Our Understanding of Kenyon's Identity

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    This week marked the end of our time with the Kenyon Archives and Special Collections, concluding with presentations of our completed cases. It was so interesting to see my classmates’ completed displays, and their presentations helped to put my group’s case into perspective, broadening the lens through which we had been viewing Kenyon. There is so much more to Kenyon’s history over the last century than just student life, and it was fascinating to learn about the women at the college, notable people, and Kenyon’s larger impact in the world, for example. Each case constitutes a narrative about Kenyon, and taken together, illuminates our generations’ perception of our college’s past, influenced by the current times in which we live. 

    In our reading this week, The Struggle for the People’s King, Hajar Yazdiha alludes to three ways in which a group understands their identity. The first element of this framework exists on an institutional level, as laws, governments, and large corporations construct a set of meanings, dictating the group’s identity. Secondly, there is a cultural level to a group’s identity, influenced by public perceptions and attitudes, creating a larger cultural narrative surrounding the group. The last facet of a group’s ability to comprehend their own identity is personal and emotionally charged, pertaining to the group’s own interpretation, formed by insiders’ feelings about who and what the group is. The interaction between these three factors creates a continuous debate between the group’s members and external sources, resulting in a societal negotiation over a group’s identity. 

    With Yazdiha’s framework in mind, I began reflecting on Kenyon’s identity, taking into account the broader picture of our school, illustrated by each and every case our class produced. There are many narratives about Kenyon– institutional, cultural, and personal forces that exist to define who we are. For example, we are known as “The Writer’s College,” as our school is responsible for the publication of the reputable Kenyon Review. (I doubt that this opinion would be contested by either past or present Kenyon students.) On an institutional level, however, laws, as well as the political party that dominates Ohio are conservative, contradicting the liberal-minded Kenyon population. This is a point of contention between Kenyon and the surrounding community, complicating personal and societal perceptions of Kenyon’s identity. Although it might be contested, misunderstood, and challenged by outsiders, the students’ personal feelings towards who we are and what we’ve been through over the last century will always serve as an authentic representation of Kenyon’s identity– as will our class’s cases. 


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