The order in which I read a couple of the text for this class has allowed me to better understand why the characters in the novel do what they do. It has allowed me to put pieces together and get an understanding of the histories and experiences that were stripped and taken away from the people of Trinidad and Jamaica. One of the first pieces of literature I read for this class was Stuart Hall’s essay Cultural Identity and Diaspora. This essay created a framework and shaped the way I perceived the following novel— The Pagoda by Patricia Powell. Hall’s essay broke down two notions of what cultural identity is and through this, I have come to understand why Powell's main character—Mr. Lowe, identified himself as a transgender female as a …show more content…
A Chinese man who lives in Jamaica will result in many to question his identity and ridicule him. This second identity that Hall mentions, made clear as to why it was necessary for Lowe to progress throughout his life creating different identities. He uses his method of passing as a means of survival. However, this does create a conflict and affects Lowes position in the world. Being Chinese, a merchant and a male who now transgresses to become a female has impacted and shifted his sexuality. Because of this, it impacted his hierarchy and therefore, affected his overall class.
By reading Stuart Hall’s article first, it has allowed me to realize that Mr. Lowe is who he is because of his past. More precisely, Hall says “we all write and speak from a particular place and time, from a history and a culture which is specific. What we always say is always “in context”, positioned” (Hall 234). Mr. Lowe was not only misunderstood by Jamaicans but by his own people. This was a direct result of the operation of colonialism. He is speaking from a position of a lower class. But as well as, the young girl who was forced to dress as a boy and then sold by her father. Lowe is also speaking from that time when he was on the ship getting raped by a man and then adapts to the voice of a much older Lowe who tries to comply with a Jamaican identity. Because of these traumatic
The theme of the novel reflects on generational and social difference between black and white people. The novel begins with full of description of traditionally a white boarding schools for boys, which known as Chelsea School from the point of view of one of the important character Jerome Washington. He was the only black member of the faculty for more than 25 years at the school who teach Latin. He is a complex character who believes that “I believe that I can affect the hearts and minds of boys who might never have seen an educated Negro before-”
In Deadly Unna?, Phillip Gwynne explores the themes of belonging and power within this racially segregated society. The story is written from
THESIS - When evaluating Arnold “Junior” Spirit from Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and Jin Wang from Gene Luen Yang’s American Born Chinese, similarities radiate in both characters as their disparity in race deem the two of them as outcasts in the entirety of society. In addition to their lack of social interactions, their uniformity in their impulsive decisions cost them each a dear friend. Although Junior and Jin are quite similar, they share differences in the way Junior tries bettering himself by fitting into both his Indian and Reardan culture whereas Jin changes himself in every possible way to become Americanized.
In the majority of stories we read, authors use literary elements such as setting, plot, or point of view, to try and illustrate their ideas and views, such as political views. In our short story unit, we have read many stories whose authors each define culture using different literary elements like the aforementioned ones. In “Saint Chola”, K. Kvashay-Boyle uses literary elements such as symbols, character, setting, and language, to develop cultural ideas about not only one culture, but three different cultures. She develops ideas about Muslims, Americans, and the sub-culture of junior high students in America. While developing ideas about these three cultures, Boyle also
The third section of the essay uses narration but also analysis, as Liu examines the effects of his assimilation. As Liu narrates his experiences in college, he analyzes their importance as related to his own acceptance into white American culture. Liu examines the cause and effect of his acts in college, like how he chose not to be pigeonholed by the race-specific clubs. He considers whether it was a good idea to distance himself from his Chinese culture in order to achieve success and respect in America. The third section deals with Liu’s college experience and how it played a part in his
With these identifications, the writers are able to shift their focus from trying to “fit-in” into fighting so justice with prejudice and discrimination. Ortiz Cofer states, “There are however, thousands of Latinas without the privilege of an education or the entree into society that I have. For them life is a struggle against the misconceptions perpetuated… We cannot change this by legislating the way people look at us. The transformation… at a more individual level ” (page 229). This quotation shows how Ortiz Cofer is openly saying as a more fortunate Latina she still see problems that should definitely be fixed. Like Ortiz Cofer, Wright identifies herself which helps her transition to fight discrimination and prejudice. According to Wright, “ I am Nigerian… But I am also American… and African American women can be personally invested in the global fight against sexism, ethnocentrism, and class prejudice ” (page 34). As Wright states who she is with confidence she says how other African American women can also be confident and invested in having pride of their roots and fighting against ethnocentrism, class prejudice, sexism. By identifying who they are, you see the writers embrace where they are from and begin to want to fight
Jin Wang was born in America but is also Chinese. He faces some difficulties with racism and stereotypes as he grows up. He just moved to a new school from San Francisco. The teacher introduces him to the class and says,” Class, I'd like us all to give a warm Mayflower Elementary welcome to your new friend and Classmate Jin Wang...He and his family recently moved to our neighborhood all the way from China!”(30). Jin has this look on his face of annoyance. Like, did she actually say this. She is too ignorant to ask so she just assumed that since he is Chinese, that he must be from China. He was born in America. This just shows how ignorant people are about other cultures. It makes it even harder to fit in if people don't even care where you're from and just make assumptions. Jin now experiences this first hand. He tries so hard to fit in and be normal. He goes as far as changing his hair to match the guys hair that Amelia likes. When he isn't noticed as much he wants to become someone else, someone who will fit in. He wakes up in the morning a new person, as he has transformed into someone he is not, he thinks to himself,”A new face deserved a new name. I decided to call myself...Danny”(198). He changed his race he didn't like his heritage and cultures so much
Loraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in The Sun” and Milcha Sanchez-Scott’s “The Cuban Swimmer” both capture the authors’ past experiences of oppression, and convey their struggles with identity. Both authors are from minority cultures, and both describe the same harsh pressures from the dominant culture. Both author’s share situations of being outcasts, coming from different racial backgrounds and trying to triumph over these obstacles.
If the young man who is the genetic epitome of a white Midwestern hick instead considers himself firmly an Asian-American, what does this say? Obviously, in his case, genetics do not win out. The culture in which he was surrounded has changed him completely. In this play we learn that Benjamin, a blond, blue-eyed tourist, is lost while searching for Chinatown.
Although I can’t specifically relate to Gloria Anzaldúa’s struggle between her languages in “How to Tame a Wild Tongue,” I can relate to her “kind of dual identity” in which she identifies with neither Anglo-American cultural values nor Mexican cultural values (1566). Being half white, half Chinese, I struggle identifying as either identity, especially because my mom (who is Chinese) never learned Cantonese and largely became Americanized in her childhood. It’s an uncomfortable position to be in when racial and ethnic identity are so significant in America and when I must interact with the world as part of both the majority and the marginalized. Considering my own struggle and the conflict Anzaldúa describes, it became clearer to me the way race relations in American not only marginalize people of color but train our consciousnesses to damage ourselves. Before I turn back to Anzaldúa, a novel I’ve recently read, William Godwin’s Caleb Williams has also been on my mind, particularly in Godwin’s portrayal of how police surveillance transforms us into agents of our own oppression. Although Caleb is a white man, he also experiences a split consciousness as his values and characteristics are whittled away by the paranoia of constant surveillance.
Comparison of the other male character Delaney which lives his life as a typical American which sometimes can play the role as the one that is not the bread getter in the family, and With being a typical American comes with typical prejudice “The ones coming in through the Tortilla Curtain down there, those are the ones that are killing us. They're peasants, my friend. No education, no resources, no skills - all they've got to offer is a strong back, and the irony is we need fewer and fewer strong backs every day because we've got robotics and computers and farm machinery that can do the labor of a hundred men at a fraction of the cost”(101). Delaneys family shows how American culture has affected the ways that America begins to believe her fantasy and goes against what candido is trying to sustain in there family “It was a private community, comprising a golf course, ten tennis courts, a community center and some two hundred and fifty homes, each set on one-point-five acres and strictly conforming to the covenants, conditions and restrictions set forth in the 1973 articles of incorporation”(30) Also being an outcast that sticks out in the crowds of rich white “gringos” that are in Malibu Begins to have an added stress on both America and candido with staying hidden at their camp. Since they are casted out to the revine that they have placed shelter in, it does take a toll on the way that candido reacts with the actions that america is
Anxiety disorders is the most common grouping of psychiatric illnesses which can affect both children and adults. There is an estimated 19 million adult persons in the United States suffering from an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders stem from numerous sources, including genetics, brain chemistry, personality, and life events. The Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) categorizes these disorders as General Anxiety Disorder (GAD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), social anxiety disorder, and phobias. Anxiety disorders are treatable and manageable by psychosocial therapies, medication, or both, though only about one-third of those suffering from
The Japanese and their rabid ethnocentrism have their effect on the narrator’s family. The family is generally happy and well structured. The narrator lives with his mother, father, little sister and grandfather. As mentioned before, the narrator’s family pressures him to be better than the Japanese students. Upon returning home after being beaten, the men of the house invite him to eat with them and drink wine. This is a strong scene that is filled with the proudness of a parent for their son. Simply standing up to a
The tale “American Born Chinese” by Gene Luch Wang depicts the story of three characters, Monkey, Jin, and Danny. They all have the problem of fitting into their new environments. Jin Wang has to deal with Asian stereotypes. Danny has to deal with embarrassment of his cousin. Lastly, Monkey has to deal with the fact that there is no position for him in the heavenly ranks. However, over time, these characters have to come together to fit in. Yet the question remains: what exactly about fitting in is the problem? Although Jin Wang takes the form of Danny to reject his Chinese roots, the embarrassment of Chin-Knee shows he cannot hide behind a false American identity, thereby delineating that race is the source of his problem.
Lowe makes note that throughout history, people native of the large Asian countries such as the China, Japanese, Korean, (Asian) Indian, have long played “crucial roles in the building and the sustaining of America”. And for anyone to challenge that statement would be a fool. For instance, a great deal of Hawaii’s plantation immigrant workers was of Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino descent. But often, their efforts have been left unnoticed, left