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(2016
midterm assignment) Sample Student Midterm Answers 2016 (index to #2 samples) #2b: Short Essay (Favorite Term) |
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Alexis Young
Early American Syncing
Syncretism is one of the terms that stuck out to me the most, partially
because I knew the gist of its’ meaning, but mainly because I did not know very
much else. The first thing that comes to my mind when I hear the word
“syncretism” is the word “sync.” In syncretism, two or more religious traditions
or ideas come together, similar to the way a phone, camera, or calendar merges
with a computer when the two are synced. Religion is not the only place where
syncretism can be found; therefore, my first research post on mimesis in early
American literature and class discussions lead me to search for syncretic
concepts found within the views of early Americans.
Our class reading of “La Virgen de Guadalupe” illustrates the concept of
religious syncretism. The text states, “The devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe
is a syncretic manifestation of Catholic and Aztec beliefs.” It then explains
how the image of Mary was modified in order to fit Mexico’s standards: “The skin
was darkened, the hair became dark and straight.” Upon rereading this passage, I
began to remember a discussion where my humanities professor described how the
image of Jesus was originally depicted with darker skin, but one culture decided
to lighten their image of Jesus, in order to separate the differing beliefs. I
understood that cultures adapted concepts from other people or groups to fit
their own ideas; however, I had not broken down the details of adapting an
already complete concept from another place to one’s own mold. I was able to do
that through “La Virgen de Guadalupe” because there is much detail of what
needed to be done after modifying her features to fit their standards. They also
had to melt her colonial ideals into the native ideals, which created a symbol
“from both Christian and pre-Columbian imagery.”
Syncretism can be found in the “Texas Declaration of Independence”
reading. It makes reference to “Nature’s god” and a “Creator.” Throughout, I was
able to connect Texas’ declaration to common ideas found within the deistic
concept of the Founding Fathers. It was able to take the common idea and mold it
into their need for independence.
I began to compare my junior high and high school literature and history
lessons to the college literature and history teachings. One thing was very
prominent: in junior high and high school, I was given the “facts” point blank,
but in college, the close readings, research and lectures lead to many
contradictions or bigger pictures. This is relevant to syncretism because once
you realize where and when two thoughts or beliefs were merged, it has the
ability to change your view or understanding. Even though we went over the text
in class, a more thorough, personal reading really heightened my understanding
and realization that syncretism could be found within literary work from early
America. It is important to understand what syncretic values are found within an
image, belief, idea, etc. because it takes you back through history and culture,
but also because it can be found within more than just religion.
