The concept of identity, according to Jenkins (2014), is seen as a process rather than a fixed property of an individual. He used Mead’s theory of the self which suggested that the self consists of the relationship between the two stages of ‘I’ and ‘Me’ to support the argument. The first stage or the ‘I,’ is referred to as the individual’s attitude toward oneself (Jenkins, 2014). However, Mead suggested that the self is incomplete without...
The concept of identity, according to Jenkins (2014), is seen as a process rather than a fixed property of an individual. He used Mead’s theory of the self which suggested that the self consists of the relationship between the two stages of ‘I’ and ‘Me’ to support the argument. The first stage or the ‘I,’ is referred to as the individual’s attitude toward oneself (Jenkins, 2014). However, Mead suggested that the self is incomplete without the second stage of the ‘Me’ which refers to the social attitudes of the ‘generalized other’ (Jenkins, 2014). ‘Generalised other’ can be defined as the social process that impacts the actions of the individuals (Mead, 2009). Within this theory, individuals think of themselves as objects and ‘play’ their roles according to the acceptable rules and norms of the community they belong to (Mead, 2009). The concept of gender binary can be seen as an example of how individuals’ identities are ascribed to roles because when children are born, they are assigned based on their genitals into the sex category (Hewitt and Shulman, 2011). Gender identity, in this case, is seen to be hardwired into the person’s biology and replicates an idea of sexual binary.
