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An alter ego (Latin, "the other I") is a second
2 (number)

2 is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3 ....
 self
Self (psychology)

The self is a key construct in several schools of psychology, broadly referring to the cognitive representation of one's identity. The earliest formulation of the self in modern psychology stems from the distinction between the self as I, the subjective knower, and the self as Me, the object that is known....
, a second personality
Personality psychology

Personality psychology is a branch of psychology that studies personality and individual differences. One emphasis in this area is to construct a coherent picture of a person and his or her major psychological processes ....
 or persona
Persona

A persona, in the word's everyday usage, is a social role or a Character played by an actor. This is an Italy word that derives from the Latin for "mask" or "character", derived from the Etruscan language word "phersu", with the same meaning....
 within a person
Person

The term person in common usage means an individual human being. In the fields of law, philosophy, medicine, and others, the term also has specialised context-specific meanings....
. It was coined in the early nineteenth century when schizophrenia
Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia , from the Ancient Greek Root schizein and phren, phren- is a psychiatry diagnosis that describes a mental disorder characterized by abnormalities in the perception or expression of reality....
 was first described by early psychologists. A person with an alter ego is said to lead a double life.

The term alter ego is commonly used in literature analysis
Literary criticism

Literary criticism is the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals....
 and comparison to describe characters who are psychologically identical, or sometimes to describe a character as an alter ego of the author, a fictional character
Fictional character

A character is any person, persona, identity, or entity that exists in a The arts. The process of conveying information about characters in fiction is called characterisation....
 whose behavior, speech or thoughts intentionally represent those of the author.

Alternatively, this can refer a similar situation when a role or persona is taken on by an actor.

The characters Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde in Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson

Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson , was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and Travel writing. Stevenson was greatly admired by many authors, including Jorge Luis Borges, Ernest Hemingway, Rudyard Kipling, Vladimir Nabokov, J....
's thriller Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde represent an exploration of the concept that good and evil exist within one person, constantly at war.






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An alter ego (Latin, "the other I") is a second
2 (number)

2 is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3 ....
 self
Self (psychology)

The self is a key construct in several schools of psychology, broadly referring to the cognitive representation of one's identity. The earliest formulation of the self in modern psychology stems from the distinction between the self as I, the subjective knower, and the self as Me, the object that is known....
, a second personality
Personality psychology

Personality psychology is a branch of psychology that studies personality and individual differences. One emphasis in this area is to construct a coherent picture of a person and his or her major psychological processes ....
 or persona
Persona

A persona, in the word's everyday usage, is a social role or a Character played by an actor. This is an Italy word that derives from the Latin for "mask" or "character", derived from the Etruscan language word "phersu", with the same meaning....
 within a person
Person

The term person in common usage means an individual human being. In the fields of law, philosophy, medicine, and others, the term also has specialised context-specific meanings....
. It was coined in the early nineteenth century when schizophrenia
Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia , from the Ancient Greek Root schizein and phren, phren- is a psychiatry diagnosis that describes a mental disorder characterized by abnormalities in the perception or expression of reality....
 was first described by early psychologists. A person with an alter ego is said to lead a double life.

The term alter ego is commonly used in literature analysis
Literary criticism

Literary criticism is the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals....
 and comparison to describe characters who are psychologically identical, or sometimes to describe a character as an alter ego of the author, a fictional character
Fictional character

A character is any person, persona, identity, or entity that exists in a The arts. The process of conveying information about characters in fiction is called characterisation....
 whose behavior, speech or thoughts intentionally represent those of the author.

Alternatively, this can refer a similar situation when a role or persona is taken on by an actor.

The characters Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde in Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson

Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson , was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and Travel writing. Stevenson was greatly admired by many authors, including Jorge Luis Borges, Ernest Hemingway, Rudyard Kipling, Vladimir Nabokov, J....
's thriller Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde represent an exploration of the concept that good and evil exist within one person, constantly at war. Edward Hyde literally represents the doctor's other self, a psychopathic being unrestrained by the conventions of civilized society, who shares a body with the doctor.

This can also refer to the way a person may act differently in different cultural situations.

Alter egos in popular culture

  • Makaveli, alter ego of rapper Tupac Shakur
    Tupac Shakur

    Tupac Amaru Shakur , also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American Rapping. In addition to his status as a top-selling recording artist, Shakur was a promising actor and a social activist....
  • Humpty Hump, alter ego of Shock G
    Shock G

    Gregory E. Jacobs , known by the stage names Shock G and Humpty Hump, is an United States musician and rapper best known as the lead vocalist for the hip hop music group Digital Underground....
    , member of the group Digital Underground
    Digital Underground

    Digital Underground is an Alternative hip hop group from Oakland, California....
     and co-producer of Tupac Shakur's debut album 2Pacalypse Now
    2Pacalypse Now

    2Pacalypse Now is the debut album of 2pac, released in November 1991.Though less polished and lacking the hard-hitting produced beats of his later albums, it is his most overtly political work....
  • Yami Yugi, alter ego of Yugi
    Yugi

    Yugi is a Japanese nameYugi can refer to the following people:* Yugi Shiozaki, a mangakaYugi can refer to the following fictional characters:...
     on TV show Yu-Gi-Oh!
    Yu-Gi-Oh!

    is a Japanese manga created by Kazuki Takahashi, which has spawned a franchise including multiple anime series, a trading card game, and numerous video games....
  • Dark Mousy, alter ego of Daisuke Niwa; Krad, alter ego of Satoshi Hiwatari in DN Angel
  • Masquerade, the alter ego of Alice in Bakugan battle brawlers
  • Shiek is the alter ego of Zelda
    Zelda

    Zelda may refer to:* The Legend of Zelda , a video game series by Nintendo** The Legend of Zelda, the first game in the series** The Legend of Zelda , an American cartoon series loosely based on the first and second The Legend of Zelda games...
  • Hannah Montana
    Hannah Montana

    Hannah Montana is an 59th Primetime Emmy Awards United States Television program, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a alter ego as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real identity from the...
     is the alter ego of Miley Stewart
  • T.I.P. is the alter ego of T.I.
    T.I.

    Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., , better known by his stage name T.I., and also by his alter ego T.I.P., is a Grammy-award winning American rapping, songwriter, executive producer#Music, actor, and co-chief executive officer of Grand Hustle Records....
  • Super C is the alter ego of R&B superstar Ciara
    Ciara

    Ciara Princess Harris , commonly known as Ciara , is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, dancer, fashion model, music video director, actor and soon to be fashion designer....
  • Rihanna
    Rihanna

    Robyn Rihanna Fenty , known as Rihanna , is a Barbados singer, fashion model, and former beauty queen. She also serves as the cultural ambassador for Barbados....
     is the alter ego of Barbadian singer Robyn Fenty
  • Slim Shady is the alter ego of Detroit rapper Eminem
    Eminem

    Marshall Bruce Mathers III , known by his primary stage name Eminem, or by his alter-ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer and actor....
    , who in itself is the alter ego of Marshall Mathers
  • The British space sitcom Red Dwarf
    Red Dwarf

    Red Dwarf is a United Kingdom science fiction television situation comedy Media franchise, primarily comprising eight series of a television sitcom that ran on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999 and gained a cult following....
     abounds in alter egos, such as Arnold
    Arnold Rimmer

    Arnold Judas Rimmer B.S.C., S.S.C. is a fictional character in the science fiction situation comedy Red Dwarf, played by Chris Barrie. He is unpopular with his crew mates, and is often the target of insults or pranks....
     and Ace Rimmer, The Cat and Duane Dibbley, Kryten
    Kryten

    Kryten is a fictional character in the United Kingdom science fiction situation comedy Red Dwarf. Kryten's registration code on Red Dwarf is "Kryten additional 001"....
     and Jake Bullet, Dave Lister
    Dave Lister

    David "Dave" Lister, commonly referred to simply as Lister, is a fictional character from the United Kingdom science fiction situation comedy Red Dwarf, portrayed by Craig Charles....
     and Jonathan Doyle
  • Nina, alter ego of rapper/singer, Lisa "Left-eye" Lopes
    Lisa Lopes

    Lisa Nicole Lopes , better known by her stage name Left Eye, was a Grammy Award-winning American rapping, singer-songwriter, teen idol, and member of the popular contemporary R&B group TLC ....
  • Sasha Fierce, alter ego of singer, actress Beyoncé Knowles
    Beyoncé Knowles

    Beyonc? Giselle Knowles , commonly known as Beyonc? , is an American contemporary R&B singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools, and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child....
  • Amy, alter ego of singer and actress Britney Spears
    Britney Spears

    'Britney Jean Spears' is a Grammy Awards-winning American pop music singer, dancer, actress, and glamour model.Raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Louisiana, Spears first appeared on national television in 1992 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The New Mickey Mouse Club#199...
  • Bianca and Mimi, alter egos of singer and actress Mariah Carey
    Mariah Carey

    Mariah Carey is an United States singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. She made her recording debut in 1990 under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, and became the first recording artist to have her first five singles top the U.S....
  • Baby Jane, alter ego of singer Christina Aguilera
    Christina Aguilera

    Christina Mar?a Aguilera is an American pop music/contemporary R&B singer and songwriter. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The New Mickey Mouse Club#1990s revival from 1993?1994....
  • Henry Bech
    Henry Bech

    Henry Bech is a fictional character created by American author John Updike. Bech first appeared in assorted short stories, stories which were later compiled in the books Bech: A Book , Bech Is Back , and Bech at Bay ....
    , alter ego of writer John Updike
    John Updike

    John Hoyer Updike was an American novelist, poet, short story writer, art critic, and literary critic. Updike's most famous work is his Rabbit series ....
  • Timothy Howard, alter ego of Kraig Falcon Conrad
  • Ichigo's Inner Hollow is the alter ego of Ichigo Kurosaki on Bleach
  • Ziggy Stardust
    Ziggy Stardust

    Ziggy Stardust may refer to:*The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, Bowie's 1972 concept album* a persona adopted by David Bowie in the early 1970s...
    , alter ego of David Bowie
    David Bowie

    David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and Arrangement. Active in five decades of rock music and frequently reinventing his music and image, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s....
  • Jessica alter ego of Niki Sanders
    Niki Sanders

    Nicole "Niki" Sanders is a fictional character portrayed by Ali Larter in the television series Heroes . Niki is the wife of D. L. Hawkins and mother of Micah Sanders ....
     Heroes
    Heroes (TV series)

    Heroes is an American science fiction dramatic programming created by Tim Kring, which premiered on NBC on September 25, 2006. The series tells the stories of ordinary individuals from around the world who inexplicably develop Superpower , and their roles in preventing disasters, usually foreseen in images produced by precognitive painter...
  • Madea's alter ego of Tyler Perry
  • Danny Fenton's alter ego is Danny Phantom
  • Raj Kapoor is the alter ego of Sukhwinder Sahni in RNBDJ.


See also

  • Id, ego, and super-ego
    Id, ego, and super-ego

    Id, ego, and super-ego are the three parts of the "psychic apparatus" defined in Sigmund Freud's Ego psychology of the psyche; they are the three theoretical constructs in terms of whose activity and interaction mental life is described....
  • Avatar
    Avatar

    Avatar or Avatara , often translated into English as incarnation, literally means descent and usually implies a deliberate descent from higher spiritual realms to lower realms of existence for special purposes....
  • Doppelgänger
    Doppelgänger

    Doppelg?nger , or "Fetch", is the ghost double of a living person, a sinister form of bilocation.In the vernacular, "Doppelg?nger" has come to refer to any double or look-alike of a person....
  • Impersonator
    Impersonator

    An impersonator is someone who imitates or copies the behavior or actions of another. There are many reasons for someone to be an impersonator, some common ones being as follows:...
  • Secret identity
    Secret identity

    A secret identity is an Fiction#Elements of fiction wherein a character develops a separate persona , while keeping their true identity hidden. The character also may wear a disguise ....
  • Author surrogate
    Author surrogate

    As a literary technique, an author surrogate is a character who expresses the ideas, questions, personality and morality of the author. Upon occasion, authors insert themselves under their own name into their works, typically for humorous or surrealistic effect....