself shared a certain picture of scars he had as a result of self-inflicted wounds earlier on in life. He looks back on those times now and sees how he has grown. He is not the same person as he was then, but his scars “have continued to represent an integral part” of his character. The psychological tribulations that he went through in the past helped to shape who he is now, and the scars that are embedded in his skin are daily indications of his “self”. Another picture I found interesting was that of the aboriginal man Yidumduma Bill; his body is covered with keloids, which are prominent “raised areas of scar tissue”. He mentions that before you can “trade anything, before you can get married, before you can sing ceremonial songs and before you can blow a didgeridoo at burial ceremonies” a man needs this mark. As with the idea of Steffen’s own body markings, these keloids are indications of Bill’s past and of who he is. The significant experiences in both of these men’s lives that helped shape who they are are shown on their bodies.
Observations that people have can also help define who they are. People’s reflections on what they see can impact their viewpoint; apart from experiences, observations can lead to judgments about how others are perceived and in turn how the individual can be seen. Looking at the various pictures on this website I made inferences of my own. I associated the “Satanism” woman with the devil, the third eye on her forehead along with the many piercings that dotted her face made me think if I were to get these similar tattoos I would be seen in a similar manner. I made a judgment/assumption of who this woman was through her body art and how my “self” would be seen if I were to take a similar action. When posing my floor mate Britt Goodman with the same question, she associated the woman with “damage”; she also believed that she “would be viewed the same way” if she were to get these decorations. The observations that we have then impact how we think our “self’ will be portrayed.
Experiences and observations are extremely important to defining a person’s identity. How a person knows their “self” as seen through Graham and Bill’s experiences; and how a person can see their “self” as shown through Britt and my observations explain how influential these factors are. A life in which distinct points mark where experience halts and observation starts does not seem realistic; life is lived, and a person is defined according to a mixture of these two elements at no certain age. I know that I personally have plenty more than two years left to experience and observe everything I need to in life to make my own definition!
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