Occupations

11/5/2018

Daily Literary Quote
"In my afternoon walk I would fain forget all my morning occupations and my obligations to society."
- Henry David Thoreau

Journal Prompt
The pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales are often referenced only by their occupations (ie. the Knight, the Miller, the Wife of Bath), highlighting their roles in society. Are our occupations still influential in forming our identities? If so, how? Provide some specific examples to support your opinion.

54 Comments

Brook

11/5/2018 10:03:40 am

Yes because if you have a high profile job then you’ll be seen as more important then someone who doesn’t.

Robyn

11/5/2018 10:08:10 am

It’s kinda messed up but true

Brandon Westfall

11/5/2018 10:03:48 am

Our occupations are still influential in forming our identities. A doctor or Senator are admired and respected while janitors or factory workers are often under appreciated

Aimee

11/5/2018 10:08:56 am

Do you think this relates to how we treat different social classes?

Joe

11/5/2018 10:03:55 am

I think they are somewhat because with most occupations there are labels for the people who do them.

Robyn

11/5/2018 10:08:23 am

What

Nate

11/5/2018 10:09:29 am

True joe

Konner

11/5/2018 10:12:13 am

Agreed

Nick

11/5/2018 10:11:21 am

Yeah.

Aimee

11/5/2018 10:04:22 am

Occupations still form our identities. I think the main contribution to our identities is whether we work a blue collar or a white collar job. It separates us into social classes.

Hailey jo

11/5/2018 10:08:16 am

I agree, occupations can play a factor in social classes

Nate

11/5/2018 10:10:03 am

Agreed, Aimee

Sarah

11/6/2018 10:04:49 am

Its unfortunate that social class can be determined by someone's career

Brandon Westfall

1/23/2019 10:19:29 am

I agree

Kayla

11/5/2018 10:05:16 am

Yes because look at the people who have well respected jobs or higher paying jobs. Like lawyers, doctors, etc.

Hailey jo

11/5/2018 10:09:03 am

Yes, higher occupations can earn you more respect

Nutt

11/5/2018 10:05:26 am

I believe that our occupation is crucial to the forming of our identities as other people will see you and acknowledge you for your work and skills. If I’m talking about someone to a friend and they have no clue who they are I tell them where said person works and they usually realize who I’m referring to.

Kelsey

11/5/2018 10:06:47 am

Saying where they work does help.

Kayla

11/5/2018 10:11:31 am

That’s true. Some people see people who have a good job as better known and respected

Brandon Westfall

1/23/2019 10:19:52 am

Great comment

Connor born

11/5/2018 10:05:42 am

Yes they are influential. Depending on what job you have can determine if you have a lot of money or not and how smart you are and things like that.

Will

11/5/2018 10:08:33 am

I agree with you

Kelsey

11/5/2018 10:05:56 am

I think they do because if you have a high profile job like a doctor you say that before the person you reference.

Cherish

11/5/2018 10:06:02 am

Our occupations are still influential in forming our identities. They do so because we are referred to by what we do for work on a day to day basis, not by what we do in our free time. For example, a barista isn’t thought to be someone who goes hiking in their spare time, the are viewed as someone who makes coffees for a living.

Katelyn

11/5/2018 10:09:28 am

I see it as a biased view almost because people judge too quickly based on the person’s occupation. Almost like a damaging effect to others.

Kiana Farnworth

11/5/2018 10:10:42 am

I agree, we don’t judge others by what we don’t know.

Will

11/5/2018 10:06:02 am

Yes our identities are determined by our jobs. If someone has a high end job than that person is of high importance like a king or noble was.

Nutt

11/5/2018 10:09:18 am

This is a valid statement. People who are CEOs of their company are sorta like a king watching over a group of people, in this case a business. One might say there is a hierarchy in a business that the workers are familiar with.

Robyn

11/5/2018 10:06:47 am

I think our occupation are still influential in forming our identities, if anything it at least kind of gives an idea of what social class you’re in, or how ‘smart’ you are, then other assumptions can be made from there. For example, when someone says that they are a housewife, people automatically assume that 1) you are lazy and 2) that you must be doing prett well financially if only one of you has to work

Cherish

11/5/2018 10:08:47 am

I agree. People who have lower class jobs aren’t really thought to be a hard worker.

Katelyn

11/5/2018 10:06:56 am

Occupations can have some influence to a person’s identity, but not entirely. Some occupations make people think that the ones working in them are more deserving than others. One example is people working in fast food restaurants. Most people look at those employees as unintelligible and lazy. That’s not always the case and can be damaging for the person in their work life.

Kiana Farnworth

11/5/2018 10:09:11 am

I agree, a job is a job. No matter what job you have you are still making an effort to be responsible.

Kayla

11/5/2018 10:12:35 am

That’s a good point. People can be judgie

Sarah

11/6/2018 10:03:19 am

That's true peoples judgements make life hard. Someone who doesn't know how hard you work can damage your career

Sarah

11/5/2018 10:07:19 am

Yes it is a part of our identity. I think that we usually choose our occupation based on who we already are. This leads people to believe they know who we are before we get the chance to show them who we are. For example, artists are generally thought to be creative and free spirited. My cousin was that way before she started doing art for a job.

Katelyn

11/5/2018 10:11:02 am

That’s another way to look at it, usually because it comes with stereotypical characteristics.

Alexis Anderson

11/6/2018 10:17:38 am

Personal characteristics make our job choice easy, which in turn allows us to see different occupations in levels.

Kiana Farnworth

11/5/2018 10:07:20 am

You’re occupation can have an affect on the way others view you, but it doesn’t always link directly to who you are as a person. For example if you’re a ceo at a big corporation you might be seen as a hard working and dedicated person, but you might be the laziest person in the entire business and the only reason you got the job was because of your family name.

Cherish

11/5/2018 10:10:17 am

Sometimes families do automatically get jobs that they may not be the most suited for just because of the name that they carry.

Alexis Anderson

11/6/2018 10:16:18 am

I definitely see it differently, I feel that people get their jobs based on their ability. No father or mother is just going to pass their hard earned company to an uneducated son or daughter. Today people would rather keep their business.

Hailey jo

11/5/2018 10:07:26 am

I think to a certain extant occupations still form identities. Maybe not like they did back then like you’re not referred to as maybe Mr. Pace the teacher.

Kelsey

11/5/2018 10:08:39 am

I didn’t think about it that way

Will

11/5/2018 10:07:53 am

yes Because someone with a high end job is viewed lik a noble or king was.

Nate

11/5/2018 10:08:39 am

Yes our occupations still have meaning in today’s life. A mechanic may seem like a boring profession until you have an emergency and they git you back on the road the same day.

Aimee

11/5/2018 10:09:44 am

Get**

Nate

11/5/2018 10:10:49 am

Get and git
There’s a difference

Connor

11/5/2018 10:10:10 am

Good example

Saymen

11/5/2018 10:09:37 am

Yes our work shows our way of leaving example if you worked for big law firm that’s kind big job and shows how smart you are and how much you make.

Nick heble

11/5/2018 10:09:50 am

Yes occupations still form our identities doctors are and example that people think highly of. Waiters or waitresses are occupations that are over looked.

Konner

11/5/2018 10:10:56 am

Pretty much so long as you do have an occupation you’re seen as responsible and more mature.

Nick

11/5/2018 10:12:46 am

Good response.

Nate

11/5/2018 10:12:57 am

Nice bean

James

11/5/2018 10:11:52 am

Our occupations still have a part in forming our identities. You spend much of your time doing your job.

Alexis Anderson

11/6/2018 10:11:58 am

We definitely have different levels of respect towards others, doctors and lawyers have more respect than a janitor or construction worker would. I think this should be fixed, without janitors or construction workers we wouldn’t have the backbone to our society.

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