Please check my answer, and if you have any suggestions on how I can improve my statement, please let me know!
evaluate the role of history in shaping identity and character:
France from the 15th to 18th century, most individuals had no say in the basic realities of their own lives. The majority of French citizens were very poor peasants, struggling to survive day to day. A few elite, the nobility and the clergy, lived in great excess and opulence. Most people could not change the course of their lives. They were destined to the lives that they were born into. However, as the scientific discoveries in the Scientific Revolution unveiled, people began to realize they could have a say in who they become. These thoughts led to the Enlightenment with ideas of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
2 answers
What you have here is, basically, correct. I'm not sure how it relates to the question about identity and character in the individual, though.
Why did many people in mecca reject muhammad ideas at first ?