Lindsay L. Groth (Undergrad Student)

A New Perspective on What America Is Like Today

Enrolling into a graduate level class and only being an undergrad was a little intimidating for me at first. Was I ready to take on a course of this nature? Will I seem not as educated to my other classmates? Will I truly be able to grasp the material and actually learn something? These were all questions I kept asking myself a week or so before class began. My hopes for the seminar were that I would be able to take with me a better sense of what American Multicultural Literature was, as well as to use this new found knowledge in the future. So far I would have to say that I am quite pleased with the material, our classroom discussions, my fellow classmates, and what I am learning in general. The following is my take on this course as a whole.

In order to better understand the material I will start off by defining a few crucial terms and explaining some concepts associated with the course thus far. An immigrant narrative is a story written or told about an individual or group of people who have come to America on their own free will. Their intent is usually for financial reasons or to achieve the “American Dream” as discussed in Objective 1. Let’s not forget the 5 Stages of the Immigrant Narrative which is laid out in Objective 2. Stages 1 through 5 are as follows: Leave the Old World - Journey to the New World - Shock, resistance, exploitation, and discrimination – Assimilation to the dominant American culture and loss of ethnic identity – Rediscovery or reassertion of ethnic identity.  The minority narrative tells us the stories of a different group of people who were either forced to come here against their will or put here by the government. The third type of narrative includes those individuals or cultures that share both immigrant and minority issues in them. We often refer to these people as “the in-betweens”. Assimilation and resistance are two distinct words brought up in these narratives quite often. To assimilate means to become similar to or integrate; this is also how immigrants ‘become American’. Resistance in this context refers to opposition or conformity into what is expected.

For us to fully grasp all of these terms and concepts we should put them into perspective using various readings from the course. By doing so it will help to illustrate the effect they have on society and those who live in it. Starting with Immigrant Narrative, the poem “American Dream: First Report” written by Joseph Papaleo focuses on how the American Dream was chased even though they felt like outsiders. The poem also discusses how these immigrants felt they had reached their all time low point in life, but came to be on top and in control. Opportunity and hope is what kept them driven to succeed, and to be a part of “the palaces of soap”. In the short story “Soap and Water” by Anzia Yesierska, the narrator is desperately trying to assimilate to the American way of life by going to college to become a teacher. But she is horrible discriminated against because she does fit the mold of what society expects. We see images of this dominant culture throughout which is cold, sterilized, blank and rigid. “Bread Givers” is yet another immigrant narrative by Yesierska that showcases a conversation between two recent immigrants and ones rise to the top in a world that is unforgiving to newcomers. An immigrant narrative is the journey of leaving the Old World behind with great hopes and desires for what the New World has to offer.

Why is it so hard for Native Americans to assimilate to the dominate culture compared to those in the immigrant narratives? The Native Americans have been here, they did not come to a new land like the immigrants. They were pushed completely out by the government, and not by choice. Their culture and background is significantly stronger than those of the immigrants. The immigrants came to the US wanting to assimilate to their new culture, which is opposite of the Native Americans. All in all, we should have assimilated to the Native Americans because they were here first.

The difference between a Minority Narrative and an Immigrant Narrative can be described by using Objective 3 of the course. The differences between immigrant and minority histories lead to different “social contracts”. Minorities do not freely choose the American Dream, and may speak of exploitation rather then opportunity. The dominant culture does not assimilate, it is assimilated to. This is where we see resistance from the minority groups. Alice Walker portrays this opposition in “Elethia” by not allowing black people to eat in the restaurant, but they work in the kitchen. Carrying around the jar of ashes is a way to remember who you are and where you came from, and Elethia was willing to give up who she was or what she believed in. The main character in James Baldwin’s, No Name in the Street lets us know from the beginning that his life-style is dictated by his reluctance to conform. Although he is different from who he was growing up and has certain characteristics to the dominant culture, he not fully assimilated yet.

After discussing the differences between minority and immigrant narratives we are lead to the third type of culture and narrative of this course, the New World Immigrants. This is where we often see overlapping of the two identities, which includes Mexican Americans, other Latinos, and Afro-Caribbean’s. Immigrants sometimes lose their ethnic identity while minorities remain separate; the mixture of the two creates the “in-betweens”. Sandra Cisneros tells a heart warming story of young girls who have not fully assimilated to the white culture yet. “Barbie-Q” shows how Mexican American girls are still innocent and unaware of the ever-changing and discriminating world around them. They patiently wait for a new Barbie every year, but are more than happy to have the slightly damaged ones instead. In “Like Mexicans” by Gary Soto we see how past generations are biased towards others cultures and try their best to keep their family within the same ethnic group. You can have a choice to either be immigrant or minority, but also note that class issues are greater then the race issue at times during the story. “How to Date a Browngirl, Blackgirl, Whitegirl, or Halfie” by Junot Diaz is a refreshing story told through the eyes of a young boy living in a lower end of town trying to impress girls who are different than what he is used to dating. The parents of these girls discriminate against the society where the boy lives due to racial and cultural differences they have.

“The Color Code” is prevalent throughout all of the narratives above in a variety of ways. Skin color plays such an enormous role on how an individual is treated and how they live their life. Light and dark are compared to good and evil, as well as clean or dirty. From 1920 to 1940 the number of immigrants had dropped dramatically because the government passed laws which restricted the number of and type of people coming into America, this is yet another example of how the color code is used.

Family values versus individual rights coincide with “The Color Code” of past and present generations. While the older members of the family desperately try to keep their ethnic background on the forefront, the dominant culture will usually prevail over the younger generation as way of fitting in with those around them. Going to school, hanging out with friends at the mall, and watching television has a profound effect on how fast a child will assimilate to the dominate culture around them. A few important questions to ponder… Will our society ever be able to look past skin color or ethnic background? How has the government and our entertainment needs effected our views on these pressing issues? My hopes are that one day our society will treat everyone equally, or at least what is fair. The American family is constantly changing and adapting to the world around them. This is one aspect of our society that will never change.

In conclusion, it is safe to say that I have learned a plethora of new and interesting ideas regarding immigrants, minorities, and the dominant culture. Being exposed to the variety of texts thus far, and through class discussion I am now more aware of what other cultures and ethnic groups deal with in their daily lives. This course has definitely expanded my knowledge of the subject, and has led me to wanting to know more. I hope to better understand this sometimes sensitive subject with further discussion and readings.

(Friday June 27^th, 2008 – Prep Time: 20 minutes, Writing Started: 1:15 pm / Stopped: 2:20)  

(Saturday June 28^th, 2880 – Writing Started 9:30 am – Finished 10:30 am)