Skin Expository Essay

Submitted By elskandro
Words: 1253
Pages: 6
Open Document
Escaping from the identity created for us by others is not easy

Most people live their lives as other people,
Their dreams are false and their happiness and identities
Are forged by others. They lead their lives as a quotation

Few things in this world can be called permanent. This includes the identities we inherit from our parents and the genes of our ancestors that we carry the second we are born. We can either be male or female, we cannot chose, our skin color can vary from one shade to another, out of control of our decision, we can be born with a gifted mind, or as a simple one and all that is in between.
All these factors largely form our identity, which we will carry for the rest of our lives. This essentially means that part of our identity is already written and given to us, we cannot modify what we are born as, and we cannot manipulate or toy with the identity we inherit. Above all and most importantly, we cannot escape the person we are born as, no matter how hard we try, history will remain unchanged and a large portion of our identity will remain out of our reach to influence. When we are stuck in the middle of two perspectives and agreeing with both, it becomes difficult to understand where we truly belong. Escaping from the identity that others design for us is in many instances, extremely challenging.

In most instances we are proud of who are born as being and what flag and language compliments our given name and surname on our birth certificate. However, the film Skin directed by Anthony Fabian exposes a new perception of such a delicate phenomenon where one is born as the ‘wrong person’, with the ‘wrong identity’. The film examines the sense of entrapment faced by the Laing family and as they are forced to confront their identities and deal with the fragmentations that face them in their daily lives as they struggle to alter how others perceive them.

Sandra Laing, the young protagonist of the film, is ill fated. She is born with ‘black’ external characteristics such as dark skin and fuzzy hair and consequently succumbs to the harsh racist and apartheid policies of the Republic of South Africa of the late 20th century. Frequently tormented and excluded by fellow peers and even adults, Sandra leads a turbulent childhood due to her mild African aesthetic qualities, which she cannot possibly erase. Incapable of escaping the body she was bestowed with, Sandra seeks acceptance in by enveloping herself with the identity that she believed to be a truer reflection of herself; an identity as colored person. Undeniably, the choice to turn her back on he official classification serves as quite isolating for Sandra and she lives her whole adult life without the support and love of her family. Indeed, she lives her whole life imprisoned in the cell that her father’s harsh judgment metaphorically and literally incarcerated her within.

Sandra's initially stable but then shambled life is the product of an imperialist apartheid government and the mental configuration of society that comes bundled with colonialism. She is hopeless in escaping the fate of being subject to a genetic throwback resulting in her modified appearance. A modified appearance she believed she could escape. From the first moments of her enrollment in a ‘white’ school, constant barrages of abuse were laid and fired directly at Sandra. With few friends that are greatly outnumbered by her enemies as well as outflanked which includes the school teachers and even the principle, Sandra struggled to escape from the humiliation and oppression of her fated identity.

Sandra’s early school life was not the only barrier that catalyzed the growing self doubt and the rejection of a white alias that she believed could only mask her true identity. As she enters her teen years, Sandra choses to a lead a black ‘colored’ life, optimistically hoping to escape her damning ‘false identity’ and lives with her lover, Petrus, who she describes as someone that
Show More

Related Documents: Skin Expository Essay

Essay on Exam 2

English.  You must not write on two film texts in the examination. Units 3 and 4 English The Engage Education Foundation Section A – Text Response (Reading and Responding) Instructions Section A requires students to complete one analytical/expository piece of writing in response to one topic (either i. or ii.) on one selected text. Indicate in the box on the first line of the script book whether you are answering i. or ii. In your response you must develop a sustained discussion of one selected…

Words 3153 - Pages 13

Expository essay

Expository essay Resilience is the capability to bounce back after difficult and challenging experiences. Resilience is an admirable quality to have because it helps with positive outcomes in life and makes people emotionally stronger. Resilience is shown in many different ways whether it be in your life, around the world or in a book or film. When faced with traumatic situations it is easier to simply give up however it’s the people who fight that demonstrate resilience. I believe that Bethany…

Words 770 - Pages 4

Lincoln Momorial Rhetorical Analysis

King Jr. who deciatied his time on earth to demonstrate that all individuals are equivalent. Martin Luther utilized distinctive parts of the English dialect to improve the significance of his discourse and draw out the subtle elements. The diverse expository gadgets, inferences to memorable archives, and representations appeared to have achieved the feelings that King was attempting to excite in his audience members. This offered him some assistance with influencing his audience members towards needing…

Words 1042 - Pages 5

Who Is Sojourner Truth Achieve Equality?

Equality is not simply a term, but a mindset. Equality may be defined as the legal right of being treated equitably, regardless of race, beliefs, gender or ethnicity, but declaring it as such is only superficial. An impartial society requires more than a law proclaiming it so. This is the reason Sojourner Truth, a women's rights activist and abolitionist, worked to make her mindset a permanent imprint in the minds of the youth. Sojourner Truth’s work to achieve equality for all lasted beyond her…

Words 1007 - Pages 5

Susan Sontag A Woman's Beauty Analysis

and always being comfortable with yourself. By straying away from physical attributes and placing more attention on the inner characteristics of a person, the true definition of what it means to be beautiful appears. Susan Sontag introduces her expository “A Woman’s Beauty: Put-Down or Power…

Words 1124 - Pages 5

Essay on English 11 SA 1

synthesize and extend thinking General Instructions The First Assignment consists of three sections: 1. Reading Comprehension and Interpretation in Poetry 2. Reading Comprehension and Interpretation of Fiction 3. Writing skills: descriptive and expository Tip: Paragraphs: Before you begin, review the guidelines below for your paragraph answers. a clear topic sentence that relates to the question each point made clearly, followed by an example or a quotation and an explanation (show me you can…

Words 3790 - Pages 16

Comparing Brands And T. J. Jackson Lear

Charles S. Maier’s writing about drawing a moral bottom line when rendering a historical verdict is very intriguing. It would require to historians to write about past events and people in a way in which morals and ethics play a large part in their writing styles. This would be a significant change for some, one they may not be comfortable with. Many historians feel they can deliver a verdict within their writing without having to incorporate a moral bottom line. However, there are others who believe…

Words 1537 - Pages 7

How To Do Almost Anything In EAP

How to Do Almost Anything in EAP A guide to the EAP module and beyond….. Science http://www.stjohnsji.co.uk/school-clubs-1/science-1Contents page Overview of EAP 3 Expectations 4 Good attendance 4 Learning Outcomes 6 Skills 10 How your final EAP grade is calculated 11 Learning Journal 12 Final examinations 15 Academic Honesty 16 Collusion & fabrication 17 Turnitin 18 Writing Assessment 20 Analysing the question…

Words 6469 - Pages 26

Essay on Themes in To KIll a Mockingbird

Are we born with hatred? Do we come out of the womb with derogatory terms for women flying out of our mouths? Is a baby born with hatred towards African Americans so deep down in its heart that it cannot rid itself of that hatred, do babies have hate crimes against Americans running through its heads? The answer is no. A child is born innocent. Young children have no discrimination, no racism, no ideas that would cause other beings to be harmed. So then why are we, as adult humans, plagued by these demons that cause us to…

Words 3374 - Pages 14

Pick's Disease Essays

decisions Stereotypes are oversimplified opinions that do not account for individual differences about an entire group of people or things. Characteristics of different passage types Narrative – text tells a story or relates a chain of events Expository –passage introduces or explains a subject gives groundwork information that is necessary for understanding later ideas or analyzes information objectively Technical writing passes along precise information usually about a specific topic usually…

Words 3733 - Pages 15