Curanderismo or traditional folk healing in Mexican culture is a very ancient belief system. Curanderismo comes from the word curar which literally means to heal. The founding fathers (predecessors) are considered Don Pedrito Jaramillo, Teresita, and Niño Fidencio. These people were not all from the same time period (era) the common belief shared was to rid the patient as he or she is called of an illness whose roots come from evil or evil doing done (performed) by someone else. This system of belief is not to be confused with brujeria or witchcraft as that is an entirely other belief system with its own credos. Here each healer or cuandero uses individual methods to heal though with one common thread religion. Curanderismo is not limited to just south of the border for it has transcended into Mexican-American culture. Cuaranderismo continues to live on through the genre of Mexican-American literature.
The predecessors were all healers who chose different methodologies to face evil. The individuals are considered to have been given a special gift from the Supreme Being in this case God, this special gift is referred to as a don. Two founding (basics) steps are and have been the use of religion and herbs. All of these healers understood the medicinal properties of plants from the roots of it till the edge of the leaves. The other common thread through all of them was praying to God as he is/was considered the one who ultimately would heal, as healers are simply interventor (mediums) and the earthly elements the aides to assist the healing. The start of the process to heal is similar to a traditional doctor. The patient will go in and speak of their symptoms based on that the healer begins to cure. Don Pedrito woul...
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What exactly does Aztlan mean? There are various definitions, such as the ancestral homeland of the Aztec people and their descendants or everyone’s individual Aztlan which is ones’ personal sanctuary. A place one creates in their own image consisting of features that show what kind of person they are, while at the same time still recognizing their ethnic culture. We all have this place though not everyone’s is the same. Your hobbies, interests, the way you dress all make up this special place. Without it, we would be metaphorically lost. For example, in the essay “Refiguring Aztlan”, it says, “Through Aztlan we come to better understand psychological time, regional make up, and evolution. Without any one of these ingredients, we would be contempo-rary displaced nomads, suffering the diaspora in our own land, and at the mercy of other social forces. Aztlan allows us to come full circle with our communal background as well as maintain ourselves as
The influence of a supernatural god and the spirit world influenced every aspect of the Indigenous African community including health and healing, thus a holistic approach to health and healing was essential.
Wanting to achieve a sense of fullness is arguably a goal that many, if not everyone, has. To live a life with meaning and transcendence is to live a life worth living; it is to have something that makes you see the beauty in the world and it is to have daily motivation. The Latinx community is a community that embodies this desire of having a meaningful life, and it is mostly evident in the community’s working class. As anthropological studies arise, scholars have also noticed this strong desire. However, they say that working class Latinxs ' longing of fullness stems off form the oppression and “trauma” that they have undergone. In other words, that desire is simply an outlet to escape from tension caused by unprecedented shifts in the lives
Misrepresentation has been a known term all around due to its implementation in many different cultures around the world. Misrepresentation can leave a bad image for something. It can also lead to stereotypes given. Nowadays, these stereotypes are hard to change because they make part of our social lives. To add, they are present in the media, and people, like younger children are being misinformed of what something is really is. This leads to racism and other social conflicts within our human race. In the case of Colombia, an example of misrepresentation within its culture would be in the media through the Netflix Original series known as Narcos. This television hit surrounds the viewers around one of the most dangerous drug dealers in the world, Pablo Escobar. As a normal viewer, I enjoyed watching DEA agents Javier Pena and Steve murphy fight off all the smuggles working for Pablo Escobar, but as a Colombian I clearly viewed how my culture is being misrepresented to over 3 million viewers all over the world. In this
Illness was treated in many ways but the main goal was to achieve a sense of balance and harmony.(p82). Applications of herbs and roots, spiritual intervention, and community wide ritual and ceremonies were all therapeutic practices.(p71). “It was the healer who held the keys to the supernatural and natural worlds and who interpreted signs, diagnosed disease and provided medicines from the grassland, woodland, and parkland pharmacopoeia.”(p18). The healers knowledge of herbs and roots and ways to administer and diagnose had been passed down from generation to generation.(p85). Healers stood as an advantage for the Aboriginal people. “Trust and a personal relationships would naturally build between the patient and the healer.”(p77). This must have ...
Chinese people eat cats or dogs. Blue is a color for boys. Women are bad drivers. Those are the most common phrases I've heard about stereotyping. However, stereotypes are assumptions that are assigned to groups of people because of their religion, nationality, gender, race, clothing, among others. In our daily life, there are negative and positive stereotypes, and it is possible that we all use stereotypes, all the time, without knowing it. Also, in my life I experienced this issue because of my ethnicity and my gender.
Latin American Culture Latin America represents 1/10 of the world's population, and geographically can be located from the land extensions of Mexico, until the Patagonia at Argentina. Some of the most relevant elements of today's culture in Latin America are: Religion, Values, Attitudes, Social structure, Social stratification, Language and Gift-giving hospitality. The predominant religion throughout history in Latin America has been Catholicism. From big cities to small villages, churches, basilicas, and cathedrals are found. Catholicism left its mark, from customs and values to architecture and art.
The Play “Los Vendidos” by Luis Valdez has a lot of stereotypes and racism, the racial majority is the Mexican race and they are seen differently from other races and ethnicities. “Los Vendidos” has a connection to Valdez’s childhood and to all the Mexican immigrant families in the United States. Mexicans are not just seen as hard working people but criminals and slaves. What is Valdez trying to persuade about the Mexican race? Valdez is trying to persuade that the racism towards mexicans should end, because we as human beings are equal.
Latinos have struggled to discover their place inside of a white America for too many years. Past stereotypes and across racism they have fought to belong. Still America is unwilling to open her arms to them. Instead she demands assimilation. With her pot full of stew she asks, "What flavor will you add to this brew?" Some question, some rebel, and others climb in. I argue that it is not the Latino who willingly agreed to partake in this stew. It is America who forced her ideals upon them through mass media and stale history. However her effort has failed, for they have refused to melt.
In particular the roots of Native American Medicine men (often a woman in some cultures) may be traced back to ancient times referred to as Shaman. A special type of healer used by the Indians is referred to as a medicine man (comes from the French word medecin, meaning doctor). Shaman are known in many cultures, but are identified by different names: healers, spiritual healers, medicine men, angakok, ganga, mulogo, witch doctors and warlords, just to name a few. However this does not mean that all Shamans will hold the same beliefs, they may be good or evil, but they do receive their paranormal powers in many forms, some receive them thru visions or trances. Shamanism is humanities oldest form of relationship to the Spirit but it is not a religion. Given the various traditions of Native American people, shamanism takes in a diverse range of methods for collecting knowledge. In other word Native American Shamans use the knowledge to sustain the physical, emotional, spiritual and psychic healing of their people.
To help me understand and analyze a different culture, I watched the film Selena. The film tells the life story of the famous singer Selena Quintanilla-Pérez. Not only does it just tell personal stories from her life, it also gives insight to the Mexican-American culture. Her whole life she lived in the United States, specifically in Texas, but was Hispanic and because of that both her and her family faced more struggles than white singers on the climb to her success. Even though the film is a story about a specific person, it brought understanding into the culture in which she lived. Keeping in mind that these ideas that I drew about the Mexican-American culture is very broad and do not apply to every single person in the culture, there were very obvious differences in their culture and the one that I belong. Mexican-American culture identifies with their family rather than individualized or spiritual identities and the culture has gone through significant changes because of discrimination and the changing demographics of the United States.
Racism comes from different cultural values, ethnic backgrounds, as well as the physical appearances. The conflict of racism occurs when the majority group of society feels that the different cultures and values of the minority group bring deviance to the society. The novel, set in Topanga Canyon, starts out with an major accident that occurs and involves Delaney Mossbacher, a middle-class working man, and Cándido Rincón, an illegal Mexican immigrant. Delaney accidentally hits Cándido with his car and only pays Cándido twenty dollars for treatment. As the novel progresses, Delaney and his wife accuse the factors that corrupt the society on those illegal immigrants based on their class rank and their backgrounds. In The Tortilla Curtain, Boyle
Folklore is a collection of stories passed down from generation to generation that includes Legends, Myths and Fairy tales. Legends are a semi-true story, which has been passed on from a person to another person that has an important meaning. Myths are a traditional story, especially one concerning the early history of a people or explaining some natural or social phenomenon. A Fairytale is a children's story about magical which they have imaginary beings and lands. Hispanic Folklore is the traditional is mostly about beliefs, legends, customs and stories of the community of the hispanic culture. Hispanic or latino culture encompasses the traditions, language, religious beliefs and practices, legends, music and history.
As the first major U.S. success for a Spanish language film, Como Agua Para Chocolate (Alfonso Arau, 1992) has had a major impact on Hispanic culture and the future of Hispanic cinema. This film has many implicit and explicit layers that challenge typical cultural ideals, not only in Hispanic culture, but in various cultures across the world. Based on his wife, Laura Esquivel’s novel, Arau used this film, known commonly as Like Water for Chocolate, to bring to the surface the liberation of females through the empowerment of food. Although food and cooking are often associated with the oppression and generalization of Hispanic women, Like Water for Chocolate captivates an empowering view of women using intimate and heightened cinematography of the food.
One of the most significant and creative events which took place during the years of emerging Chicanismo was the renaming of the Southwestern United States as Aztlan, to signify the name of the spiritual homeland of the Chicano people. After the Aztecs journeyed south from Aztl‡n to eventually found the city of Tenochtitlan and develop a powerful empire, culture and civilization, the legacy of Aztlan was kept alive in their narratives, manuscripts and oral traditions. Mexican culture has always informed Chicano art, but it is the American experience that truly gave birth to this distinct genre. The Aztecs migrated from a mythical homeland called Aztlán, and many Chicanos see the Southwestern U.S. as Aztlán, leading to the popular slogan, "We didn't cross the border - the border crossed us!" The social and ethnic body of the United States are damaged by wounds,