An individual's imagination can be considered the ability to create mental images. Mental images of something don't need to be perceived as real or at least not in the present. Meaning that individuals can have images of their past, which are not real because the images do not take place in the present. The perception of imagination is a creative power that has allowed humans beings to accomplish a great deal of art, productive ideas and help improve many aspects of human life over the course of time. This creative power of imagination allows individuals living in the same locality and under the same government to possess a distinct way of thinking. Communities of the past can be imagined in one's mind. One of Bellah's terms, "community of memory and hope", suggest that individuals can use their imagination of communities of the past, such as family, as a way of hope. The imagination of "community of memory and hope" is demonstrated in Bellah's "Community, Commitment, and Individuality" and Rodriguez "Complexion". In the essay "Complexion", the author demonstrates Bellah's term "community of memory and hope", which helps him to see his dark- skinned Mexican community differently. I strongly believe that imagination can help one locate a "community of memory and hope", which then can help individuals find their identity and enhance one's education.
Different environments have different effects on one's self image. The prejudice that a person holds can influence how they see themselves. Rodriguez's family provided him with a prejudice background. Rodriguez's family was prejudice to dark skin people because they believed that dark skinned people were ugly, poor and worked in labor. His made him feel ugly because of his dark complexion. This is expressed when the author states, "Simply, I judged myself ugly. And, since the women in my family had been the ones who discussed it in such worried tones, I felt dark skin made me unattractive to women" (Rodriguez 455).