Essay Sample: External Forces in Play of Our Identities

The identity and autonomy that an individual creates of themselves is often a critical aspect of the level of control they have in their life. These include the achievements, positions, and decision-making capacities that result in a better and more fulfilling life. It is often a source of pride to note that the various attainments in one's life are a result of the values, norms, moral ethics, and productivity from everyday activities. However, humanity is not greater than history, and this thus leaves patches of predetermined paths that every human being is forced to follow regardless of the values they hold, or the level of their productivity in the various aspects of their lives. This prompt thus seeks to explore How much of what we are, was given to us by outside forces in life, rather than what we observe for ourselves.

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From leadership positions to leaders in the cooperate world, there is much in play than the skills these leaders possess or the marketing strategies owned by these corporates. The world has been structured by a variety of predetermined paths that are passed down from generation to the next as a way of maintaining the cosmic balance. White supremacy has been one of these predestines, that often seems to work for the Caucasian whites while continually infringing on the welfare, rights, and successes of the other minority races. Through land grabbing and human plundering, the grounds for success and leadership were preexisting for Caucasian Americans at the expense of the other races within the United States. It is these laid systems that enabled the United States president Donald Trump to win in the 2016 elections. This is because, like his forefathers, he maintained a consistency in the ideology of white supremacy, and thus banked on birtherism as a force that would guarantee all the whites a place in their societies. Through birtherism, African American, Asian Americans, Latinos, indigenous people, and immigrants are considered as a liability to the self-sustaining Caucasian system in existence. This is the "modern recasting of the old American precept that black people are not fit to be citizens of the country they built" (Coates 1) Therefore, for the Caucasian Americans, the white privilege they enjoy is but a product of the various external forces working to create the social, economic, and political atmosphere that prevails around them, while for the other races, their predicament is owed to the same.

White supremacy has been a force that has shaped various aspects of American life. It has worked "to ensure that that which all others achieve with maximal effort, white people (particularly white men) achieve with the minimal qualification" (Coates 3). Even this supremacy dates back in the 18th century where all the descendants of indenture were entitled to certain benefits tied to the whiteness, one of them being that they would never bring themselves down to the level of the slaves. This was the bar set for every descendant after that and is the same bar that applies to the current whites. Donald trump for one would never have become president were it not for his indenture lineage. He never held any office before becoming president. However, he chose to run through the white party, the republic party, and this was a predetermined fate for him. The recent population threat that by the mid-twenty-first century, there would be a majority-minority population was an essential masterpiece that he utilized to show solidarity to the maintenance of the supremacy. Were the white votes counted exclusively, Donald Trump would have defeated his opponent Hillary Clinton 389 to 81 of the Electoral College votes (Coates 5 ). This, coupled up with the meddling by the outside world mostly via technology, made Donald trump the first white president.

Technology has become yet another force beyond human capacity. This is vastly explored via three tech giants; Amazon, Facebook, and Google. Amazon was established in 1994 as a books hub but has evolved to become an all-purpose sales outlet; Facebook is a social media company while Google is a search engine. These three giants have grown to become powerful companies that have mastered various ways to control the consumption patterns of their clients (Foer 2). All the companies have been established as forms of ratification for the broken humanity, and have thus convinced their clients that all they work for is a better world with cohesion and satisfaction. However, it is through such a deception that many clients continue feeding them with information that immerses them in a great deal of social control. By analyzing this information, amazon only advertises and recommends books with many purchases. Google manipulates the search history of clients to target their consumption patterns with suggestions of new products or those they had already bought while Facebook incites political sentiments and actions from the users as with the case of the 2016 American election. The present as well as future as depicted through the lenses of these three giants is sure one without minds as people are micro-controlled to purchase and consume products without having any thoughts involved. People have been converted to passive consumers who seem not too cognitively engaged with their consumption modules.

Beyond human values, autonomy, decision-making, or cultures lie several external factors that highly dictate the identities, behaviors, and routines they form of their lives. White supremacy is one of these forces as it ensures that the whites get all they desire on a silver platter while the other races work twice harder for a similar or even lower satisfaction. Technology is another force, more so through Amazon, Facebook, and Google that predetermines the consumption patterns of its clients and utilizes the information they provide to cater for any future alteration. Indeed, much of what we are is given to by outside forces rather than what we observe for ourselves.

Works cited

Coates T. The First White President - Masterfully Written Article in the Atlantic. Pp. 1-21

Foer F. World Without Mind: The Existential Threat of Big Tech. 2017. Penguin press.