1. Anderson refutes the idea that nationalism can only be associated with racism and enmity towards others. He gently reassures us that “it is useful to remind ourselves that nations inspire love, and often profoundly self-sacrificing love.” (Anderson, 141) Nationalism does not have to inspire hatred towards others; rather it can move many to perform heroic deeds or to extol the virtues of their country through art, literature, and movies out of love for their nation.

2. Anderson agrees with Eric Hobsbawm’s observation that many Marxist states have turned nationalist. He asserts that “the ‘end of the era of nationalism,’ so long prophesied, is not remotely in sight. Indeed, nation-ness is the most universally legitimate value in the political life of our time.” (Anderson, 3) Even in this time and day, Anderson believes that nationalism will continue to thrive and flourish because it allows many nations to justify their actions, no matter how ill-advised they may be.

quotes from Anderson

1. Anderson refutes Gellner's idea that nations are 'invented.' Instead, he defines nations as "imagined because the members of even the smallest nation will never know most of their members...yet in the minds of each lives the image of their communion." (6) According to Anderson, all communities are imagined because most of the members in that community will never actually meet each other; even within the smallest of nations, the majority of people will never actually engage in any form of face-to-face contact.

2. In order to explain a person's attachment to his or her nation, a person's willingness to die for the sake of his or her nation, Anderson points to the 'natural ties' a person has to his or her community: "nation-ness is assimilated to skin-colour, gender, parentage and birth-era - all those things one can not help." (143) Anderson presents this idea that nation-ness is a characteristic much like race or gender, one that cannot be controlled but rather is part of a person from his or her very birth. 

Many Masks Exhibit -- "Still I Rise"

Essayist Wendy Donniger’s work entitled “Many Masks, Many Selves” explores the complex nature of our personalities. Through her exploration, Doniger argues that our personality is comprised of a set of ‘masks’ that we don in different contexts; and further states that this is a healthy aspect of our daily life. In one passage, Doniger briefly mentions masks one does not choose to wear: “Involuntary masks are also imposed by race and gender” (Doniger, 69). In this brief acknowledgment of masks imposed by society, Doniger does a great disservice to all those who have overcome the involuntary masks society has forced onto so many faces. In her poem Still I Rise, the great poet Maya Angelou writes, “You may write me down in history / With your bitter, twisted lies, / You may trod me in the very dirt / But still, like dust, I’ll rise”. “Write me down” is an active expression that implies activeness on the target of this poem and passivity on Angelou’s part. “Write me down...with your bitter, twisted lies” implies a forcing of some untruth onto Angelou (and, through implication, fellow black Americans) – the equivalent of forcing a mask onto an unwilling person. However, the tone changes when Angelou continues, “But still, like dust, I’ll rise”. Angelou’s use of the word ‘rise’ implies an activeness on her part – she does not wish to lay down and accept the imposition of masks. Angelou’s poem provides a provocative example of Doniger’s ignorance to those who have overcome the imposition of masks – those that, like Angelou, continue to rise.

Exhibit Presentation-- "Many masks, many selves"

For me, Doniger's idea that we all have thousands of necessary masks, none of which is a true "self," is best visualized by picturing the image of a shoe closet. Imagine all of your shoes on a large (or perhaps not so large) shelf. Each pair of those shoes are ours and we own each of those pairs of shoes for a reason -- no matter how trivial. Like with Doniger's masks, each pair of shoes defines a certain side of us, but could never possibly on its own sum up who we truly are. Like we would never wear athletic shoes to an interview or dress shoes to a game of pick-up basketball, each mask serves its necessary and unique purpose in a certain situation. However, if you were to have to choose a single pair of shoes to live the rest of your life in, you would not be able to. Would you take the pair of shoes that look the best? Are the most practical? Are the most comfortable? While we each have that favorite pair of shoes, we all face times when that pair of shoes just can't do the job and another pair is needed. Doniger writes, "We are imprisoned in our self, but it is a very big prison. When we put on a mask we have a choice, ... , and in a sense they are all our own" (68). Like with masks, society forces us to wear shoes when we go outside (and in some cases even inside our own homes). However, when it comes to choosing which pair of shoes to put on in the morning, we still have many choices and which pair of shoes we ultimately choose to wear on a given day is still up to us and says something about who we are.

Exhibit for Doniger

In “Many masks, many selves,” the author, Wendy Doniger discusses the reasons why people try to masquerade as others. One of her main theories is that “individuals are often driven to self-impersonation through the pressure of public expectations.” (Doniger, 60) She asserts that people try to change into another person by wearing masks, but will inevitably fail and fall back to their “default position” (Doniger, 68). Doniger does not mention any possibility of a person successfully transforming into another person. In the 1954 film Seven Samurai directed by Akira Kurosawa, one of the samurai hired to protect a village from bandits, Kikuchiyo, masquerades as a noble-born samurai, even though he is merely the son of a farmer. Kikuchiyo desires nothing more than to be recognized as a samurai, because he hates the lifestyle of farmers. In the final battle scene, one of Kikuchiyo’s comrades is dishonorably shot in the back by the bandit chief. Kikuchiyo blindly charges after the bandit, and despite being shot in the stomach, manages to kill the bandit before succumbing to his mortal wound. With this brave act, he proves his worth a samurai, and is recognized as thus by the villagers and his fellow samurai. In this case, Kikuchiyo was able to create his own sense of identity through his actions, not because society bestowed one upon him. He successfully impersonated a samurai in order to become one, since samurai had higher status and were more respected than farmers. Kurosawa’s character Kikuchiyo proves that people can change themselves instead of reverting back to their normal selves after a period of impersonation.

Doniger Exibit

In Doniger's "Many Masks Many Selves" essay, we learned that the our personalities are made up of the many masks that we put on depending on the audience that we are trying to please. Changing our masks can be as small as the tone we use talking to an elder, or as drastic as plastic surgery. The audience that the person getting plastic surgery is trying to please greatly affects this decision. Most of the time, people try to look younger. However, the reason for this is that society has created the idea that young, tight and perky is paramount. Our appearance might be a mask that isn't included in Doniger's  essay, but when a person gets a surgical operation to change their appearance, I think it should be viewed as the "ultimate" mask. 

Doniger Exhibit

In Wendy Doniger's many masks, many selves, Doniger explores the idea of putting on masks to meet society's needs, and also to put on masks to meet your own needs. That one becomes the mask they are wearing, because they seek to become what society See's them as. In class we discussed masks that society has selected for us. My exhibit is a image that portraits three girls playing jump rope wearing gas masks. While the masks they wear are physical , it also represents society's imposed masks. The innocence of the children playing is contrasted the gas masks and the gloom of oncoming war. It is a representation of society forcing people to put up masks that are not necessarily chosen.

Doniger Exhibit

In the essay written by Doniger we learned that individuals tend to have multiple masks. We comprehended that these multiple masks creates a complex personality. These multiple masks are created by the individual and are also imposed on the individual such as the picture we saw in class. As time continues humans realize in order to take part in society one must be equipped with the tools, such as masks, to survive and coincide with the general public. This also includes friends and family.
An artist by the name Carrie Ann Baade uses oil paintings to portray and explore the "complexity of the human condition." In one of her paintings she uses color and creativity to exemplify the various layered masks people have on. The series of masks retracting off the main face emphasizes the abilty of switching from one mask to another. Depending on the circumstance each mask represents a different trait each person possesses. Baade's painting also supports that behind every face are multiple one waiting to be used. This might be to fit into a crowd, boost self-esteem or it might be imposed by the public.
Some might argue that people hide behind there masks but as shown in the painting thses masks are part of the individual. As people grow so do these masks on a person. Time seems to be the constant variable in the equation that cause these self-defense mechanisms (masks) to blend and become our personality. Baade's painting supports this by shwoing that the masks do not come off but actually retract back to reveal other masks beneath the one the public sees.

http://www.carrieannbaade.com/artworks/virtues_vices/DemonMother.jpg

Child Soldiers- Close Reading for Doniger's "Many masks, many selves"

Note: The Australian Human Rights Commission conducted a competition in 2005 that allowed children to enter artwork that they felt captured the theme of civil freedoms (or lack thereof) in some way. The committee chose fourteen year-old Sarah Hollick’s charcoal drawing, entitled “Child Soldiers- Stolen Innocence,” as the winner.

http://www.humanrights.gov.au/about/competitions/2005/art/childsoldiers.jpg

In her essay “Many masks, many selves,” Wendy Doniger expounded on the belief that even when it is “safe to take off your mask… no one ever does.” Following this perspective, the individual would experience a constant rotation of selves and a ceaseless cycle of masks throughout the course of his life. Yet the most striking characteristic of Hollick’s art is that most of her child soldiers have no faces at all. These small armed figures are just embodiments of blankness- they have no masks, and no selves.

Another noticeable aspect of the work is the mysteriousness of the subject in the foreground, who is divided from the other characters by what looks to be a rifle. Is this the weeping parent of a son whose innocence was stolen by the brutality of war? Or is this a child whose identity will soon be lost and who is thus shedding a final farewell tear for his masks that are to be forgotten? Doniger may be correct in stating that we have a preference for keeping our masks on, but it appears that there can also be times when those masks are taken from us. This tragic possibility raises the questions of what happens when we are left with nothing but a blank face (in a state of being that might not even constitute “living”) and if one can ever cross that rifle-laden border and regain a stolen self.

Doniger Exhibit

Wendy Doniger argues in her essay "Many masks, many selves" that there is no monolithic core supporting ones personality, but instead each individual is made up of many interchangeable masks.  Each mask has different characteristics that are chosen at any given time because of the outcome they receive from an audience.  Her argument that because of the multiplicity of the masks one can never define a true personality, brings up the idea of undesired criticism of showing one personality around someone and then a different personality at a different time, or being two-faced.  Doniger admits that it is "notoriously difficult to draw an objective line between healthy and pathological fantasies."  Current.com, a website focused on news stories for the Internet and television, ran a story about personality verse language.  The art used for the article shows a single face being pulled apart into two displaying an array of colors.  Each of the colors represents a different mask the person can choose to wear and if the colors are blended together they can reveal a beautiful scheme.  How can choosing different masks create an effect where others believe there are two distinct often opposite personalities being shown?  Doniger defends the importance of having cohesiveness between as many masks as possible.  If someone lacks the ability to fluidly move from one mask to an opposite mask an outside viewer maybe perceive the gap as a two-faced quality.

"Many masks, many selves" exhibit

Doniger asserts in her essay, “Many masks, many selves,” that the masks we put on depending on the company we keep helps us determine who we are. Doniger does not endorse the popular belief in a true self, but rather the creation of a personality based on how we act in different circumstances. “Masquerading as ourselves often reaffirms an enduring network of selves inside us…” She uses triple-cross dressing to demonstrate how when we masquerade, we reveal ourselves. However, Doniger does note some exceptions to this rule. She mentions “pathological fantasies” of many selves, which she believes differs from her thesis because the former is experienced “passively, helplessly”. What Doniger emphasizes is a realization of the masks, not a passive acceptance. Using them as a tool to understand ourselves, “the best bet is to…realize we are wearing them, and try to find out what each one conceals and reveals.” In Virgil’s Aeneid, a brave Trojan soldier slays many Latins as they sleep in their camp. As he finishes his work and prepares to escape, he takes one of his dead enemy’s helmets and places it on his head. As he makes for safety, a group of enemy soldiers recognizes his gleaming helmet and calls to him, and after he doesn’t answer they realize the situation and in the end, he is slain. When Euryalus put on his enemy’s helmet, he made it certain that the Latins would recognize him as a Trojan. Unknowingly triple-cross dressing, it ended badly because he didn’t realize what he had done. The realization of the masks is the key part to building a personality, and understanding ourselves.

Sarah's Doniger Exhibit

In her essay "Many masks, many selves," Wendy Doniger suggests that individuals possess no central identity.  Rather, they are defined by a series of masks that hide and reveal different aspects of their personalities according to each situation.  Based on Doniger's argument, it seems that artists are in a unique position: not only can they forge their identities through media outside the realm of daily life (at least, in part), but also, they may immortalize certain aspects of themselves through their art.  Artemisia Gentileschi's self-portrait, painted in the 1630s, is a notable example of this.  Gentileschi, a seventeenth-century Italian painter, was in the unusual position of being a female artist in a male-dominated artistic world.  Partially as a result of this, she suffered much--including rape by her teacher and torture devices at the subsequent trial--yet she persevered(1).  Through her self-portrait, Gentileschi was able to construct a permanent "mask" for herself--a lens through which people even centuries later could perceive her.  Her portrait gives the impression of a determined artist, yet a lonely and insecure one.  She focuses intently on her work, turning her face to the task of painting rather than her viewer.  She also wears the traditional allegorical symbols of an artist, such as a chain with a mask pendant (a literal link to Doniger's thesis), unkempt hair, and colorful clothing(2).  However, the blankness of her canvas, the general plainness of her surroundings, and her refusal to make eye contact with the viewer emphasize her solitude, her inability to connect with the outside world.  In addition, her unstable, asymmetrical stance; her blank canvas; and her hand reaching up the canvas almost imploringly suggest that she is insecure, perhaps unable to reconcile her roles as an artist and a woman.  Thus, though determined to march ahead in her artistic endeavors, she lacks external support and total confidence in herself.  It is by this set of characteristics--this "mask"--that people will recognize her for ages to come.

1 Encyclopaedia Britannica.  "Artemisia Gentileschi (Italian Painter)."  http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/229350/Artemisia-Gentileschi/2631/Additional-Reading.

2 Gerrard, Mary D.  "Artemisia Gentileschi's Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting."  The Art Bulletin, 62.1 (1980), p. 97.

exhibit for Doniger article

Wendy Doniger provides her argument for people's motivation for masquerading and self-impersonation in her essay, "Many masks, many selves." Doniger explains that people are driven to such impersonations through the pressure of public expectations and through the hopes of creating an enduring sense of self. According to Doniger, self-impersonation is used as a method of self-identification. However, Doniger neglects to inform the reader of the possibility of other motives for masquerading; she neglects to mention the fact that identity of the self has not always been the primary goal or function of such disguises. For example, in her article, " 'Folk Justice' and Royal Justice in Early Seventeenth-Century England: A 'Charivari' in the Midlands," Joan R. Kent describes charivaris, in which participants often donned masks, as having a social function, serving as a sort of "local, traditional folk justice." Briefly defined, charivaris were ritualized mechanisms of social control in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries in which a community expressed their collective dismay over adulterous relationships, cuckolded husbands, abusers or other social offenders of the like. According to Kent, "masks and costumes seem to have been a common feature" of these rather noisy, chaotic processions known as charivaris. Apparently, masquerading can be utilized for means other than self-identification such as a means for social justice and community control, an aspect that Wendy Doniger may have overlooked in her essay. 

Many Masks Summary

Doniger’s article explores the idea of personal identity, or lack thereof. Doniger takes the reader through a series of examples of literal masks in order to conclude that we, as human beings, are constantly wearing masks. We never show our true self, but rather are constantly concealing certain things and projecting others via a set of masks. Doniger opens by exploring impersonators, and how in many cases popularly impersonated public figures can even begin to impersonate themselves. She then goes on to explore transvestites, and “double drag” and “sexual triple cross” (Doniger, 64). Her argument truly opens up, however, when she digs deeper into the matter of masks, however: she argues that we are completely different people around different audiences, using the Woody Allen movie Zelig as an example. Our ‘self’ is thus a mere compilation of the various masks one wears. Doniger concludes with the provocative statement, “ ‘An attendant will tell you when it is safe to take off your mask’ – but no one ever does. For most of us, it is really never safe, or true, or possible, to take off the mask…We need our masks” (Doniger, 71). Doniger thus strongly conveys the message that our masks in fact become ourselves, as we are never without them.

Wendy Doniger's "Many masks, many selves", Wendy describes several instances of triple crosses. In these triple crosses people pretend to be someone, who is pretending to be someone else. A double negative is enacted and the characters essentially end up as themselves. Wendy points out instances where figures in politics, pop culture, and history put up masks to protect themselves, or match the demand of the public. The need to have society see them a certain way is more important than how they see themselves. Essentially people become there masks or who they want the public to see them as.

"Many masks, many selves" by Wendy Doniger explains the distinct but yet relative similarities between ones true identityy and the masks they hide behind. In today's society pressure of falling into a social group or sinking to a level to coincide with the public is common. Doniger explains that for the most part people do not reveal there true selves due to a lack of confidence or the inability to fit in the crowd. The masks people wear are a self defense mechanism in which people can feel happy and satisfied with themselkves because everybody else is comfortable with that individual. In essence because there is a greater sense of comfort and likeness created by the masks, people tend to morph into the mask they portray. And it is not just one mask but several depending on the group in which you are socializing with. It creates a complex personality but to some extent a fake personality because it is not one that fits the individual personally but more the public. Like Ronald Reagon plying a role in movies can prepare us for the same role in real life. But as you look around wearing the mask is what benifits the indidviual and the world. To be just one true self would cause a boring atmosphere, but with a demanding public that admires role models, celebrities and actors, masks is what makes socializing possible. As Doniger said "We need our masks...With them, the world proceeds from self to self."

Doniger's "Many masks, many selves"

Doniger begins her article, “Many masks, many selves” by introducing a variety of people spanning centuries and cultures that all have one thing in common. All of them put forth a face to the world that seems different from their true identity. However, Doniger shows us that our true identity can only be found by donning masks in public. She even uses triple cross-dressing to show that through dressing up as someone else, we end up dressing as ourselves. She reminds us that it is common to change oneself based on the company we keep, but the realization of that fact is what’s critical to understanding what is being hidden and why. Only through this exploration can we truly “make” and not “find” our true selves.

"Many masks, many selves"

In her essay “Many masks, many selves,” Wendy Doniger argues that one’s identity is made up of a collection of masks and that one chooses which mask to metaphorically “put on” based on the situation at hand. These masks are necessary parts of life and can never really be taken off. While humans naturally tend to search for their true identity or self, beneath all the masks, there is no monolithic core, no singular, “true” identity. However, through self-introspection and by taking off one’s masks and finding out what each one conceals and reveals, people can gain a better understanding of themselves. Thus, people’s search for their true identity will never prove successful, but is still a valuable endeavor in that it teaches them about themselves.

"Many masks, many selves"

Wendy Doniger contemplates the role of human masks in her essay "Many masks, many selves."  Using political and gender related references allowed Doniger to create an argument of whether or not masks make a person into his or her true self or if the masks cover up what is within.  She believes that the face of ones personality will never be fully revealed to anyone, instead with each interaction a person chooses how he or she wants to be portrayed.  Therefore there is not a single way to define any one person but the closest one may come is when he or she reveals the mask which he or she loves most. 

"Many masks, many selves" Analysis

In her article “Many masks, many selves,” Wendy Doniger presents self-impersonation as a healthy and essential method of self-identification. Critical of the commonly held belief that the different social roles we tend to take on during everyday life are superficial, Doniger instead asserts that these “masks” are necessary contributors to an individual’s overall sense of self. They don’t hide the real us; together, they become the real us. Thus, this multiplicity of roles does not detract from a single true identity; rather, the medley of masks one chooses to don can yield an impressive breadth of character. The merging of the mask and the self accordingly weakens the traditional dichotomy thought to exist between them. In addition, Doniger explains that by observing which masks conceal which facets of one’s identity (and which reveal others), it is possible to gain a deeper understanding about one’s self. Ultimately, she argues that people should not search for one “real” self, but should conversely embrace the idea of employing a vast and varied number of selves. In fact, Doniger states that we never really take off our masks, but instead use them to constantly propel ourselves from one situation of life to another.

Many masks, many selves presentation

In "many masks, many selves" Wendy Doniger educates the reader of the many different personalities people use, which is affected by their current envoirnment. Doniger indicates that there are many examples to chose from, but she decides to use politics and gender. The examples within these two categories include Ronald Reagan, "the acting president," and cross dressers. Both the cross dressers and Reagan chose different masks according to the audience they were trying to please. Doniger provides simpler examples such as an adult censoring his or her  language around a young child. However, the main point behind these examples is that we are always wearing a mask. In the search for who we really are, we don't realize that we are the masks that we wear. "We need our masks."

Sarah Wald's Doniger Presentation

In "Many masks, many selves," Wendy Doniger explores the issue of identity and the paradox of self-imitation.  She uses traditional mask imagery to consider the questions: What is the nature of individual identity?  Why would someone masquerade as someone who is in turn masquerading as him or herself--a dizzying "triple cross" (Doniger 60)?  In order to tackle these questions, Doniger narrows her focus to politics and gender, providing notable examples of self-imitation in both of these categories.  Based on her examination of these self-impersonators, Doniger ultimately concludes that people are in fact many selves.  Our identities are defined purely by our relations with others: for each situation, each of us presents a different face.  Our personalities therefore have no "monolithic core" (70).  Indeed, a person's many masks are valid aspects of his or her identity--parts of his or her "composite self" (70), both past and present--rather than the empty deception they are often assumed to be.  The multiplicity of selves in each of us gives human life interest and forward momentum.

Many Masks, Many Selves Presentation

Wendy Doniger examines the meaning of the triple cross and the plethora of the political, historical, literary, and popular figures associated with that concept in her article, “Many Masks, Many Selves.” She focuses on two major categories in which the act of masquerading a masquerader occurs: politics and gender. After illustrating the ubiquity of the triple cross, Doniger asserts that we need our masks to function properly in life. We use masks to attract people that we wish to associate ourselves with, and perhaps the one who will love us unmasked. Doniger concludes that without our masks, we would become disillusioned, insecure, and unhappy with ourselves.