Carlitos watched his godmother’s calculating plans assist Mexicans in their escape to the United States; he wanted to receive the same assistance because he wanted to join his mother in the United States. The Structure of the Family This Mexican family is unique in that Rosario was a single mother. The culture of the Mexicans was very family oriented, and it was not common to have single parents among their culture during this time. According to Taylor the population of female headed household has steadily increased in the last decade but less appropriate in the Hispanic population (Taylor, p. 93). Her mother, apparently very ill too... ... middle of paper ... ...as working for, seemingly was running the household.
To make daughter lived as a Mexican, Flor decided to move in Los Angeles, where Mexican made up more than 45% in population. Living among the Mexican community, Flor kept her daughter in safe place with Mexican culture. However, Christina was still got bad effects from others because her mother spent all her time for working. Wanting to protect and share all best thing for the daughter, Flor had to find a new job in new place for earning more money. She worked as housekeeper in Clasky family without speaking English.
Ethnic Identity of Women in House on Mango Street and Woman Hollering Creek The novels The House on Mango Street (Cisneros 1984) and Woman Hollering Creek (Cisneros 1992) relate the new American through the eyes of Cisneros. The women in both novels are caught in the middle of their ethnic identity and their American identity, thus creating the "New American." Cisneros moved between Mexico and the United States often while growing up, thus making her feel "homeless and displaced" (Jones and Jorgenson 109). The House on Mango Street characterizes a community of girls and women restricted in their movements within the barrio. The roles of these girls and women are translated through the eyes of a child.
Growing up she traveled back and forth to Mexico to visit her father’s family and Cleofilas flees to arms of her father later in the story. She has a blended cultural identity that is relevant in the story by how she uses Mexican and English words together. For example when describing soap operas she calls them by the Spanish name telenovela. This story made me reflect on my own life experiences while I was reading it. I thought about my parents divorce, my aunt’s extremely abusive marriage of eleven years and why women, like me, tend to seek that silver lining when it comes to broken relationships.
In spite of the physical and psychological abuse Anzaldúa continue her American education, why? Her mother played a role. At home, her mother reminded her to, “speak English properly” and not “like a Mexican” to get a good job in American society (Anzaldúa 374). Anzaldúa writes, “Chicanos a... ... middle of paper ... ...ge Exposure, Cultural Threat, and Opposition to Immigration." Political Psychology 33.5 (2012): 635-657.
When I asked her why did she think she went as far as she did in school, she responds, “I always saw the struggle with my parents…I know what is like to live in Mexico…the hardships of coming here and the sacrifices my parents did for me.” Even though Monica was little when she lived in Mexico, she noticed the economic hardships her family has faced. Therefore, she feels the responsibility to pursue a higher education and provide her parents a better life. Monica demonstrates an example of a dual frame of reference because her motivation to improve is due to her experiences living in Mexico. When I asked her, if she ever wanted to go back to Mexico, she replied, “I would do it but to do something for the community…it bothers me how here [we are constantly upgrading] and you go over there and everything is the same.” According to Professor Feliciano, the concept of dual frame of reference is based on the individual’s
When my mother arrived in Paterson, she hated it and thought it was so ugly and even cried to go back to Mexico. After six months my mother was able to go back to Mexico to get her green card, which showed that she was a legal citizen of America. My mother’s main priority was about making sure to go to school and get an education. She was able to go to Kennedy High School but hated it since she only spoke Spanish and couldn’t understand anything. The only thing she was able to truly excel in was in Mathematics which she really loved.
Lahiri, a second-generation immigrant, endures the difficulty of living in the middle of her hyphenated label “Indian-American”, whereas she will never fully feel Indian nor fully American, her identity is the combination of her attributes, everything in between. In “My Two Lives”, Jhumpa Lahiri tells of her complicated upbringing in Rhode Island with her Calcutta born-and-raised parents, in which she continually sought a balance between both her Indian and American sides. She explains how she differs from her parents due to immigration, the existent connections to India, and her development as a writer of Indian-American stories. “The Freedom of the Inbetween” written by Sally Dalton-Brown explores the state of limbo, or “being between cultures”, which can make second-generation immigrants feel liberated, or vice versa, trapped within the two (333). This work also discusses how Lahiri writes about her life experiences through her own characters in her books.
“Now my children go to American high schools, they speak English” (8). The protagonist left Mexico to allow her family to have a better life but away from the rest of her family she risked more opportunities for her family to “feel dumb and alone” (11). As her children kept going to American schools their English improved as well, which made the mom feel like an outcast from her embarrassment at mispronouncing words” (16). Although she was embarrassed by her little English, she would take her English book and lock herself in the bathroom “for if I stop trying, I will be deaf when my children need my help” (22). She had a lack of motivation from her husband however, she did it to feel more connected with her family and wanted to be able to bond with her children without struggling.
Teresa is both bilingual and bicultural meaning she can speak two languages and abides by two cultures. Teresa, however, struggles to maintain her Mexican identity due to her mother’s job and her way of life. These struggles that are faced makes Teresa capture the social stratification in the United States at a young age. Teresa was known as the “maid’s daughter” and in preschool she learned about her mother’s social position. Teresa was dragged around with her mother to each employer’s house; it was difficult for her to enter each house because she would have to abide by certain rules in each house.