Adapting, though it is one of most humans’ skills, is simple for some but problematic for others. Learning a new language, culture, or a social group can be challenging. In the stories “Greasy Lake” and “Mericans”, these main characters are facing just that in the themes. Whereas the characters come from different worlds than the settings of the stories, both authors show the struggle with the uncertainty of one's identity given that the ends of the stories show the one cannot judge a book by its cover. In the reading "Greasy Lake" by T. Coraghessan Boyle the author portrays a group of young men are struggling with the uncertainty of their identity. The narrator, Digby, and Jeff are trying to fit in into the “dangerous” culture. These young …show more content…
The title by itself is a symbol of the play on the two cultures of Mexico and America mixed for our three main characters. The three children do not understand the awful grandmother’s praying because it’s old Mexican tradition that the reader can tell has died out because “there are so many prayers and promises and thanks be to God to be given in the name of the husband and the sons and the only daughter who never attend mass” (Cisneros 89). Outside the church the children stand waiting for their grandmother watching the American influence vendors outside which the children “cannot spend their allowance on fried cookies, comic books, or those clear con-shaped suckers that make everything look like a rainbow” (Cisneros 89). Keeks, Micaela’s younger brother, has also become familiarized by the American culture as he is playing games that reflect the pop culture like Flash Gordon and The Long Ranger. The author plays a bit of a twist on the identity crisis in this story by adding in that Micaela is a girl. “Girl. We can’t play with a girl,” (Cisneros 89) was her brothers’ way of insulting her. The author is showing us the role reversal did not matter in what culture it was because Micaela played into the insult since she would not cry because “ crying is what girls do” (Cisneros 89). The ending of this story brings back judging a book by its cover when
Emage Grant Academic Book Review #1 The book “The Great Arizona Orphan Abduction” by Linda Gordon is about a group of nuns that are from New York that brought some Irish orphans into Arizona at a mining camp so that they would could live with Catholic families. Eventually the orphans ended up getting kidnapped and he nuns that were trying to save the children almost got killed because they thought that they were doing a kind act for the children. The Catholic families that the children were with were basically seen as inferior because of the fact that they were Mexican and Catholic, but all the whites in Arizona were Protestant and looked down on them. “These children, stolen or rescued, depending on one's point of view, were mostly Catholic,
Great interpretation. Martin Espada uses his personal experience as a Puerto Rican-American kid who acknowledges that his family 's native country is starting to lose grip of their Puerto Rican customs for an Americanized Culture due to American corporate influences. He fears that his native country will abandon their own culture and adapt to American ways.
For immigrants, it is hard to be accepted in America, in this case, "Latino/ Hispanic" immigrants. Not only do they have to face the struggle of living in America but face all the cultural aspect as well. In The Garcia Girls lost Their Accents Julia Alvarez shows many adversities in forms of literary devices. Immigrants go through many hardships such as dual identity, gender inequality, and cultural expectation.
"Mericans" and "Response to Executive Order 9066" both convey the struggles of living in america and being from a different background. Even though, they may have been born and raised in america they aren't seen as Americans. They are constantly faced with generalization and stereotypes. For example, some people are surprised when they speak English. Okita and Cisnero both faced struggles, people generalized all Mexicans and all Japanese to act in a certain way based on their appearance and background.
From the post Mexican-American war to late 1970s, ushers in the church always separated the seats of Mexican-origin people and the Anglos— they policed the racial boundaries among people (Nájera 2015: 135). Even more annoyingly, Mexican-origin people’s customs were not respected by the Anglos in the church. Mexican people used to have some popular religious practices, such as celebration of El Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) (Nájera 2015: 45). Nevertheless, the Anglos didn’t allow their practices and criticized the Mexican-origin people for engaging in “ridiculous” activities (Nájera 2015: 46). Instead of applying the principle of culture relativism, the Anglos at that time judged Mexican people’s culture using their standards and misread the significance of Mexican people’s
The Mexican siblings are caught between their culture and that of America. Also, the Japanese girl is split between her culture and that of the US. The people from the two foreign cultures seem to identify with the American
Judith Cofer and Brent Staples both express their experiences of being judged and stereotyped in the public sphere. Cofer’s essay, “The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria,” explains how she was typically stereotyped as an uneducated Latina. In Staples’ essay, “Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space,” elaborates on how he is seen as a threat in the community due to his race. Although both essays express similar material based on judgement, each essayist presents their write up differently. Cofer has an aggrieved tone and uses experiences where she responds actively to being mistreated to express how she feels, whereas Staples’ tone is much more passive and he utilizes his experiences of mistreatment with humbleness.
This is due to the behaviors and beliefs that the children had learned while living in America, which she describes as a “barbaric country with its barbarian ways” (Cisneros 90). In result, the grandmother views it as her duty to pray for her family and the awful culture in which they were born, so, “like La Virgen de Guadalupe, the awful grandmother intercedes on their behalf” (Cisneros 89). The grandmother’s view on America is very evident as she considers it to be a very cruel and unsophisticated place. Overall, the choice of vocabulary in which the grandmother uses to describe America reveals a sense of superiority, or ethnocentrism, in regards to the Mexican culture in which she practices. Furthermore, the children are quick to learn of the many rules in which the “awful grandmother” sternly enforces.
Through Antonio and Ultima, readers identify the creation of a culture that has been forge by war, discrimination, and common hardships. With Ultima being a powerful curandera, the story shows the importance of the female character within Mexican culture. Today, this is prevalent in many Mexican-American households, as the elderly women are held in the highest respect. Another aspect of Mexican-American Culture is masculinity, which is shown in Bless Me, Ultima when Antonio’s father says, “a man of the llano does not run from a fight” (Anaya, 1999, p.37). There are countless examples of Mexican-American masculinity in this novel, like when it mentions that Gabriel’s two eldest sons are fighting in WWII.
Adolescence can be described as a period of awareness and self-definition. According to Erikson (1968), it is an important period in the enduring process of identity formation in the life of an individual. The movie ‘The Breakfast Club’, focuses on a group of five adolescents, and their pursuit to find their prospective identity. This essay will focus on the process of identity development in these five adolescents, with particular reference to the character Andrew Clark. In addition, it seeks to highlight the different identity statuses, as well as, the factors that facilitate or hinder identity formation.
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
The names of the children show the doubleness that is carried throughout the story Meaning, on the American side of the border, they are Michelle, Junior, and Keeks; on the other side, with their abuela, they are called by their Mexican names, Micaela, Enrique, and Alfredito. The word barbarian that the grandmother uses to describe the birthplace of the children, also points out cultural differences. The inside of the church is described as dust and dark inside, signifying the past, holy and ancient. Outside it is bright and hot, and Keeks is playing games that reflect American pop culture: Flash Gordon, the Lone Ranger, and other super-hero figures.
This poem is about two children playing a game they call “La Migra”. “La Migra” is Mexican slang for U.S border agents. The name of this poem is very powerful. Throughout the poem, two distinct roles are played in the game. The two roles are the US border agent and the Mexican attempting to flee Mexico.
Differences in Expectations an Argumentative Analysis of Aurora Guerrero’s film Mosquita y Mari In Aurora Guerrero’s film Mosquita y Mari discusses the lives of two high school classmates Mari and Yolanda who are growing up in Huntington Park a predominantly Mexican neighborhood in Los Angeles California. In this film characters Mari and Yolanda have contrasting backgrounds. Because Mari’s upbringing contrasts with Yolanda’s it allows for the viewer to question both sides of the immigrant experience and furthermore examine what that contrast can mean for the maturing women.
“To be a queen of a household is a powerful thing”, quoted by Jill Scott, which portrays the idea of being the head of a household as a woman. Like Water for Chocolate, written by Laura Esquirel, firmly emphasizes the power that the head of a household could have and use. In this novel, the unavailability of a father in the family led Mama Elena to take the role as a head of household. Mama Elena is a mother of three daughters who treats her youngest daughter overbearingly, due to the Mexican tradition. Although Mama Elena is biologically a woman, she has almost identical characteristics as men do.