Cultural Plunge Assignment

Upon viewing the performance here at UWL titled, “Singing in the Rain,” I was shown a variety of different styles of dance that were discussed during class. This production consisted of many different performers and movements. These movements ranged from tap dancing to line dancing. While there was a variety of different dancing styles, they all had the same common elements of dance.

It is a story about a family who shows so much loyalty to their traditions and cultures, but it clashes with the strict American “norm” and creates conflict for their most prized possession, their daughter. Young Lia’s health is at risk when the doctors are trying to treat her epilepsy, but the culture barrier between them and her parents put her at risk. Lia’s parents, Nao Kao and Foua Lee believe that their ancient traditions and healing is what Lia needs in order to get better, but Lia’s doctors prescribe her with many prescriptions to help with the seizures and her parent’s inability to read or speak English to communicate

In her autobiography, Neisei Daughter, Monica Sone shares her journey and struggles of growing up, a task made more difficult as she faced racial and gender discrimination. Over the course of the novel she becomes aware of her unique identity and goes from resenting it, to accepting and appreciating her identity.

“Don’t be nervous.” This was the last thing my mom said to me before I entered my first audition for a ballet summer intensive. I was eleven. I did ok and I ended up getting in but like always there were things to improve on. Little did I know then that the teachers are always looking for three things; technique, confidence, and artistry.

On November 7, my family and I were invited to attend a quinceanera. A quinceanera is a traditional celebration of life and gratitude to the fifteenth birthday of a young Hispanic girl. It is believed that it was first celebrated by the Aztecs and Mayans and was adapted by the Spanish Catholics that conquered South America. The ancient Mexicans, or Aztecs, had many ceremonies to mark passages through the stages of life. This ritual emphasizes the young girls journey into womanhood and to announce her new social role to the entire community. The most important part of the celebration is the quincearnera dress she is traditionally known to wear. It is usually a pink or white gown, but today all pastel colors are popular and they can simply choose

As a first-generation Sri Lankan-American, people often assume I am Indian-American, which creates even more confusion than my feelings of being torn between two cultures. In response, as a young teenager, I began to feel like I did not belong anywhere and began to crave acceptance. I did not know where I stood.

W.E.B Dubois famously stated, “ Awful as race, prejudice, lawlessness and ignorance are, we can fight time if we frankly face them and dare name them; and tell the truth; but if we continually dodge and cloud the issue, and say the half-truth because the whole stings and shames; If we do this, we invite catastrophe. Let us then in all charity but unflinching firmness set our faces against all statesmanship that looks as such. I find W.E.B Dubois thoughts to be true based on my upbringings and the lessons that I have been taught in school. Last week I attended the 1619 Conference in McGrew Towers about this particular year, 1619, which establish African American place in America. The 1619: The Making of America conference exemplifies what W.E.B Dubois stated by telling the truth and not clouding the issue. It is pivotal that African Americans know their history and how our country evolved.

In this paper, the work and impact of Maryrose Reeves Allen on Howard University’s campus is explored. Maryrose Reeves Allen was the head of the Department of Physical Education for Women at Howard University, and founder of the Howard University Modern Dance Group. Through a focus on physical, spiritual, mental health for women, she was able to build a program that enriched women, and created personal awareness. While focusing on women’s health, she also provided a platform for audiences to experience dance as both exercise and an art form. She instilled in every woman that they should walk in beauty, and created a legacy that continues

One of the many things that Cassi Arnold was not very good at was waiting. Actually, that’s a lie. She wasn’t very good at waiting only when she was surrounded by a crowd of people, and in this case, she was. To be more specific, she was surrounded by approximately 300 girls waiting to perform in a stadium holding about 47,000 people. This was the Citrus Bowl, and she was part of the All American halftime performance. Cassi and the other girls had been at the stadium since 8 am, and it was now about 1 pm and finally time to perform.

In her article, Embodying Difference, Jane Desmond argues that dance offers important insights into the ways moving bodies articulate cultural meanings and social identities. In other words, she explains the importance of studying the body’s movement as a way of understanding culture and society. She has two main arguments. First, she argues for the importance of the continually changing relational constitutions of cultural forms. Desmond further explains that the key to shedding light on the unequal distribution of power and goods that shape social relations are the concepts of cultural resistance, appropriation, and cultural imperialism (49). Second, she argues that movement needs more attention "as a primary, not a secondary, social text, one of immense importance and tremendous challenge" (49). She argued that because we tend to only rely on texts, art, sometimes music to learn about a culture. Desmond states that "we should not ignore the ways in which dance signals and enacts social identities in all their continually changing

Many Muslim families are labelled, judged, and in some cases feared by the American people. Many major cities have mosques, and it is important to acknowledge the presence and value this individuals have in our society. In effort to achieve a better understanding of the faith itself and the lifestyle of those that follow the faith, I visited a worship service and a community event held at one of the mosques in Iowa. In some ways this experience felt very foreign, yet in many ways it felt very comfortable. The people invited me in, and respected my own boundaries as an observer and learner. This immersion journey began with feelings of fear and hesitation, and concluded with feelings of respect and

During this semester, I gained a lot of skills and knowledge about interpersonal relations. As a human being, as a member of the "global village", everyone need to communicate with others. It is important to learn how to communicate well and how to build a healthy and positive interpersonal relationship with others. Like the textbook’ name “Looking Out Looking In”, we looked in the communication itself, looked out the language barrier, nonverbal messages and effective listening, and looked at relational dynamics.

Mambo Girl (1957), a movie musical, follows Kailing, a talented young woman widely admired for her singing and dancing capabilities, as she searches for acceptance after learning the truth about her background. Shall We Dansu? (1996) follows Mr. Sugiyama, a Japanese accountant who goes on a secretive and intimate journey into the world of ballroom dance. Both Mambo Girl and Shall We Dansu? emphasize the close relationship between intimacy and Latin dance by linking Kailing and Mr. Sugiyama’s manners of dancing Latin to the emotional connection each has with other characters. For Kailing, the presence and absence of physical contact with others while dancing signals the degree of intimacy she has with those around her, whereas, for Mr. Sugiyama,

The Joy Luck Club is what will be our example for the topic Cultural Encounter, which is caused by the differences of cultures. Therefore, communication development is based on sharing thoughts, which leads to an argument that ends either with agreements or disagreements. There are many aspects in an individual that affects the course of this action, and culture is one of them; which I will focus on in this article. I think that it is the most important, in my point of view.

Growing up with an african family was interesting to say the least, my mother and father always cooking, Liberian films, music, and stories. I loved the stories of my culture no matter how ridiculous they were. With stories ranging from snake holy water, to police refusing to work unless you bribed them, and my mother 's long running physic scam, I was always intrigued. My mother and i being the fabulous people that we are were watching, a fashion week live stream, when she yelled chofee ku, which if you don’t know means robber. And she was right, what we saw was horrifying. People dressed in our traditional liberian and nigerian clothes and headdresses, yet the people under the headdresses weren’t people like me yet, white women and men. And