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LITR 4332 American Minority Literature Model Assignments Research Project Submissions 2013 Research Post 1 |
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Amy Fuqua
23 March 2013
The Multiple Ways to Assimilate
A large majority of people want nothing more
than to fit in and belong in the society they exist within. As someone who has
often been pushed to the side due to being different I understand the desire to
be considered normal and fit in like everyone else. As a unique and independent
individual I should not have to bow down to the expectations of others. As an
individual looking for my place in society I have to be aware of the
expectations of society and be aware of just how much I need to compromise to
live well. No one should have to change themselves to fit in, but often the
small changes add up to equal larger changes. There are many ways that people
are assimilated into more dominant cultures. How are people assimilated?
There are multiple answers to the question of
just how people are assimilated. One of the most prominent yet seemingly
innocuous ways is through the various social medias. In the article by Meaghan
Dwyer-Ryan she tells of how people are acculturated through social networks such
as movies, plays, television, and the radio by appealing to peoples’ patriotism.
Of course, “involvement in American mass media entertainment also aided the
process of ethnic acculturation” (Dwyer-Ryan). People want to fit in and belong.
No one with any sanity is going to act in a fashion that screams of ‘treason’
when acting patriotic will win more acceptance and less hostility.
Behavior that is repeated becomes so ingrained that it is automatic. One
acts patriotic until eventually one becomes patriotic. This behavior applies in
many cases with many different actions.
Another really prominent method of
assimilation is through language. If a person is in a foreign country they are
expected to know at least the basics of the language so as to communicate or
possess some alternate method of communication. If a person moves to another
country they are expected to learn the dominant language spoken in their new
home. A language is an integral part of a culture and to learn another culture’s
language with all of its subtle nuances is to begin assimilating into that
culture. In the article by Nancy Carnevale she clearly demonstrates the power of
language with her example of Italian-speaking women and their language patterns.
People want to fit in and be accepted. To be accepted people have to compromise
and often have to accept the standards of others. That often means speaking as
others do. After all, here in Texas people can spot a foreign accent within
seconds of hearing a person speak and that marks them as different. So one must,
“speak like we do” (Carnevale).
With multiple methods for assimilation there
are also multiple approaches to the idea of assimilation. The truly stubborn
might fight it with everything that they have but unless they practice complete
isolation it really is inevitable on some level. There are those who fight it
immediately, those who gradually give in, and those who willingly change to get
ahead. Those who fight assimilation are often in the minority. Rarely if ever do
smaller groups have the authority to govern themselves because of “the
significantly different cultural views they hold in such areas as empirical
beliefs, normative principles and practices, and epistemic procedures for
validating empirical and normative claims” (Valadez). Most people who move to
different places are often younger which can lead to greater chances of
assimilation. Those who set down roots and have families gradually give in.
Often the next generation does better than the initial generation because,
“empirical work shows that immigrants make much progress, on average, from the
first to the second generation, both culturally and socioeconomically” (Portes
and Rivas). Finally there are those who willingly change to fit in. Those who
willingly do so such as the, “immigrant Muslims have benefited from emulating
recent Protestant public sphere successes by building places of worship,
political organizations, and schools” (Biondo). No approach is incorrect.
There is no one answer to the question of how a person is
assimilated. There are many, many different and varied ways for people to be
assimilated into a more dominant culture. There is religion, a conscious
decision to change, and education just to name a few more methods besides
language and pop culture through the use of social media. Once a person is
immersed in another culture assimilation seems to be an inevitability on some
level. Some might fight it and others might embrace it but assimilation is
always there. Even people who have lived in one area all their life are subject
to assimilation because life is change and one must go with the flow if they are
to lead any kind of successful life.
Works Cited
Biondo, Vincent. "Between Tribalism And Pluralism In The U.S.
And Britain." Muslim World (Hartford, Conn.) 98.4 (2008): 475-484. Humanities
Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 15 Mar. 2013.
Carnevale, Nancy C. "Lingua/Lenga’/Language: “The Language
Question” In The Life And Work Of An Italian American Woman." Frontiers 27.2
(2006): 87-101. Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 15 Mar. 2013.
Dwyer-Ryan, Meaghan. "“Yankee Doodle Paddy”: Themes Of Ethnic
Acculturation In Yankee Doodle Dandy." Journal Of American Ethnic History 30.4
(2011): 57-62. Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 15 Mar. 2013.
Portes, Alejandro, and Alejandro Rivas. "The Adaptation Of
Migrant Children." Future Of Children 21.1 (2011): 219-246. ERIC. Web. 15 Mar.
2013.
Valadez, Jorge M. "Deliberation, Cultural Difference, And Indigenous Self-Governance." The Good Society 19.2 (2010): 60-65. Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 15 Mar. 2013.
