How does one define what culture is? Culture is defined as the system of shared beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and artifacts that the members of society use to cope with, their world and with one another - transmitted from generation through learning. This is particularly meaning a pattern of behavior shared by a society or group of people; with many things making up a society’s ‘way of life’ such as language, foods etc. Culture is something that molds people into who they are today. It influences how people handle a variety of situations, process information and how they interact with others. However, there are events when one’s own culture does not play a significant role in the decisions that they make or how they see the world. Despite …show more content…
Pat Mora discusses the cultural identity of Hispanic Americans; despite belonging both to an American community and a Mexican community, one can never really be fully integrated into the other; “an American to Mexicans/a Mexican to Americans” (lines 14 and 15). To be constantly “sliding back and forth/between the fringes of both worlds,” (lines 17 and 18) is strenuous and disaffirming. Likewise, she juxtaposes her perception of being viewed as “exotic” but “inferior” at the same time. Another juxtaposition starts with the title of the poem, Legal Alien. In this sense, Pat Mora is legal but feels alien. Despite being an American citizen, Mora feels like an outsider as she is continually singled out for her foundations. To the Mexican people likewise, she depicts her sentiments of being far expelled from their way of life. She is along these lines torn between two universes characterized here by dialect occupation, and ethnicity (“Bi-lingual, Bi-cultural”, line 1). Mora’s poem epitomizes how she noticed the differences in culture and being treated differently; split between the two …show more content…
In the novel excerpt, Two Kinds by Amy Tam, it portrays a young girl named Jing-mei who instead of being affected by her mother’s culture, she is impacted by the American society that she resides in, along with her own persona that emerges. Jing-mei’s mother has high hopes that her daughter will be a great success as a prodigy, but through that process, Jing-mei’s true self-begins to come out. Jing-mei has no desire to cooperate with her mother, fighting her every step of the way. “I didn't have to do what my mother said anymore. I wasn't her slave. This wasn't China. I had listened to her before and look what happened. She was the stupid one," she decides (page 23, paragraph 60). She continues, ““No!” I said, and I now felt stronger, as if my true self-had finally emerged.” (Page 23, paragraph 64). Determined to thwart her mother's ambitions, Jing-mei neglects to practice the piano. This excerpt demonstrates how two strong personalities with their own beliefs are able to come together, while still sticking true to themselves. Associating it with Siddhartha, the novel states, “But one thing this doctrine, so clear, so venerable, does not contain: it does not contain the secret of what the Sublime One himself experienced, he among the hundreds of thousands. This is what I thought and realized when I heard the doctrine. This is why I am continuing my wanderings-not to seek another, better doctrine, because I know there is none, but to
Islas, Arturo. From Migrant Souls. American Mosaic: Multicultural Readings in Context. Eds. Gabriele Rico, Barbara Roche and Sandra Mano. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. 1995. 483-491.
I think that the strongest message on immigration was in the poem “Legal Alien” by Pat Mora. “Legal Alien” really shows how hard it is for people that are bi cultural.
Outsiders in Their Eyes Were Watching God and Legal Alien In Pat Mora's poem, "Legal Alien," the author describes her biracial character as being "viewed by Anglos as perhaps exotic, / perhaps inferior, definitely different, / viewed by Mexicans as alien," a description which highlights the situation encountered by people who strive to be prestigious individuals by floating between cultures and who consequently fail to be a part of any particular group (Mora 9-11). Often the individuals are biologically trapped between two probable lives, and they forge ahead to meet the opportunity of possibly belonging to the higher society while they degrade the small culture which has weaned them from birth. These people find themselves caught up in the universal ideals of achievement and prestige, and they begin to find fault with themselves and their backgrounds; they believe that their perception of themselves must be changed and improved. They must be a part of the group; however, conflict results from their selfish desires, and they are rejected by both organizations.
Pat Mora was born and raised in El Paso, Texas, the city in which her four Spanish-speaking grandparents migrated during the Mexican Revolution. Her firm belief in promoting cross-cultural understanding and the appreciation of Hispanic culture often reveals itself in her works. She often writes about the elements of the Southwest to relate to and empower Hispanics to embrace the cultural traditions that are so significant to their identities (University of Minnesota).
Giger (2013) defines culture as a response in behavior that is shaped over time by values, beliefs, norms and practices shared by members of one's cultural group. A person's culture influences most aspects of his or her life including beliefs, conduct, perceptions, emotions, language, diet, body image, and attitudes about illness and pain (He...
The struggle to find a place inside an un-welcoming America has forced the Latino to recreate one. The Latino feels out of place, torn from the womb inside of America's reality because she would rather use it than know it (Paz 226-227). In response, the Mexican women planted the seeds of home inside the corral*. These tended and potted plants became her burrow of solace and place of acceptance. In the comfort of the suns slices and underneath the orange scents, the women were free. Still the questions pounded in the rhythm of street side whispers. The outside stare thundered in pulses, you are different it said. Instead of listening she tried to instill within her children the pride of language, song, and culture. Her roots weave soul into the stubborn soil and strength grew with each blossom of the fig tree (Goldsmith).
Culture, what is it exactly? Many people believe that your culture defines who you are as a person, as well as in society. When in retrospect, culture is something that you have no control over. You are brought up in a certain way that your family has been brought up for generations. No amount of schooling or experience, can help shape or control who you really are as a person. Sure, in your lifetime you can see extraordinary things that might change your view or opinion on certain subjects, but overall, your culture is what defines you. For many people, it is strange and weird to see something out of the ordinary when it comes to doing thing different. For example, what some might consider to be an insult, others might see it as common courtesy. What type of foods that might be deemed as foul and disgusting in one culture, might be seen as an everyday source of nutrition for another. Culture is a part of who we are, and what we believe in, even if sometimes it seems a little crazy. I believe that is comes down to two main things when dealing with culture. One is how you were raised in this world. Two, your religious side or background, and three how it all ties you together as the person you are.
What is culture? Many people ask themselves this question every day. The more you think about it the more confusing it is. Sometimes you start leaning to a culture and then people tell you you’re wrong
Jimmy Santiago Baca’s poem sends out a powerful message without the use of a strict structure. The modest wording and simple structure helps the writer send his message across. In addition, with the use of imagery, symbolism, diction, and tone, Baca is able to argue and ridicule American stereotypes on Mexican immigrants coming to the country and robbing them of job opportunities. The use of figurative language helps support Baca’s point of view on how the American misconception is irrational and prejudice.
Culture can be defined as “A pattern of basic assumptions invented, discovered or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problems of external adaptation and internal integration that has worked well enough to be considered valid, and therefore to be taught to the new members as the correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to those problems”. Schein (1988)
...ith Jing Mei and her mother, it is compounded by the fact that there are dual nationalities involved as well. Not only did the mother’s good intentions bring about failure and disappointment from Jing Mei, but rooted in her mother’s culture was the belief that children are to be obedient and give respect to their elders. "Only two kinds of daughters.....those who are obedient and those who follow their own mind!" (Tan1) is the comment made by her mother when Jing Mei refuses to continue with piano lessons. In the end, this story shows that not only is the mother-daughter relationship intricately complex but is made even more so with cultural and generational differences added to the mix.
Culture refers to the cumulative deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material objects and possessions acquired by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving. Culture is the systems of knowledge shared by a relatively large group of people…Culture in its broadest sense of cultivated behavior; a totality of a person’s learned, accumulated experience which is socially transmitted, or more briefly, behavior through social learning (http://www.tamu.edu/faculty/choudhury/culture.html).
What is culture? Culture refers to the cumulative deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material objects and possessions acquired by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving
Culture is the totality of learned, socially transmitted customs, knowledge, material objects and behavior. It includes the ideas, value, customs and artifacts of a group of people (Schaefer, 2002). Culture is a pattern of human activities and the symbols that give these activities significance. It is what people eat, how they dress, beliefs they hold and activities they engage in. It is the totality of the way of life evolved by a people in their attempts to meet the challenges of living in their environment, which gives order and meaning to their social, political, economic, aesthetic and religious norms and modes of organization thus distinguishing people from their neighbors.
The term “culture” refers to the complex accumulation of knowledge, folklore, language, rules, rituals, habits, lifestyles, attitudes, beliefs, and customs that link and provide a general identity to a group of people. Cultures take a long time to develop. There are many things that establish identity give meaning to life, define what one becomes, and how one should behave.