TITLE: A Doll's House

• Description: An examination of the loss of 'self', both clinically and personally.
• "I did not lose myself all at once...." Amy Tan

• an overview of the problem/issue
• "Are we nothing more than a cumulative sum of our experiences?"
• the chasm between who I used to be and who I am now
• the definition of self
• genetics and a timeline

• The catalysts of change
• "I knew who I was once. I fought to hold on."
• childhood fears and wants
• warzone: Norfolk
• when I grow up, I want to be a....
• "Thirteen seems to be a turning point."

• the media
• "I went into the 80's with a child's heart, and a woman's body..."
• the effect of the Mtv generation
• admiration of the feminine "ideal"

• how awareness and body image changes over time
• "At once, I was aware that these changes gave me a power I didn't have before."
• pressures to act your age
• comparing me to you
• differences emerge between the made-up self and the core

• what school really teaches the girls today
• "How could these gangly, gawky, dyed-blonde shells possibly know me to comment?"
• Rumors, lies, and things unsaid
• expectations vs. needs
• "If I am what they say I am, then how could I have been so wrong all this time?"

• what we lock away
• "Inside, I guess I always knew I wasn't going to fit in...."
• "I played with dolls at home, and wore the expected leather to class."
• "It's not right -- being smarter than the boys you're trying to impress."
• a conscious choice to fit in.

• The perfect wife/mother complex
• "If I could only bake more, keep the house clean, hold on to the shards...."
• giving away the rest of the power.
• suppression of talents

• Boxes full of authenticity
• "Behind a set of miniblinds, I found the pictures that proved I was happy once..."
• finding the clues
• making the first, hesitant steps

• breaking free
• "Expectations don't mean as much when you know who you are."
• a move backward to go forward
• letting go, forgiving, and moving on

Project URL: http://www.moderngypsy.com/fw/