Amy Tan Idea Of Being American Analysis

As of the year 2016, there are an estimated 324,118,787 people living in America. 324,118,787 people consider themselves to be Americans and 324,118,787 people have decided that America really is worthy enough to be called home. These people, whether they were born within the country or emigrated from another country, comingle in this melting pot of a nation, sharing grocery stores and hospitals and neighborhoods and all the ideologies that make up American society, and each of these people have their own lives and opinions and personal beliefs. All of these people, all (roughly) 324,118,787 of them, fall under the definition of an American – a person who lives in America, because there is simply no other way to define what an American is when

I am an American. I choose this word to represent me, although others may not acquiesce and won’t categorize individuals who aren’t born in this country to be Americans. In others perspective, to be an American means to have the blood of an American. But I on the other hand, don’t have the heritage and the qualifications that are expected of me to be an American but that is the word that I have chosen to describe myself regardless. The definition of what it means to be an American is debatable and varies from each person. It is more about what you are about rather than who you are. It is contributing to this country, pledging allegiance to a flag and being open to the idea of life, liberty, and equality.

I choose to analysis the ethical approach of “Zora Neal Hurston’s “How it Feels to be Colored Me.” I think the author used a very unique to say how she feel about herself. I can relate to the author, when she speaks of her town, and how she didn’t realize her skin until she left her. Growing up I really didn’t know how different my skin was, until I found myself in predominate white church. For a while, people treated me differently, until they realized I was human with a great heart and attitude.

This paragraph from Kesaya Noda’s autobiographical essay “Growing Up Asian in America” represents the conflict that the author feels between her Japanese ethnicity, and her American nationality. The tension she describes in the opening pages of her essay is between what she looks like and is judged to be (a Japanese woman who faces racial stereotypes) versus what she feels like and understands (life as a United States citizen). This passage signals her connection to Japan; and highlights her American upbringing.

“The obstacles of the past can become the gateways that lead to new beginnings.”-Ralph Bloom. Many chinese immigrants fought for their future,lives,and rights.Chinese immigrants were misunderstood because of their culture,looks,clothing styles,etc. They were punished and treated wrong for things that they didn 't know was wrong.What would you do if you were a chinese immigrant, and you were being treated unfairly and bad?

The Gold Rush, beginning in 1848 and ending in 1855, was a period in American history which opened the doors of opportunity to a new group of immigrants, the Chinese. The discovery of gold at Sutter’s Mill, California, in 1848 was the cause of mass Chinese immigration that would last for decades to come. When James Marshall discovered gold in 1848, there were fifty-four recorded Chinese in California, this number quickly rose to 116,000 by 1876. Title (Chinese Immigration During the Gold Rush: The American Encounter) The California Gold Rush allowed for immigrants, such as the Chinese, to encounter the various beliefs and suspicions of the American society. One of the many results of the Chinese experience was the Chinese Exclusion Act, which

The American Dream is something all immigrants dream of achieving when arriving to the United States. But what exactly is the American Dream? Some believe it to be the long-term achievement of a goal through hard work, while others see it as a new opportunity to redo life. The emphasis and interpretation of the American Dream changes between generations because it evolves with a sense of individuality in the new era of citizens, as they lack the background that deprived older generations their rights, which made them crave success and achievement when arriving to America, as illustrated by the relationship of Suyuan and Jing-Mei Woo.

What does it mean to be an american? Isn’t that the question that every american citizen wonders at some point in their lives? It is a simple question that can be taken different ways and answered in many different forms. Some may answer as a personal opinion, others as a factual statement, I however agree with those who see it as an opinion. Every person in America is different in some way. We all go through life in varying manners, some choose to challenge the everyday laws, others cling to the authority hoping not to get noticed, we have different jobs, go to different schools, live in different neighborhoods, some of us have hundreds of family members, and some have none, theres no telling the situation. So the question in general is hard to answer because every American has a different view of living in america. Some people see it as shameful to live in such a cruel country, some are proud to be a part of something that is constantly evolving, there are endless feelings towards America and all are found in the people of this country.

According to the dictionary, the definition of Americanism is a custom, trait, belief, etc., peculiar to the United States of America or its citizens. In 1776 when the United States was established and we declared independence from Britain, we got many rights and freedoms. Those rights and freedoms are still very important today to making Americans who they are and what they believe.

In Sociology, stereotypes are described as "pictures in our heads" that we do not acquire through personal experience. I believe that stereotypes are a mental tool that enforces racial segregation and self-hate. As well justification for dehumanizing minorities. Such as Black women are "Mammy", "Welfare Mothers", "Uneducated", " Inferior", and "Poor". White women are "Pure", "Desirable", "Affluent" and "Superior". These stereotypes are labels that evoke images of oppression, segregation and exploitation of minorities in America. Meanwhile reinforcing the dominance in a social hierarchy.

The Oxford Dictionary defines the “American dream” as, “the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative”. The American dream hasn’t evolved since the coining of the idea; the dream is still to have a steady job, a nice house, and a pleasant family. However, that dream does not appeal to everyone. Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild looks back upon the incredible journey of Chris McCandless. The story of a well-to-do young man who after graduating from a high-ranking university, donates all of savings to charity, burns the cash in his wallet, abandons all of his material possessions, and cuts ties with all of his family and friends to embark on his own personal odesseye in nature to carry out an adventure living in

After watching the movie “A Class Apart: A Mexican American Civil Rights Story”, I realized that I didn’t know much about how Mexico lost part of their land to the United States and about how hard life used to be for Mexican Americans compared to now. I learned about how Mexican Americans were treated in the United States. The movie was mainly about how Mexican Americans were discriminated and they were treated as inferior people. They were not seen as actual “Americans”, but as a second class, calling them names like “shiftless, lazy, dumb, etc.” Another important thing I learned is who was Gus García and what he did for Mexican Americans. His history made a huge difference making people feel stronger. He fought for his people and he didn’t stop until he won. Me being Mexican American makes me

What makes someone an American? This is a question that has so many answers because so many people have different views on Americanism. One person might claim you have to be born in America, some might say you have to be raised in it. While they are not necessarily wrong, others will have a different idea. Some people view Americanism as an attitude, not a nationality. It is how you present yourself to others and to the world. They believe Americanism is based on the American people, not the American land. To them, being an American is about understanding their values and ethics and going along with them.

Well, as many of you might already now, I am here today to give you all some basic information about the USA and the daily life in the states. You all just saw a video with typical American things to give you all a first impression about the daily life in America.

Sui Sin Far was treated like a science project growing up, even grown adults took a second look at her and her siblings because her parents different races. It’s one thing to be curious, but extremely disrespectful and hurtful to treat someone in way that makes them feel anything but human because of others curiosity. Being from two different cultural backgrounds Sui Sin Far received backlash from both sides of her history. Both white and Chinese considered her impure,