Roles and Names

From “You Are Not Your Name”

The late writer, F. M. Cornford, said “The name of a thing… is its soul.” Yet the fact that so many people change their names and everybody answers to more than one name suggests that a nameis not the soul of a person, and not the heart either—not even the skin. A better metaphor would liken names to clothes. We wear them according to the occasion. In a tuxedo, I am “Mr. James Wegryn.” In a business in a suit, I am “Jim Wegryn.” In jeans and T shirt, just “Jim.” In pajamas, I am “Tiger.”

A more fitting comparison is to equate names to roles. Imagine that each of the names people call us represents a character we play in that drama we call our life. In essence, your names are the labels of your roles in life. The table shows how Jim Johnson’s many names might work with his many roles.

Name	Role	As in
Mr. James Johnson	Addressee; Citizen	“Mr. James Johnson or Current Occupant.” “Is Mr. James Johnson in the court room?”
James Johnson	Contestant; Litigant	“Honorable mention goes to James Johnson.” “…that James Johnson did willfully attack…”
Jim Johnson	Employee; Associate	“Employee of the month is Jim Johnson.” “This is Jim Johnson, your new cellmate.”
J. Johnson	Patron; Dog owner	“This table reserved for J. Johnson.” “Wiener, a dachshund owned by J. Johnson.”
Mr. Johnson	Teacher; Neighbor	“Mr. Johnson, I gotta wash my hands urgently.” “We wish Mr. Johnson would pull his shades.”
Johnson	Team member; Aide	“Johnson is the point man for water buckets.” “Johnson, get your butt in here, now.”
James	Patient; Telemarketer target	“After you remove your clothes, James, the doctor will see you.” “James, I’m from the “Save the titmouse society and….”
Jimmy	Friend	“Can you lend me twenty dollars, Jimmy?”
Jim	Husband	“Jim, did you mean to go through that stop sign?”
Jammer	Lover	“It’s okay, Jammer, cuddling is nice too.”
Dad	Father	“Can you lend me a thousand dollars, Dad?”