Switcheroo Personal Response

Katie Gouch

The American Life- Switcheroo Personal Response

                After listening to the announcer’s experience with “Cindy Sherman” at the exhibition and the story “Suddenly a Knock at a Door” I am questioning my ability to impersonate someone.  It may be my oversized conscience or my very truthful upbringing, but I do not think that I could ever pretend to be someone else.  The man Miran in the story seemed like such a complex character because when he was being himself he was a loner and was shy.  If he wanted to be himself I’m sure that he could have found another person eating alone and could have made a new acquaintance but he chose not to do that.  Instead he waited for people to mistake him for someone else and then talked to them.  But he was so outgoing and such a fast thinker when he talked to the strangers.  Maybe pretending to be someone else was liberating?  I mean, if you do not know the person and you are not going to see them again, then you have nothing to be afraid of, you can be whoever you desire.  I guess I can relate to this when I go on vacation.  On vacation I’m not afraid to dance to the music or to be loud or to meet people because I know that I am not going to see them ever again.  On one vacation I went on I met like 10 new friends because I put myself out there and was not self-conscious.  Looking back, that was one of the best vacations I have ever had.  In all, I think that the Cindy Sherman imposter probably got an adrenaline rush from pretending to be a new identity, similar to how Miran felt alive when he acted like a different person.