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2016 Midterm1
(assignment) |
LITR 4340
American Immigrant Literature Model Assignments |
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Elizabeth Tinoco
Choice is Key
Reviewing the model assignments was very beneficial and
I did not think to do it before writing my midterm essay, but instead looked
through them halfway into my essay. However, it worked out even better because I
got to see whether or not I was on the right track and it offered ideas that I
may not have mentioned if it wasn’t for the web highlights. The assignment’s
that I really took interest in were Cassandra Rea’s,
Crossing the Invisible Boundary Between Immigrant and Minority Literature;
Jo Ann Pereira’s, In Search of the
American Dream; and Chelsea Jones’
Mexican Americans: A Diamond in the Rough. They discuss the fine line
between immigrant and minority literature, the dominant culture’s unwillingness
to accept immigrants/minorities, and a changing perspective about immigrants
migrating.
In Rea’s Essay,
Crossing the Invisible Boundary Between Immigrant and Minority Literature,
she discusses how sometimes the line between minorities and immigrants can be
blurred and mistaken for one another. As she clarifies the differences between
the two she brilliantly states that the two share the bond wanting to share
their story of being in a new country. She also drifts away from sharing the
typical “American Dream” dream stories and shares stories from immigrants and
minorities who struggled with feeling like they were being denied by the
dominant culture.
Similar to Rea’s Essay, Pereira’s essay,
In Search of the American Dream, She
also talks about the differences and similarities between minorities between
minorities and immigrants while emphasizing on assimilation. Pereira talks about
while some immigrants/minorities long to fit in with American culture, others
resist the changes. She then pulls from stories where people struggle internally
and externally struggle with the decision to become like the dominant culture.
Lastly she shares her personal experience with assimilation and fitting into a
“white” neighborhood with her coming from the Latin culture, which was somewhat
relatable.
While reading Jones’s research paper,
Mexican Americans: A Diamond in the
Rough, I felt myself getting angry on the comments about Mexican immigrants
robbing jobs from Americans because I come from a Mexican-American family who
has immigrated from Mexico and from Natives who have lived in the same place
since before Texas became part of the United States. It had me starting to think
that she stood in the view point of the dominant culture and felt as though she
was judging based on the ideas the dominant culture may have about Mexican
immigrants. As I read on thought I started to feel a sense of relief that she
better understood the effects of Mexican Immigrants coming to America and the
impact it has on the economy. Out of the essays I’ve discussed I enjoyed reading
this one the best because I feel it’s a good example of the dominant culture
accepting immigrants instead of looking down on them.
While all three essays are similar in the sense that
they discuss the nature and struggle of immigrants and minorities they also each
highlight on specific things like assimilation, differences between
minorities/immigrants, and the similarities between them. They remind us to
remember that choice is key when identifying minorities and immigrants in that
minorities did not make the choice to come to America whereas immigrants decided
to come for a chance at a better life.
