Identity

[Antilon]

People usually associate identity with a name/names. However, according to this idea, most people are given their identities, as parents name their children. But on the Internet, people create alternate identities of themselves with screen names. So, Generalites, I have two questions:

<edit>1)What do you consider to be your true identity? </edit>
2)Would you give up your given name and use your screen name as your real life identity?

Here are my responses:
1) I consider my screen name (redeker, as Antilon is my nation name but this screen name is subject to change) to be my true identity. As I have gained self-awareness, I realized myself to be different from my parent's' expectations and personalities. So, I want to shed my given name because I want to realize my identity as an individual who knows and accepts himself for who he is, not as a person who has his identity choosen for him.
2) I would definitely give up my given name and use my screen name as my real life identity.

EDIT 2: I'm not sure if this is a factor in my willing to give my given identity, but I've always felt apart from other people, my friends and family, as an individual and not belonging to any category of people.

[Getbrett]

I am whatever suits the situation at hand. I am a different person to everyone I encounter. I have no "me."

[Galloism]

1)Do you consider your given name or your screen name to be your true identity? Why?

Neither, this is my true identity:



It's just who I am.

2)Would you give up your given name and use your screen name as your real life identity?

Nah.

[Barringtonia]

My true identity..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2SSZA0C ... re=related

[Galloism]

My true identity..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2SSZA0C ... re=related

Dos Equis are good. I have a couple bottles in my fridge.

[Big Jim P]

This is my secret Identity. IRL, I am a modest, god-fearing humanitarian.

[Antilon]

This is my secret Identity. IRL, I am a modest, god-fearing humanitarian.

But which identity do you consider to be the "true" one?

[Antilon]

I am whatever suits the situation at hand. I am a different person to everyone I encounter. I have no "me."

So you're identity is composed of several alter-egos? Interesting, never thought about that before (other than in spy flicks).

[Big Jim P]

This is my secret Identity. IRL, I am a modest, god-fearing humanitarian.

But which identity do you consider to be the "true" one?

The one that's an irrepressible smart-ass.

[Megaloria]

Sometimes I feel like I'm actually a robot. Then I just dial down my cognitive algorithm, plug in to a recharger and try not to think about it.

[Barringtonia]

My true identity..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2SSZA0C ... re=related

Dos Equis are good. I have a couple bottles in my fridge.

Remember, it's never too early to start beefing up your obituary,

[Pope Joan]

You really can't win.

Names are given to you by your family and you have no control over that ("Aloysius" anyone?)

or by your friends and that can be even worse ("Stinky", "Zits", Bluto")

So you try to create your own ID with a username but in reality very few people are eager to identify you by your chosen label.

[Antilon]

You really can't win.

Names are given to you by your family and you have no control over that ("Aloysius" anyone?)

or by your friends and that can be even worse ("Stinky", "Zits", Bluto")

So you try to create your own ID with a username but in reality very few people are eager to identify you by your chosen label.

I'm not talking about how other people perceive you, but how you perceive yourself (in other words, not the person people think I am, but the person I know I am). How can other people determine your "true" identity?

[Nadkor]

1)Do you consider your given name or your screen name to be your true identity? Why?

A) Neither. I use neither the forename nor the middle name my parents gave me, only their surname, and I certainly do not consider a nonsense word of a name I use in one place only on the internet to be my "true identity".

2)Would you give up your given name and use your screen name as your real life identity?

A) No? That would be ridiculous.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

1)Do you consider your given name or your screen name to be your true identity? Why?

My true name means ''sanctity''. I sure as heck ain't a saint.

My screen name means ''seven moons''. Surely not who I am either, although if we factor in the notion that ''seven moons'' can represent craziness in my country... But no.

2)Would you give up your given name and use your screen name as your real life identity?

Nope.

[Mad hatters in jeans]

Nope, although there are similarities between me now and me as me normally.
I mean it's not possible for someone to be totally like their name and identity on here, because in 'real world' there are more rules to social contact and such, and i'd probably never meet %80 of the kinds of people in real life that i chat to here.
Mainly due to the fact that folks here will probably never divulge their knowledge of NSG to someone they've just met, or maybe that's just me.

[Issas]

1)Do you consider your given name or your screen name to be your true identity? Why?

Well my real name means whole or universal...so I have no idea what that means. I don't really feel like either are. I'm weird like that XD

2)Would you give up your given name and use your screen name as your real life identity?

Since it's usually Pilvi...NO

[Ledarre]

I would like to say that Identity is an extension of personality not a name... But then I decided not to.

[Ifreann]

I don't see how the name people refer to me by would have a bearing on who I am. My friends from secondary school refer to me by my surname, people who know me from college call me Pirate. Everyone else calls me some form of Stephen. On the internet some people have taken to calling me Iffy. All these names refer to the same person, me.

[Smunkeeville]

1)Do you consider your given name or your screen name to be your true identity? Why?
2)Would you give up your given name and use your screen name as your real life identity?

1) Yes. Because it is.
2) I already do.

Smunkee has been my "nickname" for over 15 years. The vast majority of my social contacts over that time have only known me as Smunkee, and nothing else. In fact with the exception of my husband's family, people I went to church with, and people that I worked with in the corporate world, nobody really ever knew my "real" name.

[Cameroi]

according to the ouji board i've carried the name themnax through many previous life times on numerous worlds throughout the unknown universe.

the names my parents unimaginatively inflicted me with, i feel are somewhat arbitrary, were mindlessly passed down from other people who had them before, and have absolutly no logical relationship to my true self.

[Pepe Dominguez]

2) I would definitely give up my given name and use my screen name as my real life identity.

Interesting question. Your name looks like Antlion when read quickly - I can't help visualizing an antlion devouring its prey when I look at it. But using it as a real-life moniker would be interesting. I think you could do it (nicknames stick often enough). In my case, no, I prefer my given name. It's a generic Christian name, so it doesn't carry any positive or negative connotations. I'm not judged on the basis of my name itself, I don't think.

[Antilon]

Interesting question. Your name looks like Antlion when read quickly - I can't help visualizing an antlion devouring its prey when I look at it. But using it as a real-life moniker would be interesting. I think you could do it (nicknames stick often enough).

Lol, funny you should mention the similarity... I've actually been thinking of legally changing my name. Names are basically made-up, but does anyone know if there's some kind of criteria, like what can't be used (aside from the obvious profanity)?

In my case, no, I prefer my given name. It's a generic Christian name, so it doesn't carry any positive or negative connotations. I'm not judged on the basis of my name itself, I don't think.

Well, I'm not concerned about the connotations of my name or being judged. Just wondering, but are you think along the lines of "If it's not broken, don't fix it"?

[Pepe Dominguez]

Interesting question. Your name looks like Antlion when read quickly - I can't help visualizing an antlion devouring its prey when I look at it. But using it as a real-life moniker would be interesting. I think you could do it (nicknames stick often enough).

Lol, funny you should mention the similarity... I've actually been thinking of legally changing my name. Names are basically made-up, but does anyone know if there's some kind of criteria, like what can't be used (aside from the obvious profanity)?

In my case, no, I prefer my given name. It's a generic Christian name, so it doesn't carry any positive or negative connotations. I'm not judged on the basis of my name itself, I don't think.

Well, I'm not concerned about the connotations of my name or being judged. Just wondering, but are you think along the lines of "If it's not broken, don't fix it"?

Depends what state you're in and whether or not you can convince a judge it's legitimate (if it's something bizarre). As a general rule, your name can neither be "offensive" nor serve a commercial purpose. So you couldn't name your kid "discountfurniture.com" to match your business, or an expletive. I've read about mildly offensive names being rejected or accepted more-or-less arbitrarily. I remember a case where some guy wanted to be named #459 or something like that, and the ruling was that numbers weren't acceptible, unless spelled out, e.g. "Four-five-nine Smith." Pretty funny.

[Getbrett]

according to the ouji board i've carried the name themnax through many previous life times on numerous worlds throughout the unknown universe.

the names my parents unimaginatively inflicted me with, i feel are somewhat arbitrary, were mindlessly passed down from other people who had them before, and have absolutly no logical relationship to my true self.

You base your "true self" on ouji board nonsense? Amazing.