Jack's Coming of Age The word "identity" can be defined as "the distinct personality of an individual regarded as a persisting entity;

individuality". A person's identity is shaped starting at a young age, reflecting off internal and external factors present in their lives. In "Roo ", a novel by ! a "onnaghue, the narrator, # year$old

%ac& faces the tough 'ourney of growing up and finding his identity. %ac& and his other, who he refers to as "(a", live in "Roo "; a s all shac& where they are aturing without the

&ept i prisoned. %ac& faces the struggle of growing up and

&nowledge of the outside world, ani als and other hu ans. )nce (a and %ac& escape fro Roo and are free in the real world, %ac& begins to find hi self as

an individual. %ac&'s identity is shaped by the internal and external factors; his environ ental setting, fa ily, and the edia.

*irstly, %ac&'s identity is for ed based on his environ ental setting. To %ac&, roo was the world. The s all ++' by ++' space was the only environ ent no opportunity to explore the world and learn about

he &new of, giving hi

hi self and others. ,iving with very li ited space and resources forced (a to a&e the best of what they had, and raise %ac& to the best of her abilities. -owever, isolated fro the world, %ac& was not able to develop his own identity;

his li&es and disli&es, his thoughts on the world, and interactions with other people. %ac&'s identity starts to for enter the real world. %ac& i when hi and (a escape fro Roo and

ediately

eets new people such as )fficer ), all of

the nurses at

$ Roo $ li ited space $ li ited resources $ no idea of outside world and people $ only has tv and a to learn $cannot build own idenitity a he hasnt even experienced life outside the one roo

family .

.econdly, %ac&'s fa ily is an i portant contribuation to %ac&'s devloping identity. *or all of his life, %ac&'s only fa ily was (a. .he raised %ac& to best of her abilities, considering the very little freedo and resources they had.

(a ho eschooled %ac& with the resources they did have, at atte pt to raise hi li&e a nor al boy living in a nor al environ ent
- his relationship with ma, special bond - only person he trusts - she sschools him,,teaches him everything he knows, grew him up to the boy he is now\ - taught him eveerything he needed to knw without scaring him about the outside world