Cultural Identity In One Word: Hapa And Everyday Use

How you ever had a disagreement with someone and can’t see how they have that point of view? Well a person’s culture can inform the way they think because their culture has instilled ideas into their mind about what’s right and what’s wrong. In which this can influences their ideas. Some people chose to follow and some people start their own culture/traditions. In excerpts “Two Kinds”, “Multi-Culturalism Explained in One Word: Hapa” and “Everyday Use” there is an example of cultural identity and how it effects the decision in the characters life.

In the novel excerpt “Two Kinds” by Amy Tan, the main character has struggles in-between what her mother wants her to be versus what she feels compelled to be. Jing-Mei mother wants Jing-Mei to be a young prodigy but, yet she is not one. So it cause conflict/tension between Jing-Mei and her mother because Jing-Mei does not want to be a prodigy nor has the skills, and because of this she has no drive. At this moment in time her mother has instilled the piano into her culture. She now looks at the piano differently

This short story is relevant to my positon because the main character struggles with cultural identity ad she uses her identity to make decisions. Dee would qualify my claim because she agrees but yet disagrees with how culture can cause you to make decisions. Dee would disagree because she explains how the old her is dead and she is now “Wangero”. This situation causes her mother “Mama” to be confused about her new identity and to clarify the situation she asked “What happened to Dee?” (Walker 62) and Dee replies with “she is dead” (Walker 62). De has just unclaimed her old culture. Yet, Dee is also trying to reclaim her heritage/culture and that is why she initially went back to her mother’s house. Dee poses a question mother. “Can I have these old quilts?”(Walker ) asked