Caroline Hwang made the point in her essay "The Good Daughter" that as a first generation American her parents expected her to marry a Korean man. Hwang decided to only date the non-Korean men which she knew she could "stay clearheaded about” so she could fulfill her parent’s wishes and bear children that looked Korean.
In the essay “Your Place is Empty" by Anne Tyler the decision to marry within cultural boundaries was not made. Hassan (a young doctor who took up practice in America) decided to marry Elizabeth (a very American girl). Hassan’s mother decides to take a trip to America and stay as a house guest. The cultural gap between Mrs. Ardavi and Elizabeth as mother-in-law and daughter-in-law and their interactions seemed to be one of the main points of the essay. Certain beliefs and behaviors separated them all from each other.
The beliefs and behaviors that marked Mrs. Ardavi as a foreigner in America were also on some occasions cause for disagreement. Elizabeth tried to be hospitable to her mother-in-law and Hassan was the middle ground for the two. Some of the differences were easy to dismiss as cultural difference and simply worked around. Yet some of the differences were harder to work around. Some commonalties were found and seemed to become the basis of their relationship.
Some of Mrs. Ardavi’s beliefs were common in Iranian culture but not seen in American culture. Beliefs in medals, prayers, and other superstitions are a part of Mrs. Ardavi’s daily life. Although Elizabeth is coming from an American perspective she seemed to be more understanding. She showed this by allowing her mother-in-law to put tiny “medals” on Hilary, including a tiny disc “inscribed with the name of Allah” and “a tiny gold Koran, with a very effective prayer for long life folded up within it.” Elizabeth also conspired with Mrs. Ardavi to hide a miniature Koran inside the glove compartment of Hassan’s car. Even though the cultural difference was a factor this seems to show that there are certain commonalities in their personalities and beliefs between most cultures.
In Mrs. Ardavi's beliefs there is such a thing as clean and unclean. As a simple example bacon is an unclean food in the Muslim religion. Though she was not allowed to eat it Mrs. Ardavi was still curious about the taste of bacon. Mrs. Ardavi separated hersel...
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...rdavi felt that Americans were very wasteful when just walking around the house, when a simple housecoat was appropriate. In public Mrs. Ardavi always wore her kerchief which was the only reminder of the veil she once wore. She only shed her kerchief once "in a sudden fit of daring" at a Christmas party. This demonstrated that clothing can be very important as a part of social connections and part of cultural connections. Among the gifts for Elizabeth and Hilary mentioned in the beginning is included for Hilary “a doll dressed in the complicated costume of a nomad tribe, and an embroidered sheepskin vest”; for Elizabeth she included gold jewelry.
All kinds of examples were given in “Your Place is Empty” that could show the problems that could arise with an intercultural marriage. The problems may not be within the couple, but with family members. This is the situation which Caroline Hwang was trying to avoid by marrying a man from her own culture, even though she is an American. She didn’t want to marry a non-Korean so that there would be no cultural issues to deal with. The differences seemed to be too much to deal with for her situation.
Elizabeth Warnock Fernea wrote Guests of the Sheik based on her experiences living with her husband in a rural village in Iraq for two years. This book details Fernea's experiences as she assumed the dress and sheltered life of a harem woman while delving into a form of life rarely explored due to its isolation and emphasis on privacy. Fernea, herself, was not an anthropologist, but the Guests of the Sheik can be considered an ethnography that far surpasses the practices of its time. Fernea's desire to belong and live as a harem women allows her to experience and understand a culture far too often judged as oppressive and overly conservative. Fernea seeks to enlighten readers of the rich lives the women of El Nahra maintain, despite their adherence
In his most recent album, Kanye West raps, “Now if I fuck this model/ And she just bleached her asshole/ And I get bleach on my T-shirt/ I 'mma feel like an asshole.” He suggests that it is the girl’s fault for getting bleach on his tee shirt, which she only did to make herself more sexually appealing. This misogyny in hip-hop culture is recognized to bring about problems. For instance, the women around these rappers believe they can only do well in life if they submit themselves to the men and allow themselves to be cared for in exchange for physical pleasure. In her essay, “From Fly-Girls to Bitches and Hoes”, Joan Morgan argues that the same rap music that dehumanizes women can be a powerful platform for gender equality if implemented correctly.
The deeply rooted history of a Confucian paradigm in Korea has for long limited women’s roles and rights. In the male-dominated and patriarchal society, women’s roles remained in the domestic sphere, where they were required to be submissive. However, with the introduction of westernization and modernity in the 1920s, modern generation was rapidly incorporated into colonial modernity. Korean women began to “redefine the Korean female identity” by displaying the “new woman” characteristics, in which some literate women initiated to “enhance their education, determine their own physical appearance, and contribute to the debate about changing gender roles and expectations”(Yoo, p.59) Fearing the threat of the emergence of the “new women” with
Cultural differences in the United States have always impacted personal relationships, sometimes for the good, but also for the bad. Lenny and Eunice’s cultural variances were no different. Lenny Abramov was a 39-year-old man who worked in Indefinite Life Extension at Post-Human Services, which allowed the wealthy and the healthy—known as High Net Worth Individuals—to become immoral. Lenny is a self-deprecating Russian-American Jewish male, who is self-conscious about his appearance, uselessly well educated, passionate, neither old nor young, and helplessly prone to error. Eunice Park, on the other hand, is a 24-year-old young Korean-American woman who is constantly struggling with materialism and the pressures of her ...
In the article “ From Fly to Bitches and Hoes” by Joan Morgan, she often speaks about the positive and negative ideas associated with hip-hop music. Black men display their manhood with full on violence, crime, hidden guilt, and secret escapes through drugs and alcohol. Joan Morgan’s article views the root causes of the advantage of misogyny in rap music lyrics. In the beginning of the incitement her desires shift to focus on from rap culture condemnation to a deeper analysis of the root causes. She shows the hidden causes of unpleasant sexism in rap music and argues that we need to look deeper into understanding misogyny. I agree with Joan Morgan with the stance that black men show their emotions in a different way that is seen a different perspective.
Traditions control how one talks and interacts with others in one’s environment. In Bengali society, a strict code of conduct is upheld, with dishonor and isolation as a penalty for straying. Family honor is a central part to Bengali culture, and can determine both the financial and social standing of a family. Usha’s family poses no different, each member wearing the traditional dress of their home country, and Usha’s parents diligently imposing those values on their daughter. Those traditions, the very thing her [Usha] life revolved around, were holding her back from her new life as an American. Her mother in particular held those traditions above her. For example, when Aparna makes Usha wear the traditional attire called “shalwar kameez” to Pranab Kaku and Deborah’s Thanksgiving event. Usha feels isolated from Deborah’s family [Americans] due to this saying, “I was furious with my mother for making a scene before we left the house and forcing me to wear a shalwar kameez. I knew they [Deborah’s siblings] assumed, from my clothing, that I had more in common with the other Bengalis than with them” (Lahiri ...
For Foua, a Hmong mother, the United States was a complete opposite to the life she was use to living and right now preparing this wedding shows the skills that she possess even if they are not very relevant in her new home, “‘I [Foua] am very stupid.’ When I [Anne] asked her why, she said, “Because I don’t know anything here. I don’t know your language. American is so hard, you can watch TV all day ad you still don’t know it” (Fadiman 103). This wedding bought Foua and Anne close in a different way, it created a new level of understanding and appreciation. Anne is starting to discover what it is like to be from another country where the language is different, the clothes are different, the entire way the people live is different. Basically, the world has been flipped upside down and the people need to find their new source of living. It is never easy to pick up a perfectly settled life and suddenly decide that moving and changing it all around is exactly what we need to do. But that was not the case of Foua, her family was forced to move to the United States. This would have made it even harder to adjust. Everything is suddenly thrown at Foua and there is no looking back only forward and the forward might be a lot more difficult. This is why this wedding is like a dream to Foua, it combines her old life with her new life. Although, the skill of creating a Hmong wedding might not be useful in the United States they still create a lot of joy and this joy can lead people to understand one another in a new found way. A new joy that was found in the new life of the bride and groom, but also there was the connection between two cultures. There was a greater understanding and
Rap artists’ using women in an offensive way in the lyrics and videos is something that has recently been taking affect. Many decades ago, rappers did not rap about women the way rappers
Marriage, as an institution, has evolved in the last few decades. As society progresses, the ideas and attitudes about marriage have shifted. Today, individuals are able to choose their partners and are more likely marry for love than convenience. While individuals are guaranteed the right to marry and the freedom to choose their own partners, it has not always been this way. Starting from colonial times up until the late 1960’s, the law in several states prohibited interracial marriages and unions. Fortunately, in 1967, a landmark case deemed such laws as unconstitutional. Currently, as society progresses, racism and social prejudice have decreased and interracial marriages have become, not only legal, but also widely accepted.
There are many arguments surrounding the lyrics in hip-hop and how it may have an impact on today’s society. To begin with, the most debatable opinion is how the language may have an influence on youth. The images betrayed in the media and TV are often misconstrued and fabricated. For example, many rap lyrics are about drug use and in reality, some rappers are not drug users and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Similarly, women lyrics in hip-hop language can be two-fold. Lyrics of feminism and another of exploitation. This illustrates how the language in hip-hop takes away the dignity of women. The word “bitch” is considered profanity but often used frequently and acceptable for women in the hip-hop culture. More importantly, hip-hop is
Hip Hop a grass movement started in 1974 in the South Bronx in New York City. Created to end gang violence, a voice for the underrepresented minority. Rap music is critical to understanding the hip hop generation’s gender crisis, a crisis between sexes that allows African American males to blatantly disrespect African American women for the sake of the culture. The consistent referencing of African American women as ‘bitches’ and ‘hos’ and the hyper sexualization of their bodies is harmful to the African American community. These images instill that it is alright to represent black women in this nature, and harmful to the young girls who are intaking all these negative images. Harmful to both the perspective of young men and women Hip-Hop is like a pillar in the African American culture. It represents how each generation views themselves in this society and how they internalized these narratives. In this essay I will summarize the main arguments in Chapter 7 of Gender talk , discuss the creation and deconstruction on views
She has never had to experience the idea of fitting in with her own culture. Being American is simply natural and a way of life for her. Traveling to another country, especially to one that was nothing like she expected it to be, helped to her stumble upon some important insights. She states being away from her own culture did not change her but made her able to realize what values and habits were the most important to her. In the other story, author Patricia was of Korean descent, but was born and raised here in America. Due to her Korean descent Patricia never really knew for sure where she belonged. She used a name to describe it, “hyphenated Americans,” because she looks like she is from another country but was born and raised here. People right on the streets of New York will ask her where she is from and compliment her on her good English skills. This makes it difficult to truly identify as an American. To really know what values and habits are her own. Traveling to Korea, visiting what they have called her homeland, taught Patricia some important insights of her own.
Without a doubt, it is not difficult to hear the sexualization of women’s bodies in hip-hop music - and it is clear that the impact this has is not positive. Margaret Hunter linguistically analyzed the top fifteen “Hot Rap Tracks” on the Billboard charts in 2007 and 2008 and the top music videos in those years. Her analysis shows that gender relations often become object relations in these songs and that women’s body parts are very often depicted as objects rather than as parts of a human. In addition, she found that in the songs there were many references to a man’s desire to see women dance for him “as if they [were] strippers” (Hunter 28). Since the introduction of hip-hop music into popular culture, the sexualization of women has increased, especially because the common occurrence of words such as ‘letting it show’ seems to indicate ...
In the essays written by both Naheed Mustafa and Sheila Watt-Cloutier the process of acculturation is outlined between two women, and their experiences as they adapt to life with new ideals and realizations implicated upon them due to alterations in social normality. In fact, the realization that both women had been brought up in a northern american society in which the worth of a being was measured, and weighed by appearances and materialism.
In this short story the protagonist is a newly married Indian woman who is attending a party with her husband’s western friends. Throughout the short story the reader senses her anxiety of being introduced to people who are not as conservative as her. “She longed for the sanctuary of the walled home from which marriage had promised an adventurous escape. Each restricting rule became a guiding stone marking a safe path through unknown dangers” ("The First Party"). In this quote, the narrator explains how the Indian woman did not feel comfortable or at ease with this new world she had been introduced too. She fiend to be back home but because of her tie that she made to this man through marriage she is in her mind, stuck with him. In addition to her anxiety of being with non-conservative woman, who drank, smoked, dressed provocatively, and had painted nails, the protagonist grew angry in her own head. “She had been so sure of herself in her contempt and her anger, confident of the righteousness of her beliefs, deep-based on generations-old foundations” ("The First Party"). Is this the way that the Indian people reacted to British colonialism? The things that western people found normal, was this disrespectful to the Indian people. The protagonist surely thought it was and was certain that her anger was not misplaced. She felt as her anger was a sign of her strong faith. She came to the realization that her husband was someone who would challenge her beliefs but above all she knew that her beliefs state that her life must be one with his (“The First Party”). This realization must be heartbreaking, to realize that one 's comfort is not found in their life partner. The protagonist was raised to believe that her life must be one with her husband, that she is