Bilingualism and Cultural Identity Development

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“Children begin to develop a sense of identity as individuals and as members of groups from their earliest interactions with others” (Trumbull and Pacheco 9). People start to develop their cultural identities as a young child, unknowingly, by their interactions with other people. Though, what is a person’s cultural identity? According to one source, cultural identity can be described as “one of the most basic type of identity is ethnic identity, which entails an awareness of one’s membership in a social group that has a common culture” (Trumbull and Pacheco 9). Considering this definition, I see now that my cultural identity can be best represented by my language because I can speak both English and Spanish and I use both languages on a daily …show more content…

“Two Kinds,” by Amy Tan, is a perfect example of a girl whose parent pushes her into rebelling. The protagonist’s mother sets high expectations for her daughter, some her daughter can’t comply with. Her mother argues, “Those who are obedient and those who follow their own mind! Only one kind of daughter can live in this house. Obedient daughter” (Tan 231). The standards are set and only one type of daughter is allowed in the narrator’s house. Is it possible to succeed in something you aren’t passionate about. Jing-mei knows she has failed “and after seeing [her] mother’s disappointed face once again, something inside [her] began to die. [She] hated the test, the raised hopes and failed expectations” (Tan 223). Because the narrator knows she isn’t good at these things she is doing, rage started to grow inside of her. Parents tend to push their children into changing for the better. Children aren’t appreciative of that and some rebel to show his or her parent that they don’t want to change. Jing-mei expresses her dismay and reveals, “I won’t let her change me, I promise myself, I won’t be what I’m not” (Tan 223). Determined to stay true to herself, the protagonist disregards her mother’s expectation. Expectations from any culture can make or break anyone. Add

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