tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4277450473915362796.post4966010358532358726..comments2023-08-20T06:12:20.577-07:00Comments on Deucerman at Random: Language of the Times IIIDeucermanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17190079050136627903noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4277450473915362796.post-74457424394029484132019-06-07T06:45:44.779-07:002019-06-07T06:45:44.779-07:00I love this, Bruce! Do you know this short essay b...I love this, Bruce! Do you know this short essay by Paul Graham - Keep Your Identity Small? http://www.paulgraham.com/identity.html That impulse of your aunt's, to avoid labeling herself or her interlocutor, seems to come from the same instinct: when we apply a label to our identity, we tend to limit ourselves. The irony of Graham's title then, is that by keeping our identities small, we keep our humanity large. Your aunt knows what she's doing! <br /><br />I've recently tried to extend the same idea to all the ways in which I might label myself or others, and not just negative labels, either - I'm trying not to call myself a "writer" any more, for instance. I'm a person who writes. The minute "writer" becomes part of my identity I feel a kind of pressure to defend it... I get defensive about it, even if only to myself. Which honestly just takes psychic energy away from more productive uses... like writing? <br /><br />Anyway, this is good stuff. Thank you for sharing it. Melissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13162910182898687813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4277450473915362796.post-67703904722826895552019-04-06T09:41:39.602-07:002019-04-06T09:41:39.602-07:00While I come with a bias about you and your insigh...While I come with a bias about you and your insights, Bruce, I can also say objectively that your thoughtfulness in writing this IS an inspiration. You have reinforced and expanded my thinking.......and my efforts to put the ideas into action. If not, it all remains stuck on this paper (screen). Aunt MonessaMonessahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07527246531644658042noreply@blogger.com