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Ways of understanding ethnic identity and ethnicity.

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What defines racial and ethnic identity?

If you woke up tomorrow and discovered that you had changed into the opposite sex, how would your life be different?

Speculate on the socio-economic class into which you were born. Consider the ways in which you have retained the influences of your earlier class experience. What characteristics, behaviors, values, and communication styles of that class have you rejected and/or retained? (I am African and have always been in the middle class. I am bettering myself but I believe I have not left the middle class yet)

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Solution Summary

This posting deals with understanding ethnic identity and ethnicity for the purpose of creative writing. Relevant Internet sources are provided.

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I am aware that this type of discussion deals a lot with defining terms. Thus, the first step to start with is to look up key words from each section of the discussion. I will do that for you from dictionary.com as well as other encyclopedia sites online. It takes patience in looking up these terms attentively.

First, the question has to do with "what defines racial and ethnic identity?" (The key words to look up are: racial and ethnic identity or race and ethnicity (in their noun forms). From Dictionary.com, I uncovered the definitions that,

What is race: "1. a group of persons related by common descent or heredity.
2. a population so related.
3. any of the traditional divisions of humankind
4. a group of tribes or peoples forming an ethnic stock: the Slavic race.
5. any people united by common history, language, cultural traits, etc.: the Dutch race.
6. the human race or family; humankind: Nuclear weapons pose a threat to the race.
7. Zoology. a variety; subspecies.
8. a natural kind of living creature: the race of fishes.
9. any group, class, or kind, esp. of persons: Journalists are an interesting race." and secondly,

What is ethnicity: " Identity with or membership in a particular racial, national, or cultural group and observance of that group's customs, beliefs, and language." (Directly quoted from Dictionary.com).

I ...

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