Rhett Butler's People

In this novel Rhett figures out who he wants to be and what his principles are early in life. But the other characters are constantly trying to figure out who they are. Because the novel spans a long period of time, the characters must figure out who they are during the Civil War and especially after. The nation underwent such a drastic change that every character had to figure out how to fit into the new society. Beliefs were constantly challenged and changed. But many characters held strong to their way of life, especially all of the ideas connected to slavery, and had trouble adapting to the changes.

A Cure for Dreams

This novel does not address my Big Question, not even one bit!

The Witch of Portabello

In my summer reading novel my Big Question is addressed big time. The entire novel is the story of Athena trying to find who she is and where she fits. Athena studies many types of expression, from calligraphy to dance, to figure out who she is. She travels to Romania to find her birth mother and learn about the culture she was born into. Athena also learns about herself by teaching others and following to various teachings of Edna. She eventually finds her purpose in channelling Hagia Sofia and learns how to fill in the spaces.

Crime and Punishment

In Crime and Punishment Roskolnikov tries to find who is spiritually. By getting to know and trust Sonia and in dealing with his guilt, Roskolnokov begins to find his religious path. Beyond that I don't think that my Big Question is really addressed.

Henry IV Part 1

Hal tries to figure out where to fit in and how to balance having fun with being royal. Hal must determine what kind of prince and eventually what kind of king he wants to be. How Hal responds to his father and his various obligations are his trial error method to find who he is. Hal must decide whether to follow Falstaff or his father as his role model. In the end Hal finds his way into the royal side of his life and embraces his regal obligations.

Ghosts

In Ghosts the son does not totally know who he is until he learns the truth about his father and his father's sins. Knowing about his parents helped him sort through his life and figure things out.

Oedipus Rex

My question is somewhat relevant to Oedipus Rex. Oedipus lives his life thinking that he knows who is parents are, but they actually are not. He was royalty during the entire play, so that bit of his life was unaffected by the parent swap. Oedipus could never 100% know who he is because he killed his father and his mother killed herself, so he could never know his whole history.

The Big Question . . .

Can you every truly know who you are and how do you go about finding who you are anyway?