HW 32 - Tattoos & the presentation of self

Tattoo's now and days and even before we were born had meant alot of things. Some tattoo's was just for show, for cultural experiences, memories of past childhood as teens, representation of who you are as a person, and the list goes on and on. One of the questions that I wanted to answer is: What does tattooing signify to me?

Tattoo signifies hardships or moments that people dont even want to forget. It represents what they have been though at certain points in their lives. It signifies who you are as a person and what you like because everybody has different types of tattoo's. But tattoo's can also signify other things too. Certain tattoo's that tribes get could sigify what they believe in and what they go by. Sort of like a tradition, where girls get certain tattoo's and men get certain tattoo's. Back then if your didn't know about the Holocaust,you would think the inmates in the Nazi concentration camps were just getting tattoo's of their jail numbers. But that wasn't their case, they were forced to get that tattoo and that was there identity, that was who they were. They had no names, their names were numbers. When Mr.Fanning had came into our class and talked about how he got most of his tattoo's it really had brought me to another level on what I thought about tattoo's. When he was explained that he got the chinese write courage on his arm after he went through a big surgery, that made me think that tattoo's were really significant. After you go through a transplant, why your next move is to get a tattoo to represent what you been through. But since tattoo's can represent memories and other things, it's powerful and it lets your identity out in a way that makes you stronger than other. When fanning said that the tattoo's are like an armour on him, that show's how people think that tattoo's can be some type of sheild and how powerful they can be if they tell you who they are. So to me, I feel tattoo's can signify anything. When people have have tattoo's, they could have it on their for a particular reason that has to do with their life.

Another body modification that people tend to do alot is body building. Men take steroids, and in the gym 24/7 so they can have massive muscle arms and legs and shoulders. Most of the reasons they do this type of stuff is because they are insecure with themselves. Im going to answer the same question for this topic as I did the other. Body building sigifies that you are strong and that you have the best looking body. I was watching true life and they was talking about how people take mega steriods and workout out all the time so they can get big. Each story that they showed was based on a kid who didn't like his body in his highschool and college years. They were skinny and they would get picked on. So I feel that people at times get into bodybuilding to set a point. The point is: look at me I got muscles so big and oiled up, don't mess with me, I know the ladies love this body. False Plenty of ladies said that its gross to have veins popping out of your body and the look all nasty. Body building to me signifies low self esteem, in few cases enjoyment, childhood memories that forced that person to what to change their bodies quickily. I definitely don't think that they do body building for spirtual reasons.

Lastly I really want to talk about weives. Everybody you see a person wearing weives, tracks also known as extentions. Why? one reason I think they do these things is because they aren't happy with the hair they have so the extentions make them have longer hair. To me i think when a girl puts extentions in their hair they aren't being the real them. They are trying to change or even fix they're identity to they can be excepted without being judged about they're hair or anthing in that nature. Like when people customize there selves with clothes to be this "cool" person, Wieves and extention are no different. You are customizing your self with this long hair that, 1. didn't come from your scount, 2. isn't the same texture as your hair, and 3. definitely isn't your hair color or length. I also think that putting extention's in your hair signifies that you don't like the amount of hair god gave you, that your ensecure your self and what the outside world has to say about you. Extentions are used to fix females hair problems. But in some cases people use extetentions for modeling and making their image look more stylsh or unique. Like when top models put on them big afro puff weives, t wouldn't be because they are ensecure, it would be for their image and for how they want their pictures to come out. So in a way I feel it signifies fakeness, low self esteem about thy self but then at the same time fashonable, stylish, model mentality.