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2016 Midterm1
(assignment) |
LITR 4340
American Immigrant Literature Model Assignments |
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Alexander Leleux
The Struggle
As I swim through the sea of text presented
in days past, there always stands to be one word that most often fits the
narrative of the Immigrant and Minority Narrative alike; Struggle. As though it
were some deranged initiation ritual, time after time history has presented
immigration patterns from various nations and cultures, each one displaying some
unique strand of resistance and hardship to the concept of a happy life. In
Tracie Estrada’s essay, Resilience: It’s
what defines us, this struggle is explained as the makings to a land of
enduring people. It was this very choice of the word ‘resilience’ in the title
that initially attracted me to the piece. Estrada relates to the various
examples and architypes of immigrant as well as minority narratives by the
struggles they face in the pursuit of assimilation or in simple resistance of
this Dominant culture as though it were some great maw reaching out to swallow
them whole.
I find the particular choice of terms and
identification to be the most fascinating aspect of her writing, and most
certainly rather similar to how I examined the works myself. One set from her
work that stood out most to me was
“The most defining aspect of immigrant narratives is
choice. The catalyst, choice, for an immigrant narrative begins with the
journey.”
This does well to help retell us that
‘choice’ is a very important aspect of the immigrant narrative, but also for
minorities as well. Not only that, but it is important to note that this comes
as a reminder that struggle and hardship is as much a motivating factor of some
immigrant stories as it is the overarching theme.
It is this fact which stands as the marker
of Carolee Osborne’s piece, Feast or
Famine, a title which also exudes the concept of struggle. Rather than focus
on the hardships that awaited Irish immigrants in New York among other states,
the research piece focuses intently on the suffering of the potato famine that
struck their native country during the mid-19th century. It’s not
exactly the most articulate piece, but what it does is highlight one of many
examples as to which individuals might choose to immigrate to America, flight
from famine and disease to escape certain death of loved ones and children. It
stands to reason that, in the face of such insurmountable odds, such hardships
they might face in the Americas is simply paltry in comparison.
In contrast to Osborne’s research report,
which highlights the struggles some immigrants face that forces them to leave
their homeland, Adam Glasgow instead elects to examine potential disturbance
immigrant cultures face after an extended period of time in America. In his
report, A Serious Paper: Jewish American
Identity, Assimilation, and the Coen Brothers, Glasgow detailed a brief
layout of the Coen Brothers as idolized Jewish Americans and how deeply they, as
well as their culture, has been assimilated into American society into such that
there is little to no distinction. What can be said of their struggles is made
in relation to a movie of theirs known as
A Serious Man. The movie holds a parallel to Jewish American society and how
that distinctive culture is slowly being muddled and forgotten in place of the
overwhelming dominant culture. Indeed, this can be paralleled to the Coen
Brothers and their own influences, relating their primary source of inspiration
and designs to that of facets in American society rather than their roots.
No matter where one looks, the immigrant
narrative is one that is rife with struggle and hardship, be it from their
initial choice to take that voyage into unknown territory, or even for those who
face uncertainty even after generations of life in their new home. America and
what stories it has to tell from those who came from distant lands is one of
hardship and resilience. It is that struggle which defines American culture,
more than any other, and it is the means by which we define ourselves as
Americans.
