History Main / LossOfIdentity

* In ''[[Literature/{{Ringworld}} The Ringworld Engineers]]'', Nessus gains leverage over Chmeee by dosing him with (hitherto unknown) Kzinti [[{{Immortality}} boosterspice]]. Because he is now younger and scar-free, he would lose his rather comfortable identity in Kzinti society unless he is provided with evidence to support his story. Chmeee also considers his scars to be part of his personal identity as a warrior, and the loss of them to be almost like [[EveryScarHasAStory losing his memories of the fights where he got them]].

* ''Film/DarkCity'' goes hog-wild with this trope. Every resident in the city (except Dr. Schreber, and even he's not truly spared) is not who they think they are. Every night, The Strangers will go in and mix up a new batch of memories for every person in The City. There is no telling how many years this is going on, and it's highly unlikely that there's any copies of each person's ''original'' memories, and thus personality.

* The 1996 movie adaptation of ''Film/{{Casper}}'' expanded Casper's backstory, which involved him slowly losing his memories of his former life when he became a ghost. He does have recollections when he finds his old toy room, but it might just be a matter of time until he forgets who he is again. The idea of ghosts losing the identities of their living selves also becomes a tearjerker when Kat's father turns into a ghost and cannot remember who his own daughter was before he was resurrected in the Lazarus machine.

* This is a major theme of ''[[Film/DontLookBack2009 Don't Look Back]]'', as growing inconsistencies between Jeanne's memories and reality cause her to start question who she really is and how many of her memories are actually real.

* This is the crux for much of the drama in ''Film/RegardingHenry'', starring Creator/HarrisonFord. In it, the title character [[TisOnlyABulletInTheBrain survives a gunshot wound to the head]], only for the resulting pinched artery to affect his memory. Cue the rest of the movie depicting him [[QuestForIdentity coming to terms]] with [[LossOfIdentity not remembering anything]] about [[MissingTime his life before]] the [[TraumaInducedAmnesia shot]].
* The movie ''Film/TheWall'' for the Music/PinkFloyd album ''Music/TheWall'', shows this symbolically. If you see a group of people wearing masks, such as on the train during "Another Brick In The Wall Part 2", or during the rally in "Run Like Hell", then this is what it means.

* In ''Ancillary Sword'' from the ''Literature/ImperialRadch'' trilogy, [[spoiler:Lieutenant Tisarwat]] must rebuild her personality and sense of self after [[spoiler:the ancillary implants connecting her to [[HiveMind Anaander Mianaai]] are removed]].
* ''Literature/BasLagCycle'': In ''Literature/IronCouncil'', monks devoted to a god of secrets must forfeit knowledge about themselves in return for new insights. One such monk who travels with the Council starts out not knowing his/her own sex, [[spoiler:and is later forced to yield up more and more of his/her self-knowledge in order to guide the group, eventually fading into oblivion from this trope.]]

* In Creator/AndreNorton's ''Literature/ForerunnerForay'', Ziantha faces "erasure" if the Patrol catches her.

* In ''Literature/ThisIsNotAWerewolfStory,'' Raul considers getting {{Shapeshifter Mode Lock}}ed to be like the death of your human self, and by extension considers [[spoiler:Vincent, who trapped him for months]], to be a sort of murderer. Near the end of the novel, he also begins to fear that his mother has stayed in wolf form for so long that "[[WhiteWolvesAreSpecial White Wolf]]” may be all that’s left of her.

* This is a major theme of ''Film/NeTeRetournePas'' ("Don't Look Back"), as growing inconsistencies between Jeanne's memories and reality cause her to start question who she really is and how many of her memories are actually real.

** Related to the CloningBlues, provided the clone has the same memories as the original.

** Depending on how you look at things, Ellen is either Elliot's OppositeSexClone or a magical curse given human form. She has all of Elliot's memories up to the point when she split off from him, and initially believes herself to ''be'' Elliot, then [[CloningBlues snaps]] and tries to become a [[HarmlessVillain villain]] ([[PokeThePoodle with the emphasis on "tries"]]), then becomes a DeathSeeker, and finally [[spoiler:develops her own identity as Elliot's "sister."]]

* In ''Videogame/{{Earthbound}}'', when you initially get control of Poo he has an encounter where a spiritual being strips away his body and identity, and even though it's framed as a battle, you can't keep going unless you don't resist.

* ''VideoGame/{{Persona 2}}'' turned this into even more horror with the Joker's curse. Sure, kid! Call in and get any wish you want! ''[[SchmuckBait Any wish!]]'' What they don't tell you is that if you're too weak or overuse the power, Joker drains you of your dreams, hopes, and wishes, turning you into a Shadow Self that gradually fades into oblivion as you lose your identity to Joker's crystal skull. Funny thing, you see: the power to change reality ''is'' being fueled by your identity as an expendable resource. By rejecting reality and coasting by with Joker's power, you're weakening your connection to reality and getting closer to fading into a Shadow Self.

* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': Features heavily in ''Mockingjay'' with [[spoiler:Peeta Mellark]]. The character in question is tortured, brainwashed, and turned into a weapon against the rebellion in general and Katniss in particular. Katniss [[spoiler:realizes that she's lost the Peeta she knew and had fallen in love with even though he's physically still alive. Lucky for her he eventually gets better.]]

* In ''Series/{{Angel}}'', Connor got his mind wiped and given different memories, changing reality so that he was happy and well-adjusted. And apparently, he gave some fairly specific instructions on what he wanted his new personality to be like.

* Carefully analyzed in ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'', where the entirety of [[spoiler:Fate's DarkMagicalGirl]] role stems from being considered a mere tool by her "mother" and having the identity of her genuinely loved dead sister, for which her "mother" hates her to no end for having her own personality.
* ''Anime/SerialExperimentsLain'':
** This is one of the central points in the series. Lain is a painfully reclusive girl who barely speaks to anyone, but what about the Lain who spends every night drinking and hooking up at the clubs? Later, when some of TheMenInBlack are asking her some questions, she asks "Who are you?" They turn the question around and ask her [[spoiler: when her father was born.]] She can't answer, because [[spoiler: her family is fake and she was never human in the first place]].
** This is also her source of angst in the final episode when she wonders who she is after [[spoiler: erasing herself from everyone's memories, discarding her physical body, and altering history so she was never there]].
* In ''Manga/{{Monster}}'', the orphanage Kinderheim 511 existed solely to do this to children of criminals and political undesirables in East Germany. [[GoneHorriblyRight They bit off more than they could chew with Johan, though.]]

* Light's [[spoiler:MemoryGambit]] in ''Manga/DeathNote'' could be seen as an example of this- when he [[spoiler:[[LaserGuidedAmnesia relinquishes ownership of the Note]]]], he ''becomes'' himself, minus all Kira-related CharacterDevelopment, but plus the character development of having encountered [[TheRival someone just as smart as himself]] (L ''may'' be smarter, but he handicaps himself with rules so it's hard to tell) and having something interesting going on in his life. Being totally selfish, he wouldn't have become Kira, gambling with his life and self, if he hadn't been bored to the depths of his soul, so there is a distinct difference even from the bright-eyed Light in the early chapters, let alone Kira at his height. Is this still 'him'? Maybe, maybe not.
* A possible outcome of repeating many {{Groundhog Day Loop}}s in the ''Franchise/WhenTheyCry'' multiverse. At best you come out insane.
* This is one of the driving forces of ''Manga/BlueDrop: Tenshi no Bokura''. The protagonist's male best friend had his brain downloaded by aliens and copied into the body of a female alien, and his real body was cremated. Over the course of the series the copy- and thus the human and masculine identity- slowly fade away, leaving behind the [[BlueAndOrangeMorality most definitely not human]] original inhabitant of the body. Worst of all, the human identity doesn't fade away entirely, and by the end, the creature that is left is too human to retain its alien identity, and too [[BlueAndOrangeMorality alien]] to retain its human identity.

* In ''Manga/TheSecretAgreement'', while Kyuusai treats Yuuichi's blood finally awakening as the finding of an identity with the clan (which steals other people's life force in order to live), Yuuichi feels like his identity and all the meaning in his life has just been wrenched away. Particularly since it means his love for Iori is a delusion meant to enable Yuuichi to kill him, Yuuichi doesn't know how to navigate between what he thinks are real feelings and what his uncle says he must do.

* Sasami of ''Anime/TenchiMuyo'' had this. After a major fall when Ryoko invaded Jurai, she was rescued by Tsunami and bonded with her. For over 700 years, she wanted to tell someone the truth, that she was nothing more than a vessel and that the real Sasami was dead, but always stopped because she was afraid that if she did, they'd abandon her. Thanks to a mistake on her part, the others learn the truth, but quickly reassure her that they'd still love her. However, when Sasami passes out from all of the excitement does Tsunami reveal the truth - she never died that day. The trauma from the fall and rescue caused her to think that. She reassures everyone that when Sasami's older and can handle the truth, she'll learn it.
* In ''Manga/OnePiece'', on the island of Dressrosa [[spoiler:the sentient toys were once humans transformed into toy creatures by a Devil Fruit power. It seems that a majority of those close to the transformed victims not only don't recognize the victim, they ''forget the person even existed.'']]
* In ''Manga/NobunagaNoChef'', the title chef, Ken, [[TheAce has extensive knowledge of high-class cuisine and Japanese military history]] so he knows what foods he can and can't make, the outcomes of battles, who his boss Oda Nobunaga is and how he (Oda) will die -- and that's it. He lost his memory when he "fell" into the past and the only other person who might know ("Ken! You must return to the Heisei era!") is killed. He gets the occasional flashback but these aren't terribly helpful since he doesn't remember [[spoiler: who that guy was who taught him military history as a boy and what a buffet is]].
* In ''Anime/SpiritedAway'', Yubaba binds people to her service by stealing their names and memories. Even Chihiro, who is there for less than a day, already begins to forget her real name.
* From ''Manga/CaterpillarGirlAndBadTexterBoy'', the titular girl Suzume Kikuo voices her fears about this. After she was [[ForcedTransformation turned into a giant caterpillar]] she can't live normally or do everyday tasks. She also expresses that she can't taste things anymore and is afraid that, if she stays as she is, she'll lose what makes her "her". As the story progresses, protagonist Akane notices her starting to act out in ways unusual to how he knew her before, more and more frequently.

* ''Manga/AyakashiTriangle'': Matsuri often squares his GenderBenderAngst by saying he is "not really [himself]" so long as his body remains female. Usually, he's very casual and flippant about the issue, only stressing that he needs to change back before dating Suzu. Then [[LiteralSplitPersonality he's split into a boy a girl]], both are quickly convinced only the girl is "the real Matsuri", and the latter takes the idea ''very'' poorly.

* In ''Fanfic/{{Justice}}'', Lex comes to this conclusion about the Joker as the clown's encounter with Sanji costs him [[PutTheLaughterInSlaughter his laughter and smile]], the two major things that identify him. Without them, the Joker becomes far more deadly and unpredictable as he desperately tries to find something to make him laugh again, making criminals far more fearful of him than they were before.
* While ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' fanfics adore this trope, the "Brotherhood of Shadow" fan-made expansion pack cranks it up with virtually ''every'' major character abandoning, obliterating, and adopting new identities. A Twi'lek named Channa Mae was found by Jedi Master Solomon, who nicknamed her "Matilda." When the Mandalorian Wars came, Channa Mae abandoned Solomon and the Jedi, as well as the nickname, to fight for Revan's cause. After the war, she abandoned even the Channa Mae identity to become "Shadow," Revan's assassin/aide/secret apprentice. [[spoiler: When Revan "died," Shadow found her Force connection severed and became Sera Degana, a crewman on a smuggling vessel. But, then Revan and Solomon come back into her life...]] Another example is Kobayashi, [[spoiler: who was once a Jedi apprentice, and lost his own Force connection after his master was killed]], then took on a new identity as a scout and smuggler. Solomon also abandons ''his'' identity [[spoiler: after being critically wounded and thought dead on Taris. His goal is to kill Revan - and Shadow -- to avenge his former Padawan and his niece (who Channa had to kill in self-defense)]]. The Brotherhood of Shadow itself cements it all -- they were an elite Sith order who were critical in repelling the Rakatan invasion of their world, seeing themselves as a single unit, not as individuals. [[spoiler: When the first Sith Lords betrayed them, the entire Brotherhood was locked in a mind-trap. Over the millennia, they truly did become a single mind - one looking for a host]].
* [[TheMedic Glory]] suffers this in ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestriaProjectHorizons'' when the Killing Joke (not the [[ComicBook/TheKillingJoke comic book]], but a virulent, mutated, radioactive strain of [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E9BridleGossip Poison Joke]]) transforms her into a clone of Rainbow Dash. She finds herself losing most of her intelligence as Dash's harebrained adrenaline junkie personality overwrites her own calm, rational, intellectual one. And to make things worse, Rainbow Dash was her civilization's equivalent of [[Literature/NineteenEightyFour Emmanuel Goldstein.]]
* In ''FanFic/MegaManDefenderOfTheHumanRace'', sometimes Mega Man is so busy being Mega Man that he forgets he can be Rock.

* ''FanFic/{{Intercom}}'' features a much more "child-friendly" version of this. Mostly because the one dealing with it IS a child. Riley Andersen has to come to terms with the fact that her emotions have personalities, wills, etc, and is seeking an understanding of how much they are or aren't responsible for how she thinks.
* ''Fanfic/{{Ripples}}'' has this start to happen to Will once she's forced to accept that she's not in a LotusEaterMachine, but has actually been spending years TrappedInThePast. This is especially due to the fact that, aside from her own memories, there's no evidence for the existence of "Will Vandom", while there's plenty for "[[SecretIdentity Van Rivers]]".
* Poor Rei in ''Fanfic/NeonMetathesisEvangelion''. [[spoiler:After she has sacrificed herself and EVA-00 against Bardiel, she is resurrected with her soul reunited, but not reintegrated, so to speak. Thus she questions who she is: Rei I? Rei I in the EVA? Rei II? A fully new Rei III?]] Though there is one thing certain for her: "I am not her." (Lilith)

* ''WesternAnimation/EquestriaGirls'' fanfic ''Fanfic/YouCallThatACostume'' combines this with BecomingTheCostume when a spell transforms the Rainbooms into the character they dressed as down to the last detail.

* ''Fanfic/EncryptWithinTheDarkToSaveTheClockworkOfAHeart'': What essentially happens with Ai during the start of the story. He knows from his few fragmented memories that he had a close connection to Yusaku before and still acts like his goofy self, but feels he isn't complete and unsure why he would partner up with someone like [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Yusaku]].

* In the ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'' fic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10195891/1/A-Wee-Bit-of-Gaz A Wee Bit of Gaz]]'', Gaz [[AccidentalMurder accidentally kills]] a leprechaun while trying to force him to give her a pot of gold. As punishment for this, she's transformed into a leprechaun herself and sentenced to a year of servitude in the leprechauns' home dimension. Unfortunately, due to NarniaTime, a year on Earth is equal to ''20'' for the leprechaun dimension, meaning that while she's made human again upon her return, Gaz is now an adult in a world expecting her to still be a child; with no way to prove her identity, she's reduced to living and working under an assumed name in the Skool as a janitor.

* [[spoiler:Lieutenant Tisarwat]] in ''Ancillary Sword'' must rebuild her personality and sense of self after [[spoiler:the ancillary implants connecting her to [[HiveMind Anaander Mianaai]] are removed]].

* Creator/MikeResnick's short story "Me and My Shadow" posits a world akin to that in ''The Demolished Man'', where convicted criminals are "erased" and given benign personalities. The narrator is one of these--except for the part where he still has a little voice in his head that tells him to kill people. And his new personality as an accountant is meticulous enough to make sure that this time, he won't get caught...

* An unintentional (... probably) side effect of the Wraith retrovirus in ''Series/StargateAtlantis'', at least until one of its more notable victims got his hands on it.
* Creator/JossWhedon:
** He began to explore the effects of complete mental reprogramming in ''Series/{{Dollhouse}}''.
** It also happened on ''Series/{{Angel}}'' when he wiped Connor's mind and gave him different memories, changing reality so that he was happy and well-adjusted. And apparently, he gave some fairly specific instructions on what he wanted his new personality to be like.
* ''Series/BigSky'': [[spoiler:Legarski]] forgets the last three years as a result of brain damage, and this includes his criminal history apparently. When he wakes up to find himself accused of murder and sex trafficking, he's incredulous, repeating "I'm a Montana state trooper" then horrified when he realizes this must be true. The decent guy he used to be is all that's left it seems.

* Reconstructed in ''Theatre/JasperInDeadland'', when Gretchen points out that being unable to remember anything about her life is actually kind of liberating, as she can't remember anything bad about it. [[spoiler:She even considers giving up her memories ''again'', when she regains her memories only to remember her life wasn't that great]].

* Nero Chaos in ''VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}}'' long ago lost his human identity in favor of a collective. The collective is also losing its identity and turning into chaos. Currently, he simply intends to live long enough to figure out exactly what ''that'' is.

* In ''Webcomic/FarOut'', [[http://kimiq.com/farout/en/2013/02/06/farout-page-23/ the central robot starts to realize what he wants to be, though he has no clue who he is, or was.]]

* In ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}''

* One of the main themes of ''Literature/{{Six Chances}}'' where a PsychicLink that connects the main characters' memories cause them to question who they really are.
* Happens in many, many Transformation, Robot, or other such things pictures, stories, comics, and other such things. There's a very good chance that, if transformed into something else, a character will cease to be who they are.
* Also frequently the end result of [[FountainOfYouth Age Regression]] works; after the character is physically age-regressed, they may or may not retain their memories and personality; however even if they do not immediately fall back into childish behaviour patterns, such changes usually happen whether they are preferable or not. This often affects memories as well, such that the process of regression will cause them to forget that they are regressing; it's hard to fight against something that you don't even know is happening to you until it's too late...

* A common fate of victims in ''Franchise/TheSlenderManMythos'''.

** In ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverseTheMovie'', [[spoiler:Spinel uses a [[SinisterScythe Rejuvenator]] against the Crystal Gems, wiping their memories and reverting them to their "default" personalities. Pearl becomes cheerfully subservient (and imprints on Greg as her master), Ruby and Sapphire are back to being a standoffish bodyguard and a prescient fatalist respectively, and Amethyst regresses to a child-like state imitating everything she sees and hears. And after Steven turns Spinel's Rejuvenator against herself, he discovers that the vindictive MonsterClown he just fought started out as a fun-loving goofball. Fortunately, Steven discovers that the Gems' personalities haven't been wiped, only suppressed, and making them [[CongruentMemory relive their most important memories]] brings their old selves flooding back. But he doesn't know what made Spinel go bad, and ''her'' old self is the only one who knows how to turn her DoomsdayDevice off...]]

* A crucial part of TheHerosJourney, frequently manifested in [[CantRefuseTheCallAnymore the belly of the whale]].

* ''Kohan: Immortal Sovereigns''