My mask is my Earth, and my Earth represents my socialization. Creatures fill it, just as on this Earth. These animals are birds and fish, and there are many kinds of each. Each of these types of creatures lives in a different section of my mask; the birds rule the skies, and the fish the seas. Each of these biomes corresponds to a time when I am being or will be socialized. The permanent pieces of my identity reside on the land. A pair of glasses completes my mask. This aspect not only represents the looking glass self, but are also the light which allows those who live on my Earth to see.
The looking glass self is the way each and every person believes other people see him or her. It is also the idea that people become the person they see reflected back to them when they look into this mirror of peers. My glasses have two lenses: the first shows a photo of me and the second is a broken mirror. The picture of me symbolizes my looking glass self. This photo portrays the looking glass self, because people are supposed to become their looking glass self that they see reflected by others. The broken mirror shows the looking glass self I reflect to others. The broken mirror, a device used to show many images of the same person, represents how one person can have many identities based on what is reflected back to them in this mirror of society. The mirror also reflects anything in front of it, just like the smooth surface of still water.
The water on my mask signifies the socialization that I go through every day, and how it has not yet hardened to become a permanent piece of my identity. This image also shows socialization’s liquid qualities, how it is ever changing and never quite the same. Fish swim in this sea of socialization. These fish stand for the groups that socialize me in my daily life. They are named Boy Scouts of America, peers, friends, and school. These fish are socializing me in many ways. The Boy Scouts of America and Animas High School are helping me get over my fear of public speaking. When I did the Public Speaking merit badge in my Boy Scout troop, I was a train wreck of nerves. I even locked myself in my room to avoid going. I eventually went, and everyone laughed at the end of my 3-minute speech. This, however, was the reaction that I wanted. This achievement gave me confidence in my public speaking skills. At Animas High School we stand in front of the class at least once a week and give some kind of presentation. This requirement helps reinforce my confidence in my public speaking. This trait and others have become a part of me, and so they are a part of my mask, the land.
The land represents the pieces of my identity that have become permanent parts of myself through socialization. On the land there are no visible creatures, only words. These words stand for the aspects of my identity that have been set in stone. For example, friends have made loyalty and trustworthiness a permanent part of my personality. These values are shown in my behavior; I stick by my friends. Once my family and some friends from Albuquerque went on a bike ride. We were riding by the river near Santa Rita Park and my friend rode to near the guardrail. His tire hit one of the bars, and his bike flipped, ramming his head into the guardrail. While the rest of my family rode on, I stayed, helped my friend, and led him and his mom and dad back to the rec center where we had started our bike ride. This example portrays my loyal and trustworthy nature. The BSA has reinforced this value. Because of this, loyalty, an everlasting trait, is inscribed in the land.
The land and sea however only make up two thirds of my mask, and the rest of my mask, my Earth is taken up by the sky. The sky represents the socialization that is yet to occur. This socialization isn’t even tangible yet, so the air, and the clouds represent it. Birds fly in this section. These birds are a few of the forces that may come to socialize me in my future interactions. Like with the fish in the sea, not just one kind of bird appears in the sky; many types of birds fly here. These birds have names like peers and friends that are similar to the names of the fish. There is also a bird that represents a socializing force, college, which, unlike the fish, has yet to affect my identity. These birds fly on the border between white and dark clouds while none soar in the clear blue sky. This shows that almost no forces of socialization are purely good or bad and that most are on the borderline with good and bad results.
There is a fish in the center of my mask. This flying fish links all the parts of my mask, as it can span all of its parts. A flying fish swims in the sea, but it has conquered its socialization that fish must stay in the water and for brief periods of time can soar like a bird. A flying fish can also end up on land if by a bad jump or a fisherman’s line. The single flying fish’s name is family, because my family is the most important part of my socialization. My parents guide me in my every day life. My Mom has been my main source of socialization for most of my life. She has been my teacher for eight years, and helps me with my homework even now. My Dad has taught me how to shoot a bow and arrow, how to ski, how to fire a sling shot, and many other manly skills. My sisters have taught me how to be a big brother and have taught me responsibility. Like a flying fish, my family spans the gaps between the land, sea and the air to become the single most important part of my socialization.
My mask, my personal Earth, embodies my socialization. However, my planet is not the only planet in the vast universe of socialization. Each and every person in the world has created his or her own world. They have built these planets of identity, but they are not all the same, just as each person on Earth is different; every planet in this vast solar system is different. They have different animals, different seas, different continents, and even different atmospheres. The worlds of socialization are all different, but their creators all shout out the same idea. Each person screams, “My Earth is the present, past, and future of my identity and of my socialization. I am an individual.”
Mask Project Reflection
To do this project, first we had to create a working mask. This process started with picking partners. After we had chosen partners, one person would wrap part, or all of the other person’s head in saran wrap. This usually involved poking straws through the saran wrap to let the other person breathe, although some people preferred to leave their mouths or noses open. After this process, we began to place casting bandages over each other’s faces. When this task was finished, we brainstormed ideas of what to put on our masks and then critiqued each other’s designs. The next day, we began prewriting for our essays. Next, we put more plaster bandages on our masks, trimmed the edges, added texture, and then covered them in Plaster of Pairs. After this refinement process, we began to draft our essays. The next school day, we sanded our masks and added modge podge to make our masks smother and shiny. After that, we continued to draft. The next day, we began to paint our masks, and critiqued each others first drafts. For the next few days we continued to critique our drafts and work on our masks. Then we turned in our first drafts and began to put the final touches on our masks. After that we began to put together our final drafts. The next day we finished our masks and essays. After that we showed our final projects at the exhibition.
To make these masks and complete the project, we had to learn about human society and the world we live in. One of the most important things I learned is how many different societies there are and how extremely different they are. They all have different traditions, different languages, and different people. I learned a lot about society in this project, but I also learned about myself.
This mask project taught me a few things about myself. Firstly, I learned that a big part of people’s identities, a big part of my identity, comes from their surroundings and what they interact with. I also learned that I’m not as afraid of public speaking as I thought I was. I also discovered how many things that this project gave me to be proud of.
There are many things I am proud of about my mask and essay. Firstly, I am proud of the project as a whole and being able to talk about it with total strangers. I am proud of being able to keep an extended metaphor throughout my entire essay. I’m proud of being able to use my mask in a way that is not like any way another mask was used. I’m proud of incorporating the looking glass self in the way I did, but despite all these things I’m proud of, my project skills still need improvement.
To improve my skills as a projecteer I will introduce myself to each person that comes to see my project. I will use the habits of heart and mind better by advocating for others at these projects. I might suggest to an audience member whose project to look at next. I will continue to use this level, or a higher level of refinement in future projects. I will do the same with my level of evidence. I will continue to try and persevere in future projects. I will also try to be open minded in my perspective of my own, and other people’s work. I will try to follow all of these guidelines in future projects.