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2016 Midterm1
(assignment) |
LITR 4340
American Immigrant Literature Model Assignments |
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Elizabeth Tinoco
Knowing the Difference
When
I first thought of Immigrant Literature I used to think that it was all of the
stories that people from other countries would bring with them and their
experiences living in a new country. Now that I have read some narratives from
the perspectives on immigrants and minorities I have realized the differences
and similarities in their writings. It has been made clear that the distinct
difference between minorities and immigrants is choice. While some made the
choice to travel to a new country to live in, others were taken from their home
and forced to live in a foreign place. Their willingness to assimilate to a new
culture also helps better understand the difference and similarities between
minorities and immigrants.
The desire to be in the United States is what separates immigrants from
minorities. For example, people that fall in the minority category would be
African Americans were brought to America against their will and Native
Americans were here before the discovery of America, stripped away of their
natural rights, and labeled as “other”. The story of Olaudah Equiano in
The Interesting Narrative of the Life of
Olaudah Equiano, . . . the African, comes to mind while discussing
minorities because Equiano was someone who was kidnapped and taken from his home
and brought to America to be a slave. “One day, when all our people were gone
out to their works as usual, and only I and my dear sister were left to mind the
house, two men and a woman got over our walls and in a moment seized us both,
and, without giving us time to cry out, or make resistance, they stopped our
mouths, and ran off with us into the nearest wood”, this was one of the ways
minorities were brought into a new land. These are the people who did not make
the decision on their own to become part of a new country, but instead were
taken or forced against their will.
On
the other hand, immigrants are the people who voluntarily left their homeland to
travel somewhere new with hopes of something better such as Asians and
Europeans. A great example of this would be Anchee Min from the story,
The Cooked Seed. Her story of coming
to America to continue a higher education and escape Communism is like one of
many, but does the job of helping readers further understand why immigrants may
leave their own country and sacrifice to possibly have better opportunities in a
different country. “I confessed that I was guilty, and that I was willing to
accept the punishment”, this line from the story though it may seem
insignificant really stood out to me because Min knowingly lied about speaking
about fluent English and that is just another way to see that she was going to
say or do whatever she could to get to America. These types of behaviors are
typically seen from immigrants trying to come to America. Even though immigrants
and minorities differentiate in the reasons for being in a new land such as the
United States, they do share some of the experiences they encounter coming from
another country and culture.
One of the experiences they share is the
process of assimilation, which refers to minorities/immigrants becoming like the
dominant culture. Assimilation happens in various ways for example learning to
speak the dominant language, attending institutions of public education,
marrying someone of a different ethnicity, and appearance such as clothing.
There is plenty of assimilation in Nicholasa Mohr’s story,
The English Lesson, where adults
attend evening classes to learn English. One of them in particular, Joseph Fong,
who is from Hong Kong who states “I taking the course in Basic English to speak
good and improve my position better in this country. Also to be eligible to
become American citizen.” The example of Joseph Fong in Mohr’s story is
important because while others in the story may be taking the class to do better
they’re true intentions to learn English is for reasons other than
assimilations, Fong is one who does it to become a part of America.
This process of converting to the
dominant culture can happen right away which we can see in some immigrants eager
to become like the dominant culture or can be nonexistent which we may see from
minorities who are more hesitant to conform to American culture. In the story of
Elethia, by Alice Walker we are able
to see some resistance to conform to the dominant culture. While time has passed
since the ending of slavery, Elethia is reminded of it every time she passes the
restaurant “Old Uncle Albert’s”. “A certain perverse experience shaped Elethia’s
life, and made it possible for it to be true that she carried with her at all
times a small apothecary jar of ashes. Since Elethia is considered a minority
she is faced with difficulty assimilating to the dominate culture who condoned
the behaviors that her African American ancestors faced as slaves.
In
between willing to conform to the dominant culture and resisting there is a
median where people do not have a
problem with assimilating but also resist some of the characteristics of
dominant culture. We see this in immigrants and minorities who speak the
language and pursue higher education but also stay strong in their own religion
and culture. In the excerpt from Sandals
in the Snow, by Dr. Rose Ihedigbo, the Ihedigbo family from Nigeria came to
American to escape the results of warfare. The family assimilates when it comes
to things like education, sports, and pop culture but resist assimilation when
it comes down to cultural customs. The Ihedigbo family even describe conferences
where people from the Nigerian community come together. Their story is a great
example of semi-assimilation where one keeps important aspects of their own
culture while adopting some of the traits from the dominant culture. Those who
start to model assimilation quickly are most of the time looked at success
stories and are exemplary because they have achieved the culture that the
dominant culture has encouraged.
Model
Minorities can be a confusing term, because as stated before a minority is
someone who did not act willingly to be part of new country. Someone who is
classified as a Model Minority is actually an immigrant who models behaviors
that the dominant culture approves of, such as work ethics, continuing
education, and economic progress. Minorities may relate differently to this
stereotype in the way that they do not feel the need to reach the standards
model minorities do because of the resentment they feel towards the dominant
culture. Since immigrants do not feel this resentment, and are in America for a
better life they take the opportunity to work and study as hard as they can to
reach the “American Dream”. We can see
the dedication of model minorities in the story,
What Color Would You Like, Ma’am?, by
J. Christine Moon, the story of a young man is obligated to work in the family
nail salon when another employee is sick. The young man describes the dedication
of his family’s business as follows, “Thien admired his family for their hard
work. The nail shop was open seven days a week, even on holidays since that’s
when clients were off work and in need of a pedicure.” Model Minorities such as
the one described in this story is one of the numerous immigrants who do
whatever it takes to be successful and make sure their families reach the
standards that the dominant culture sets.
