Categorization and individuality are key concepts in human psychology and attempt to explain the human nature in the way he relates to other individuals and at the same time retain his uniqueness as an individual. Categorization and individuality define the individual’s connectedness in the society and a sense of belonging to a particular social group or society. This article analyses the works of two scholars, Baldwin and Wise, and their account of the concept of individuality and categorization.

In the first account, Tim Wise looks back at his life from his days in the mother’s womb to the days of his childhood as an early scholar. He argues that whatever he is,is parents but not his choice. He points out that everything from race, color, nationality tothe family were all inherited by him upon birth whether for good or for ill. Whether he liked it or not, his parents had already been established as whom they were and predetermined his life.

Wise was born in the times when the American politics were characterized by black versus white superiority, political turmoil and activism. He features his experience as a white and moreover refers the reader to his individuality. He points out his uniqueness as an individual; no two people are exactly alike, an ideology he explains using the snowflake analogy. Wise notes that he was born to belong to the dominant race that made all the rules for all the others. He moreover cites his experience upon graduation from college where he worked for an anti-racist organization, Louisiana Coalition against Racism and Nazism. Here he worked to oppose the political candidacy of David Duke, who was a senatorial candidate. He points out that he was experiencing racial privileges because he was a white, an inborn characteristic which pre-determined his life from the schools he would attend to his job until he met the colored so did he get enlightened about the misfortunes (Wise, 2005).

James Baldwin was a Negro writer who starts his early life as an inspired reader, a preacher and finally an author. and did not like his articles.Unlike Wise, he believes, however, that the world is a setting made up against him, but he as an individual has to fight his way through the troubles. He argues that even the attitude supports this undoing. It is,therefore, uponhim as an artist is to make his talent important and relevant to the world. For instance, to him as a Negro writer, he declares his challenge as a writer that everyone pretends to know a lot about Negro articles since they are overwhelmingly written, explaining the slow pace why his articles were more of a life experience than a commercial undertaking.

He sadly tries to self assess by tracing his history. Discouraging to him, he finds history would place him in Africa; a place he felt was not a home for great authors like Shakespeare, and thus, he had had no heritage in which he would hope to be proud as an aspiring author. He hated the blacks, a race which he belonged perhaps a major drawback to his self esteem and individuality (Baldwin, 1955).

In conclusion, it is evident from the two articles that one’s fate is a predefined fact. The two authors agree on this that the setting and race in particular, which were determined at birth were likely to determine your kind of life. The two, however, differ on the approaches to life; whereas Wise believes that everything in life was to be constant and not liable to change; Baldwin believes that it is the individual who determines the turnover of events through his efforts.

References

Baldwin J. (1955) Autobiographical Notes: Notes of a Native son, Boston: Beacon press

Wise T. (2005) Born to Belonging: White like me, Brooklyn, New York: soft Skill