The photo board assignment was created so that we would be challenged to think in-depth about and find greater meaning towards the ideas of culture, identity, human rights and history. Although initially the assignment seemed easy enough to complete, however it seemed quite difficult to grasp onto the in-depth context rather than just the surface understandings I was use too. 

The concept of culture, initially, seemed quite an easy concept to understand. Culture being primarily paired with the idea of one’s ethnicity, well at least that's what my understanding of the word was. However, that was just the surface meaning of the concept, it was not until I had read (Ryan, 2010) "The word culture always had multiple meanings" and that "culture becomes visible when we travel between cultures" that I had now had the understanding that because I lived in such a fast-paced, multicultural environment it was not only the Maori and Fijian customs and traditions that defined my culture, but also Auckland's diverse range of cultures that I had been raised around that defined my culture as well. My understanding now is that culture is influenced by your surroundings, your values, your morals, your traditions and customs, it is for this reason that I chose to use the photo of Auckland city. For Auckland city is what has shaped me as a person and the cultural aspects in my life. 

The second concept of identity, whilst reading through the handbook seemed to confuse me, for I had always paired identity with the idea of culture/ethnicity. However, by looking at the concept of culture through the first photo it was clear that I needed to look deeper to find out what identity really meant. It was (Lawler, 2008) that stated that there was no specific answer for what identity was, but that the word could be connected to the meaning that identity is the same, however, it is unique to oneself so in turn it is different. This lead me to thinking that I could identify myself as whatever I wanted to be seen as, which is why i used the photo of multiple pictures of the same person seen in different attire depending on what situation he was in, be it his job, his sport or his normal clothes. I identified myself by my family and friends, my Taekwon-do club, my indoor netball team, the clothes I wear, the music I listen to, the foods I eat and the television series I watch. It is these factors that any person in the world can identify themselves as but they are unique to me, which is exactly what (Lawler, 2008) meaning of identity stated.

The third concept of human rights, I felt confident in talking about the human rights of gender equality. It has been a very passionate subject of mine, in the context of women's rights. "Gender equality has been an enormously controversial human rights issue because of discrimination against sexual minorities and women, persons whose sexual orientation or gender differ from societal norms." (Delaet, 2013) It is for this exact reason that I chose to base this picture on gender equality. Being a part of what seems to be the opposite of societal norms, the minority when it comes to female versus male situations. Although times have changed drastically and woman have been introduced to more equal rights, still today it can be seen that men have a slight upper hand advantage in for example work field situations, earning more salary and having more job opportunities at hand.

The last concept was history, "The unending ties that bind together the past and present" (Carr, 1962) Whilst reading over fellow students captions I saw they were choosing people who altered history world-wide, people who had changed the face of the future. I chose someone who more specifically altered my history and paved the way for my future. By looking specifically at my second concept of identity I chose to choose someone that had massive impact on how I identify myself, which is why I chose General Choi Hong Hi, the founding father of Taekwon-do. It is through the General's teachings that I am the person I am today. It is through his five concepts of foundation that I practice, courtesy, perseverance, indomitable spirit, self-control and integrity in my everyday life. 

Throughout the creating of my photo board I faced many conceptual understanding barriers. Although the task seemed easy enough to carry out initially, it was far from it. I was challenged greatly into thinking more in-depth about basic concepts I thought I had primarily understood. This photo board assignment really helped me think outside the box and taught me that even the most basic things in life have greater meaning behind them. 

Reference List:

Carr, E. What is History?. New York: Knopf.

DeLaet, D. (2013). The global struggle for human rights (2nd ed., p. 118). Cengage Learning.

Lawler, S. (2008). Identity Sociological Perspectives. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Ryan, M. (2010). Cultural Studies A Cultural Introduction. Chichester: Blackwell Publishing.