Christopher Castaneda
3/2/2023
2nd period
Multicultural Literature
Dan-el Padilla was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He came to the U.S when he was only 4 years old legally but unfortunately his visa expired while in the U.S which meant he had become undocumented. Padilla shows us throughout his memoir Undocumented how being undocumented challenges your life. Padilla argues what is succes and how you can attain it and how your social status does not define who you are. My own view on Padilla’s interrelated themes is that success can be whatever you’d like it to be because people have different successes and goals in life. Social status exists but does not define your success or you as a person because social status is
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Success is “the accomplishment of an aim or purpose”. Padilla achieved his success but I believe his purpose of writing this memoir was to help others find their own success. I believe that Padilla made the right decision in finding his success because he then shows us how successful he has become as an undocumented Afro Latino. This will most likely encourage other Latino/a/e and Afro Latino/a/e to not get discouraged to find their own success. Padilla successfully got his message across about what success is and methods for achieving it. However not everyone has a young art teacher from a wealthy family as a mentor like Padilla did. Many would agree that if Jeff never met Padilla in the shelter Padilla would have never received a scholarship to collegiate. Jeff was intrigued in Padilla’s passion for learning and reading. If Padilla was never interested in learning and pursuing a further education after highschool Padilla would have never received those opportunities that Jeff granted him. According to The National Literacy Trust only 51% of children enjoy reading for fun. In 2016 The percentage stood at 58.8% which means its dropped 7.8% since then. Althought I Acknowlegde The Natinoal Literacy Trust I cannot accept this overall conclusion because “It helps children make sense not only of the world around them but also people, Building social emotional skills and of course imagination”
Being “Different” Pat Mora, the writer of “Legal Alien”, evokes empathy in the audience to bring a deeper understanding of the world by using vivid imagery, juxtaposition, and code switching. Mora addresses cultural tension and identity crisis, explaining she herself, a Mexican- American, is not accepted in either Mexican communities or American communities. Mora illustrates, “Bi-lingual, Bi-cultural/ able to slip from ‘How’s life?’ to ‘Me’ stan volviendo loca’/… a handy token slipping back and forth,” (Mora 1-3/16-17).
Julia Alvarez attempted to rewrite the immigrant experience from the female perspective by sharing her own life story as an immigrant seeking asylum from her oppressive dictatorship ruled homeland, the Dominican Republic. Alvarez’s novel How the García Girls Lost Their Accents is a semi-autobiography of her own journey to and from the Dominican Republic to the United States by drawing on her own experiences and observations about the fractured sense of identity accompanying immigration to the United States.
Ruth Gomberg-Munoz's Labor and Legaility: An Ethnography of a Mexican Immigrant Network, describes the lives of undocumented immigrants from Mexico who work as busboys In a Chicago restaurant. Gomberg-Munoz gives insight into the new lives of the boys, through her compilation of their experiences both before crossing the border and after moving away from home into an unknown world. As an ethnography, the book gives information and details of the workers without arguing or taking a stance on immigration itself; it is instead presented in a manner that attempts to give readers a full understanding of the undocumented life through the revelation of the ones living it. She provides readers with a perspective on the daily struggles faced when living
The experiences one has at a young age impacts who that person is and what they value. Gary Soto is no exception to this idea. Soto was born into a family with limited resources; his grandparents immigrated to the United States from Mexico, and experienced many hardships both financial and personal. These financial and personal adversities shape his writing into a platform for educating young readers on the struggles of Latino Americans. Gary Soto’s childhood and the Civil Rights movement for Latino Americans inspired his poetry to touch upon the daily struggles of the average Mexican-American farmer through his use of first person narrative.
Julia Alvarez's childhood connection with America, a new movement in immigrant and Latino literature, the ideas of independence and revolution from the Dominican people,
People thrust into environments where they know they will stand out. In Julia Alvarez’s bildungsroman novel How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents (1992), Junot Diaz’s short story “Ysrael” (1996), and Morris Louis’s painting Alpha-Pi (1960), all talk about the idea of trespassing and intruding into unknown territory. How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents discusses issues pertaining to an immigrant family who recently migrates from the Dominican Republic. The Garcia family struggles to assimilate to the American culture and encounters difficulty raising their young daughters in a foreign environment. In Junot Diaz’s “Ysrael,” a boy with a damaged face is harassed and assaulted by his peers.
September 26, 1942 marked a riveting day for the literary world who received a new writing giant that would make a resounding impact for the Latino community for decades to come. Anzaldúa was born to parents Urbano and Amalia Anzaldúa and was the eldest of four children, all born in Raymondville, Texas. Anzaldúa spent her childhood living in ranches and even traveled to West Texas to become a migrant worker. At age 11, her family relocated to Hargill, Texas for better educational opportunities and through that, Anzaldúa’s vast knowledge of the South Texas landscape and experiences with discrimination soon came to influenced many of her later works. Anzaldúa became interested in writing at a young age, she wrote poetry, journal entries and
Richard Rodriguez’s autobiography, Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez, depicts his transformation from a socioeconomically disadvantaged first generation child of Mexican-American immigrants to a successful author, academic, and intellectual. During his metamorphosis, however, Rodriguez goes through an arduous process of assimilation that grants him a mastery of the English language and an embrace of American culture at the expense of his cultural heritage. His struggle to find a balance between these two worlds is prevalent throughout his autobiography, demonstrating the complex nature of identity and the manner in which language and culture impact it. In the text, identity seems to be formed at times around perceived similarities,
This autobiographical essay will define my experience as a Dominican immigrant living in New York City. Being an American citizen with a Dominican background are extremely relevant to the process of political socialization. My family background is founded on the principles of democratic values, which taught to me by my mother and father. In New York City, I found a “melting pot” of different immigrants that allowed me to feel more accepted as a Dominican living in the United States. More so, these aspects of the socialization process provided a foundation for my belief in democratic values throughout my life.
Rylan Schutz Ms. Ivers World Literature 18 April 2023 Mexican Revolution Through the Marxist Lens “There are some things in life that shouldn't be given so much importance if they don't change what is essential.'' (Esquivel) This quote shows that no matter how high or low you are in society the essentials should be more important than the materialistic items. By analyzing Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel from the Marxist lens one can better understand more about how the economic lives of the characters affect the outcome of the book.
Social status is defined as a person's standing or importance in relation to other people within a society. Social status has affected the world for hundreds of years, from where you were allowed to go to the bathroom, to if you were allowed to vote. The way a person is viewed and treated is all caused by what is believed to be their rank in society and in the short story, “A&P”, John Updike uses irony, symbolism, and characterization to show this. Sometimes people dissatisfied with their opportunities get caught up with what others represent, causing rash decisions that lead to disappointment.
The article “The Life of Carlos, an Undocumented New Yorker” exposes the dehumanizing atmosphere Honduras reveals to the population at a young age, causing many teenagers such as Carlos to be in search of a new life in the United States while losing their innocence along the journey to survive. Carlos makes it to the United States, but quickly is thrown to an adult detention center, but temporarily released to be with his U.S. citizen Grandmother. Alexandra Starr’s article is coupled with Edward Keating’s photography of Carlos. Starr’s writing focuses on the story of Carlos which vividly includes many experiences an average person will never experience in their lifetime expect Carlos experienced this all before the age of 20. Carlos’s court
Due to society, success is mostly viewed as a physical accomplishment. Ivan Chino, National Guard Soldier/NIU graduate, is not only a successful person because of his accomplishments, but more over his work ethic. When asked what makes a person successful, Chino replied, “The road with reaching success comes with many obstacles, but it also involves setting a new bar to achieve a higher form of success.” Clearly, Chino’s view of success is to constantly set high goals, despite the obstacles that come along with them. The reason being is to never settle and strive for a higher level.
The immigrants entering the United States throughout its history have always had a profound effect on American culture. However, the identity of immigrant groups has been fundamentally challenged and shaped as they attempt to integrate into U.S. society. The influx of Mexicans into the United States has become a controversial political issue that necessitates a comprehensive understanding of their cultural themes and sense of identity. The film Mi Familia (or My Family) covers the journey and experiences of one Mexican-American (or “Chicano”) family from Mexico as they start a new life in the United States. Throughout the course of the film, the same essential conflicts and themes that epitomize Chicano identity in other works of literature
Ellie Dillon Mrs. Mungai Multicultural Literature and Voice 16 February 2023 Desire and Longing Enrique's Journey by Sonia Nazario and Fighting for Family by Lan Nguyen both address the topic of desire in a migrant's journey, and their hope for the future. In Enrique's Journey, Nazario develops desire by showing the perspective of Lourdes, Enrique’s mother. The story of Fighting for Family follows desire as it shows the hardships of the father who had been deported and his longing for family. A comparison of Enrique’s Journey and Fighting for Family reveals that many migrants do not have the outcome they hoped for, and how their journeys can cause a desire for something far greater than jobs; Family.