A Deeper Meaning to Names


Imagine a society where no one has a name. How would this even work? Would we just walk around blindly talking to people? How would we know who we were even talking to? Or who was even talking to us? Would we even know if the conversation was targeted to us or someone else? How would we get the attention of someone? This would create so much confusion, and I certainly wouldn’t want to live in such a world. A name not only gives someone an identity but also gives an individual a personality and a reputation. There are times where we try to live up to our names. And times where we try to run away from them. Either way, our names are crucial factors in developing a sense of self and helps drive us in different paths of life. Take a look at Milkman’s grandfather, he was given his name from a “drunken Yankee in the Union Army”(Morrison). This was not his original name, but he decided to keep it. Why? This new name gave him an opportunity to start a new beginning and helped him to forget the past. This made me wonder if my name had some significant story that I was unaware of, so I asked my mom. Unfortunately, she said “there’s no special reason”; I was simply given the name, Neha because my parents liked it. I was a little disappointed because I was hoping for a little more fascinating story. At least my name gives me an identity that I can keep for a lifetime.

Comments

  1. Meghana KNovember 12, 2017 at 2:44 PM

    This post really shows the importance of names. I like how you connected the whole name dilemma to yourself and sought out to seek the meaning behind your name. Moreover, I never really thought about why Milkman's grandfather kept his new name, but now it all makes sense. This made me realize how significant names are. I can't even imagine a world without them. Would we all be given a number?

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  2. Iman ManzoorNovember 12, 2017 at 5:06 PM

    Hi Neha, I never really thought about what a world without names would be like, but your post made me think for a moment. Names are something we're so accustomed to that we don't really realize their significance anymore. I can't imagine a world without names - it sounds like something out of 1984!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Beverly WongNovember 12, 2017 at 6:09 PM

    This is very true! After reading your post, I now know the importance of names in our lives. Our names give us an identity that shape our story and prevent chaos.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sahita GandraNovember 12, 2017 at 6:52 PM

    Great post! I like how you included your own mini story. It added a personalize aspect to your post. Your post also gave me a deep insight into how different the world would be without names. Even trying to visualize the situation is difficult. Also, I like your use of rhetorical questioning near the beginning.

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