Surprisingly, not many of the poems that were used for this activity had a deep meaning to me. I have never experienced or cared about the majority of the issues that the poets addressed. Everypoet had something to say about identity such as Maya Angelou saying “nobody can make it out alone” or Oretha Storey saying that even the smallest details in life such as “booby pins, doorags and wide tooth combs” tells about ourselves. Friends who support me are always there when I need them and I do not think that the small details in your life are as important as Storey thinks. Fortunately, there is one poem that makes me stop and think about understanding a person’s identity is Richard Cory by E. A. Robinson. Robinson illustrated a strong image of how a person who is perfect on the outside but has to deal with internal conflicts. This has a lot of meaning to me because people often see and judge me like how the poor people in the poem judged Richard Cory. On the outside, I may seem like a nerd who only cares about getting straight A’s on my report card and playing Call Of Duty. On the inside, however, I have feelings for others that I want to get out and problems to deal with that others can not see. My similarity to Richard Cory makes the poem surprisingly emotional for me.

Initially, I shared the same confusion the poor citizen’s had for Richard Cory. Why did he shoot himself? What could possibly make a successful and handsome man like him “put a bullet through his head”? My confusion slowly became sympathy when it all became clear that he had secrets just like I do. Nobody understood his problems just like how most people do not understand mine. For example, my parents and most of my friends think that high school relationships are not a big deal and that I should get over the fact that the relationship between my girlfriend and I have ended. As much as I agree that dating in high school probably means nothing forever, I shared a bond with someone who cared about me and I believe that it is something that I want to fight for and achieve again. My beliefs shape me as a person and if people cannot understand my identity, then it will continue to cause difficulties for me.