We don’t have one, permanent identity; we have an internal identity landscape that is constantly changing

I love Maria Popova’s way of bringing to life the ‘shape-shifting complexities’ of identity explored by philosopher Amin Maalouf. He frames identity in terms of who we feel affinity with, and who we treat as the ‘other’.

What initially struck me was the concept of ‘disposable affinity’ – the camaraderie that arises during a shared predicament (a power blackout in a cafe, being temporarily trapped by a sudden hailstorm) and dissolves just as quickly. It shows just how complex and unstable our identities are. “The shifting boundaries of our own identity are what contours that otherness.”

Popova skilfully delivers Maalouf's reminder that to fully recognise our common ties with all of humanity we must first interrogate and acknowledge the multiplicity of our own identity.