My Identity Constituting Narrative Saving my Pug Bruce from the tire shop five years ago began what I would call my identity today. Since that day I would say that my identity has changed; because of Bruce, I now volunteer at my local shelter and it has made me a better person and motivates me to reach my future goal of finishing my Bachelor’s degree. Also, this past event has shaped my current values and relationship with my boyfriend Travis. Having Bruce I think reinforced our relationship at the time causing us to see him as our “child” making the two of us a family of three. When I came across the last lonely Pug in the kennel I knew I was supposed to save him. It was predetermined that he would be sent to the pound to most likely be euthanized because no one wanted him for he was very different from his brothers and sisters. I only saw his small size. Ever since I have been fighting to save and spread awareness for animals like him. Taking that first step and seeing him as a creature that needed my love and not as a liability has really helped shape my life as it is today. I gained a little bit of courage that day to save him and now I help dozens of animals a week. Changing the world is a central value that I hold today. I never realized how much influence this had on my life until learning about identity in this class. There are two kinds of aspects to the self that Alcoff writes about. There is public identity and lived subjectivity. Public identity is the socially perceived self in the communities that we live in. Lived subjectivity is how we ourselves see our identity; this is who we understand ourselves to be and how we experience being ourselves (Alcoff, 2006). My public identity would be that I am a college student who is an Animal Shelter Volunteer and the girlfriend of Travis Smith. The way I see myself or my lived subjectivity is somewhat different from this. I am an animal rescuer/life saver, Bruce’s human-mom, and Travis’ soul mate. A central relationship that I am currently in would be with my boyfriend Travis, Bruce, and the Norman Animal Shelter. Bruce came into this relationship second but helped to reinforce the first one with