Who Am I?

Who are you? What do you do, say, value, and believe, and why? The combination of those things is a Discourse, as Gee would put it. Personally I belong to many Discourses such as being a student and being Italian. Neither of these however are my primary Discourse. Gee defines a primary Discourse as being formed during childhood and is the one we “first use to make sense of the world and interact with others”. My primary Discourse is being middle class. I grew up being told to save my money, work hard for what I want, take care of my family, and to enjoy the best in every friend. My parents drilled these ideas into my head ever since I was a child and I still haven’t let go of these concepts.

In addition to being middle class, I am also a woman. Being a woman is a secondary Discourse. Although being a woman and acting a specific way as a woman are quite controversial, I grew up with a near traditional understanding of being a woman. I was taught how to cook and clean, care for others, be understanding, and to value family.

I am also an engineer. is my third Discourse, but also a secondary, dominant Discourse. Embodying an engineer will allow me to “[acquiesce] social goods”. In this case, the social gained social goods would be money and possibly even status of a professional.

Two of my Discourses do, in fact, conflict with one another because of social stigmas. Currently, men dominate all science fields, including engineering, and although the percentage of women in those fields is growing, it is still small. Women are typically considered to be inferior to men in the fields of math and science as well as too emotional to put facts above feeling. Because of these two things, many women are dissuaded from becoming an engineer.

A Discourse does not define who you are because they are a part of you. Each Discourse that you are a part of combines to become your personality and your morals. Some Discourses have a strong influence while others do not. Nevertheless, all Discourses affect who you are in one way or another.