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Sample Student
final answers 2013 (2013 final exam assignment) #1: Research Reports |
LITR 4333
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Helen Duarte
December 9, 2013
What it means to be Latin-American
The topic I chose was influenced by my
personal experience as a Honduran-American. To fully explain why this topic is
important to me (and every other Hispanic American) it is necessary to dive a
little bit into my personal experience. However, my focus will be to explore the
experiences of Hispanic Americans in different parts of the country giving
special attention to which stereotypes are applied based on which features, and
(more importantly) how do different types of Hispanics identify with their own
culture within the vast amount of Spanish speaking cultures.
For instance, in my experience in the U.S. Navy I travelled
around the world quite a few times and I met a lot of people from many different
backgrounds. I noticed that when I travelled to Florida everyone there assumed
that I was Cuban, regardless of the way I spoke, looked, or acted, based only on
my ability to speak Spanish everyone assumed that I was Cuban. Conversely, being
from Texas everyone here that does not already know me, usually assumes that I
am Mexican. Therefore, I wondered, what makes me identify with Honduras and
stand proudly by my Honduran heritage? The mass public of America, if not
familiar with Latinos, cannot tell the differences between the different types
of Latin cultures. I have even spoken to some that still believe I am making it
all up and that we are all the same because we all speak Spanish. So, I want to
focus on Hispanic identity in America and explore experiences of Hispanics
living in different areas of the U.S.
Firstly, my own experience growing up in
Texas is probably very similar to any other Hispanic American living in the
area. Admittedly, this is probably a fair assumption since a great number of
Hispanic immigrants in Texas do, in fact, come from Mexico. According to the
United States 2010 Census Bureau, Hispanics made up 34% of Texans using the term
as “a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or
other Spanish culture regardless of race” (www.census.gov).
Therefore, there is no actual term for race to identify a Hispanic person;
instead, a Latino is identified by the country his family is from or, more
simply, by what language he speaks. So, I certainly can speak the language of
Mexico, does that mean that I and another Mexican girl are interchangeable? Ask
anyone who is not Mexican that question and you will receive a very passionate
“NO.” What makes a member of a specific Hispanic culture identify himself with
that culture besides the obvious fact that they were born there?
So what does it really mean for those American born Hispanics
to be stereotyped as the wrong kind of Hispanic? Personally, I was born in
Honduras but became a citizen of the United States and I have fully assimilated
to the American culture, yet I still get wrongly categorized based on how I
look. It helps to identify the reasons why I consider myself Honduran, and why
Mexicans consider themselves Mexican, and so on with other Hispanics.
According to
www.pewhispanic.org,
over half of Hispanic Americans identify their Latin heritage with their country
of origin, or where their family comes from. But, specifically, I know there are
other reasons why I consider myself a Honduran. One reason is the food; Honduran
food, though similar to other Hispanic food, is flavored with different spices
and prepared differently. In my culture, there are dishes that are completely
alien to other cultures, even if composed with similar ingredients. So there is
the concept of food that we use to identify with our perspective cultures. For
example, tacos and guacamole are typically Mexican dishes; when I go to Honduras
I never eat tacos or guacamole, but if I say I want baliadas I know my aunts
make the best. Now, not a lot of people outside of Honduras know what a baliada
is, but Hondurans love them. Food is a strong unifier amongst Hispanic cultures
and the different kinds of foods often help a Hispanic American identify with
his or her country of family origin.
Still, I can understand why those who were
not raised in a Hispanic family would assume we are all the same. The Spanish
language may sound the same coming from any Hispanic to someone that does not
speak it. Language provides a strong sense of identity for any culture and
Hispanic culture is no different. What most people may not realize, though, is
that every Hispanic country has a different way to speak the same language. The
Spanish language changes from country to country whether its rhythm, cadence,
inflection, or whole words. Some words only exist in the specific countries that
use them. For instance, the way that a person from the Dominican Republic speaks
Spanish will sound very different than someone that is from Spain. The
Dominican’s tend to clip their words at the end of them, almost not even
pronouncing the final syllable of the word. The pace in which they speak their
sentences is very fast, so fast that it always sounds like the word following
the previous word always cuts the former off before it is fully pronounced.
Similarly,
a Spaniard will also speak quickly but their Spanish is more delicate. In other
words, when a Spaniard speaks Spanish it almost sounds like a song because,
though the pace is fast, the words are clearly articulated. All except for one
consonant sound, however: the “S” sound. The Spaniards sound like they have a
sort of lisp when they speak because instead of pronouncing their “S” with a
“ssssss” sound they substitute it with a “th” sound. Therefore, their version of
the Spanish language sounds softer than the sharply pronounced version of the
Dominicans. When I am asked what the differences are in how Hispanics speak the
language of their country I always compare the differences to something that
everyone can understand. Think of it this way, there are a lot of countries that
speak the English Language but their accents differ from country to country. So,
in a way this is how Spanish works. The Dominicans could be compared to the way
a person with a Scottish accent speaks English, while a Spaniard can be compared
to how someone from Great Britain speaks English. That is the simplest way to
understand the variations in the Spanish language. This is another way that a
Hispanic person identifies with his or her country of origin: through how his or
her family pronounces the Spanish language.
Understanding the cultural differences
between groups that may seem overall exactly the same can help ease tensions
between two completely different cultural groups. For instance, when teaching a
class filled with many Latin students knowing how they each are different can
build a trusting relationship between student and teacher. When the student sees
that his teacher is respecting the customs of his culture he may reciprocate and
want to be always respectful in return. Just for examples, I looked up taboos
typical to difference Latin American cultures to see how much we still have to
learn about each other. From personal experience, I know that for Hondurans it
is considered rude to toss things to one another (excluding athletic purposes,
of course). The action is compared to when one tosses a scrap of food to a dog
under the dining room table, ergo, it is rude to toss the remote in the living
room and the preferred action is to hand it over.
Now according to culturecrossing.net, the taboos in other
countries are not always the same; in Mexico, when demonstrating a person’s
height with a hand gesture, it would be considered disrespectful to demonstrate
with your hand facings palm down. When referring to humans, it is customary to
flatten the palm pointing all your fingers upward with the heel of your hand
angled to the floor. If you do this wrong you could be referring to the person
that you are describing as a dog that is beneath you. These are only two
examples, but there are countless more within every Latin American country.
Understanding that not all Hispanics are the
same, particularly if you are in the education field, can pave the way for
positive interactions between teacher and students. The differences are subtle,
but for some Hispanics, critical. Maybe it is not necessary to memorize every
single detail about each culture, but understanding that the differences exist
can be a step in the right direction. Not grouping members of a certain race
into a one-size-fits-all category will be helpful for all types of cultures, not
just Hispanics. Often, when I am mistaken for another type of Latino I do not
get too upset because I understand that it can be difficult to distinguish these
differences. However, seeing that someone has tried to build, at the very least,
a rudimentary knowledge base of our differences is a huge sign of respect and I
appreciate the gesture very much. Each Hispanic American has a history both in
his own country of origin, as well as his immigration story. Acknowledging that
a Mexican-American’s origin story differs greatly from that of a
Cuban-American’s history in the U.S., means that you respect that person’s
individual history and struggle. So, piling all Hispanics into one giant
“melting pot” can mean disregarding the history of that culture and the trials
they fought an overcame to live here in America. Those struggles are the biggest
way that Hispanics identify with their country of origin; knowing what your
ancestors went through and how far you can go because of them gives you a sense
of pride. That pride is what distinguishes you from other countries, even if
they are generally more similar than different.
Works Cited
"Texas QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau." Texas
QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau.
N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2013.
"When Labels Don't Fit: Hispanics and Their Views of
Identity." Pew Hispanic Center RSS.
N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2013.
"Three-Fourths of Hispanics Say Their Community Needs a
Leader." Pew Hispanic Center RSS.
N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2013.
"Demographics." Pew Charitable Trusts. N.p., n.d. Web. 05
Nov. 2013.
"Countries and Their Cultures." Honduran Americans. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 09 Dec. 2013.
"Honduras: Culture." GlobalEDGE: Your Source for Global
Business Knowledge. N.p., n.d.
Web. 09 Dec. 2013.
"Honduras - Culture, Customs & Etiquette - Culture Crossing."
Honduras - Culture, Customs &
Etiquette -
Culture Crossing. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Dec. 2013.
