The Rhetoric of Place and Identity is something that has been taught to us since we were children. It starts in your neighborhood, when you find your first best friend, and continues all through high school, college, and adulthood. This theme correlates with how your family, friends, and where you grow up and travel to shape you into the person that you are. Growing up, you are constantly guided by others, generally your parents, teachers and friends, into making the right decisions. I believe that going to college is this first huge step that allows us to step away from the giudance of others, and into a world where we are faced with our own decision making. Coming to Ohio State made me realize the imact of place on your own identity. My roomate graduated in a class of 80 students, while I graduated in a class of 400 students. It didn't take long for me to realize how differently we initially viewed this university. To her, this school was close to home and a place not too far outside of her comfort zone. To me, this school is fourteen hours away from anything I have ever known, and would take a lot of adjusting in being one out of a handful of Massachussetts students. I believe that home is somewhere you can always return to, but you will not always have the opportunity to leave and experience something completly new. Every single student at Ohio State has come here to make a life of their own. Where people chose to go from here is the key word, because where you move your life too effects who you will meet and what you will do for the rest of your life.
I can't agree more with what you said about "you will not always have the opportunity to leave and experience something completely new"! I've always believed that we should always open ourselves up for new options - whether it is another ice cream flavor or another country to live in, trying something new out is often beneficial and helps us figure out what we really want! I really want to travel around the world when I am still young and both mentally and physically ready for adventures.
ReplyDeleteI agree as well, we should be open to new things and experiences. I think that by traveling to different places we form stronger identities with not only the places we travel to but the place we call home as well.
DeleteAll of this is so true. Until you really sit down and think about it, where you grow up and everything that has ever happened to you since then until now really does shape you into the person you are today. all the people you surround yourself with and all the things you do defines who you are. Home is a place that will always be there. there will always be something that will bring you back. But branching out and moving 14 hours away from home is part of your life experience. You will never know what's out there until you step out of your tight knit circle of everything you're comfortable with. Like your roommate, i also chose OSU because it was close to home. I don't think i'm ready to move so far away from home just yet.
ReplyDeleteThis realize this is only slightly related to the majority of your post, but as I was reading I was struck by how different the high school experiences of various Ohio State students have been. I graduated from a small private school in a class of 6 students while others went to large public schools and had a hundred times that many students in their class. It's interesting to think about how different high school experiences will significantly impact the way different students experience attending a huge university like Ohio State. That's my two cents.
ReplyDeleteWow, Seth, a class of six students! How has the shift to the (second?) largest university been?
DeleteNot too shabby! I'm enjoying it so far, partly because it's so different than anything I've experienced before.
DeleteOmg I dont think I could survive with only a class of 6 students hahaha! Seth do you ever feel limited when it comes to socializing with others because you had such a small class ?
DeleteI was definitely intimidated by the size of Ohio State because I was planning on going to a smaller university. But The thing is, nothing will be the same as a high school experience and for me, the size has actually seemed small. Well, the size of people I actually interact with on a daily basis; I see the same people a lot and seem them in the same places! But I graduated from a private school also and five of us go here now but I barely see them! It just goes to show how swallowing a college experience can be. And of course, you will get out of it what you put into it.
DeleteShaniqua, there were definitely times when I wished that I went to a larger school, but luckily I got along really well with all the people that went to my school. I had a much more diverse social life outside of school with people that I knew from work, church, etc.. I think this made the small size easier to handle.
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