Identity Shaped by Culture A person’s identity develops from birth and is shaped by many components, including values and attitudes given at home. We all have a different perspective about who we want to be and what fits better with our personality. However, is our identity only shaped by personal choices or does culture play an important role here? It is a fact that the human being is always looking for an inclusion in society. For instance, there is a clear emphasis in both, “Masks”, by Lucy Grealy, and “Stranger in the Village”, by James Baldwin that identity can be shaped by culture. Grealy does a great job writing about the main issue that has made her life so difficult: her appearance. Cancer has placed her in a position where people, …show more content…
In “Masks”, children are curious to know what is wrong with Lucy, they ask themselves why does she look the way she look. There is a moment where one of her friends asks Lucy if she is dying. Notice in this part how innocent her questions is for her to understand the magnitude of these words. Similarly, Baldwin in “Stranger in the Village” is treated different from the rest. Villagers express their doubts about the origin of his appearance. As an example, the writer describes how they start to question his physical characteristic. Some of them think that “his hair is made by cotton or wires”, also that “he can make a winter coat with his hair if he lets it grow.” The fact that “his skin color doesn’t rub off” is astonishing to them. However, he mentions that he knows there is no intentional unkindness, but a genuine wonder of what or who he …show more content…
Lucy believes that even though she has gone through so much pain throughout her life, it can always be worse; there are people having more difficulties in their lives. For example, she brings up this ideology when she is watching the horrors of Cambodia loomed on TV. She expresses that “she feels lucky to at least have food, clothes, and a home” in comparison to these people that have nothing. In addition, she mentions how great would it be if people stop complaining about their situations and see how much they have already; “how they have health and strength.” Likewise, James expresses a positive view about the African American outcome after the slavery period. He realizes that the acceptance of the black man in society “not only has created a new black man, but also a new white man.” He’s not a stranger anymore in America; he’s part of a new nation. Because of this achievement, he concludes, “this world is no longer white, and it will never be white
...eir lifehave felt and seen themselves as just that. That’s why as the author grew up in his southerncommunity, which use to in slave the Black’s “Separate Pasts” helps you see a different waywithout using the sense I violence but using words to promote change in one’s mind set. Hedescribed the tension between both communities very well. The way the book was writing in firstperson really helped readers see that these thoughts , and worries and compassion was really felttowards this situation that was going on at the time with different societies. The fact that theMcLaurin was a white person changed the views, that yeah he was considered a superior beingbut to him he saw it different he used words to try to change his peers views and traditionalways. McLaurin try to remove the concept of fear so that both communities could see them selfas people and as equal races.
The search for one’s identity can be a constant process and battle, especially for teenagers and young adults. Many people have a natural tendency to want to fit in and be accepted by others, whether it be with family, friends or even strangers. They may try to change who they are, how they act, or how they dress in order to fit in. As one gets older, society can influence one’s view on what they should look like, how they should act, or how they should think. If society tells us that a certain body type or hair color is beautiful, that is what some people strive for and want to become in order to be more liked. This was especially true with Avery as she longed for the proper clothes to fit into a social group and began to change the way she spoke to match those around her. As a young and impressionable sixth grader, she allowed herself to become somewhat whitewashed in an attempt to fit in with the other girls. However, Avery did not really become friends with any of those girls; her only real friend was
Throughout Hughes’ Not Without Laughter, we see the long-term effect of generations of prejudice and abuse against blacks. Over time, this prejudice manifested itself through the development of several social classes within the black community. Hughes’, through the eyes of young Sandy, shows us how the color of one’s skin, the church they attend, the level of education an individual attained, and the type of employment someone could find impacted their standing within the community and dictated the social class they belonged to. Tragically, decades of slavery and abuse resulted in a class system within the black community that was not built around seeking happiness or fulfillment but, equality through gaining the approval of whites.
George Orwell quote, “He wears a mask, and his face grows to fit it.” The documentary, “The Mask You Live In”, directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom shows different ages of males who struggle to be themselves while battling America’s limited meaning of manliness. George Orwell quote, “He wears a mask, and his face grows to fit it.” Influenced by the media, among their age group, and the grown-ups in their lives, adolescents dissociate their emotions, disrespect women, and is aggressive. Society gender stereotypes affect young males to change to fit into the societal norm as they characterize “real” men.
Many people have different perceptions of suffering. Some of them see sickness and trauma as the main causes of sorrow and anguish in a person’s life. Rarely does a person think that one’s physical appearance can be a cause of sorrow and misery. This is Lucy’s story. She recounts the events of her life in her book Autobiography of a Face. She developed cancer as a young child, and this forced her to undergo surgery and numerous sessions of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. She had to endure numerous stares and insults from other people. This was a trying time for the young girl considering what she had to undergo. However, it did not compare to her later years. She spent countless hours in hospitals trying to get the perfect face. She did not want to be different from everyone else. In the end, she realized that the beauty and satisfaction that she was looking for were deeper within her. She could not get what she was looking for in the mirror or in the approval of others. To Lucy, being different from others was worse than the cancer she had. Despite the numerous challenges she faced, Lucy remained resilient.
The poem We Wear the Mask by Paul Dunbar is filled with many powerful statements. Dunbar talks writes about how there is so much hurt behind people’s smiles and so much pain in their past. He also asks why society should be “over-wise;” it tries to act like it knows what is best for people. The play An Octoroon by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins has a lot in common with this poem. Nataki Garrett who was the director of this play at the Mixed Blood Theatre saw how well this poem went with the play, and she added it into the program. Both the poem and the play talk about how it was like for African Americans to live in a white dominated society.
In the twentieth century, the United States of America has transitioned into a more diverse nation. Immigrants arriving from around the globe combined with African Americans to challenge the American identity. As a result, prominent figures including Theodore Roosevelt believed every American should indeed be Americanized. Throughout the twentieth century, Americanization, which means to sacrifice an old culture in favor of American culture, remains an issue amongst authors in particular. Authors in the twentieth century expressed their stance on the battle between cultural heritage and American assimilation. Some authors such as Langston Hughes supported diversity and pride in their culture. On the other end of the spectrum, others like Booker
In paragraph three of James Baldwin's 'Stranger in the Village' (1955), he alludes to emotions that are significant, dealing with conflicts that arise in the Swiss village. Of these emotions are two, astonishment and outrage, which represent the relevant feelings of Baldwin, an American black man. These two emotions, for Baldwin's ancestors, create arguments about the 'Negro' and their rights to be considered 'human beings' (Baldwin 131). Baldwin, an American Negro, feels undeniable rage toward the village because of the misconception of his complexion, a misconception that denies Baldwin human credibility and allows him to be perceived as a 'living wonder' (129).
Empowering Intersectionality Intersectionality can be seen in many situations across the world. Oftentimes it is related to assimilation and adaptation, however these situations are not always seen as a force to completely change one’s views. In Yvonne Ridley’s essay How I Came to Love the Veil she explains how her “devastating” situation of captivity by the Taliban altered her views. In Sandra Cisneros’ essay Only Daughter she also explains how intersectionality lead her to believe that her father would no longer accept her.
“Trying to merge into mainstream society and cover her brown skin with makeup, of having no sense that she had her right to her own opinion”(Shierly) The journey to finding yourself is approached in many different aspects, which varies from person to person. As a child children we see a blurred image of ourselves not knowing exactly who we are, however as we grow older the blur becomes more apparent to us and eventually a reflection of who we truly are, is revealed. This is evidentially shown in the novel Monkey Beach by Eden Robinson, where Lisamarie discovers her new identity as an empowered and strong woman through the positive motivation from her family, role models to whom she looks up to and her acceptance to her own culture.
James never understood why he and his family were different, people shamed his mother for being white with mixed children. The author portrays this in the best way possible when he states that, “They are all trying hard to be an American, you know… If you throw water on the floor it will always find a hole, believe me” (Mcbride, 195). Somehow or someway people will always find themselves again, people cannot cover up what they are. By evidently enjoying the life that people are given, no amount of money nor effort to try to change will be worth anything if they don't have love in their hearts. The author asserts, “They don't have a dime in their pocket and they're always laughing” (Mcbride, 61). He helps understand anybody intend to make a person feel less of themselves, but if someone has no concern for anything but containing how they are, the love and bond a family has without any of that makes it that much more
In this piece, Grealy describes the influence of her experiences of cancer, its treatments, and the resulting deformity of her face on her development as a person. She explores how physical appearance influences one's sexual identity and over all self worth. She also explores how one's own interpretation of one's appearance can be self fulfilling. Only after a year of not looking at herself in the mirror, ironically at a time when she appears more "normal" than ever before, does Grealy learn to embrace her inner self and to see herself as more than one’s looks or physical appearance.
Baldwin being visits an unfamiliar place that was mostly populated by white people; they were very interested in the color of his skin. The villagers had never seen a black person before, which makes the villager
A person’s identity is what makes one human. There is so much history when it comes to one’s identity. People do not realize the importance of identity. Women have struggled with many issues regarding their identity. People have made assumptions towards a women’s identity. Stories have been told about women ability therefore, it affects how society views women. There are multiple ways to tell someone’s story, however people are misjudging the stories being told. Language and stories affects women’s identity and ability to succeed because of negative stereotypes.
Within the African culture mask were used for many different reasons. One such reason is when a child reaches adulthood; masks are worn in a celebratory fashion to commemorate the joyous occasion during the initiation process (page, 886). Also, in certain African cultures different mask had different meanings or sprits (page, 887). Stories of each “sprit’s encounter with the founding ancestors” were taught to the males of the tribe, who were transgressing from childhood into adulthood (page, 887). Upon completion of the initiation process, said males had to, recite the stories of each mask, as they were presented to them, in a public ceremony. The “Mende, Temne, Vai, and Kpelle peoples of Sierra Leone” used a ritual mask