Part VI. October Sky. Erik Erikson uses a set of eight dichotomies to identify the stages in his theory of psychosocial development. One of those eight
stages is "identity vs. role confusion." James Marcia, elaborating on Erikson's work, suggested that there are four alternatives for adolescents as they
confront themselves and their identity. Using Marcia's four alternatives, as discussed in class and in the Crain text, use incidents from the movie to
indicate your understanding of the alternatives. You may use either of the following options to guide you in developing your response. [20 points
possible.]
Option I. Develop four narrative paragraphs that meet the following criteria. Write four paragraphs.
In each paragraph, begin by briefly identifying a character from the movie that exhibits one of the four alternative identity states suggested by
Marcia. Then, briefly describe the particular incident or context in the movie during which the character exhibited the given identity alternative
status. Finally, justify the selected character and incident. Be sure to offer several substantive statements that reflect a clear understanding of Erikson
and/or Marcia. That means, be sure to use precise terms from Marcia and/or Erikson to develop your justification. In addition, be sure to use sound
reasoning and offer conceptual depth. That means that you connect the behavior to specific terminology. Finally, include something that reflects
personal meaning…as opposed to a series of sterile statements taken from class handouts or websites. (Each paragraph worth 5 points. 2 points for
selecting/describing an appropriate character/incident relevant to a particular identity status. 3 points for justifying and connecting the character and
incident in terms of Marcia/Erikson.)
Option II. OR, Develop and fill out a chart similar to the one below.
Marcia's Alternative
Identify Status
1. Identity Status
Character and Incident from
movie [2 pts each]
In this section, please include
the name of a character and a
description of the specific
context in which that
particular character exhibited
the identity status indicated at
left.
Commentary [Rationale that explains your choice]. [3 pts each]
Identity Status
Text
Text
Identity Status
Text
Text
Identity Status
Text
Text
In this section, please develop a coherent argument to justify your selected
character and incident. You must offer several substantive statements that
reflect a clear understanding of Marcia’s theory of identity development –
and this identity status in particular. Therefore, be sure to use precise
terms from Marcia and/or Erikson to develop your argument? In
addition, be sure that the argument is based on sound reasoning and
offers some conceptual depth. Finally, include something that reflects
personal meaning…as opposed to a series of sterile statements taken from
class handouts or websites.
2.
3.
4.