The Self in Writing

Self-writing is a strange concept. In my mind self-writing was always just that, writing about the self – and it still is. I had just never taken the time to analyze what writing about the self truly means. Self-writing is not only a way to communicate fact-based stories about an individual, but it is also a means of expression. This type of writing does not conform to the fact-based, black-and-white world I always thought that it did. I mean, consider the definition of “self”: “self” is everything that makes you who you are – your experiences, beliefs, dreams, relationships, group memberships, and so on. Not all of these entities can be neatly described with facts alone. You would lose the emotion, the meaning, and the power of the “self” being confined to facts, especially when trying to describe a group. 

People identify with various groups whether that is ethnicity, religion, gender, nationality, political party, geographic location, etc. If I were to write about myself, I would have to include that I am a follower of Christ, an American, a woman, and an Ohioan as a few examples. These group memberships have played a crucial role in shaping me into the person I am, and I feel strongly attached to the other people of these groups and their experiences. For example, I may not know any Christians from the Middle East, but my heart hurts for those who face persecution because I feel connected to them based on our beliefs and, therefore, group status. My experiences in said groups do not represent the experiences of all people, however, that does not mean I cannot write about these groups and the overarching experience of myself as well as other people. It is here that you can stray from the facts and write about the experiences of others in order to tell us something about who you are. This can take many forms including a fictional piece that represents how someone that belongs to the same group as you might experience life.  

Before, self-writing was not all that exciting. I had always stuck it in a box labeled “Facts About You” and when that is the content you are pulling from the writing is not exactly exciting. It feels limited and constrained. As we have moved through this class, I have come to see self-writing more as a freedom of expression in which you can pull from a wide range of areas in order to create a message you want to relay to others about who you are. This self-writing is exciting. It’s lifegiving. It’s you – even when it’s not actually you.