The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman is a nonfiction book that brings to light the clash of Hmong culture and Western medicine in Merced, California. Anne Fadiman tells the story of a Hmong immigrant family, the Lees, and the unfortunate condition of epilepsy that their daughter Lia suffers from. Throughout the book the reader sees great conflict inflicted on medical practitioners due to the Lee’s own cultural beliefs and the frustration suffered by the family due to miscommunication. Anne develops the story by giving a detailed background of the Hmong peoples’ lifestyle in their indigenous land of Lao, how it contributes to their beliefs, and their struggle to understand and accept Western practices. The name Hmong literally translates to “free men” which reflects the hundreds of years they spent fighting specifically for their freedom from Chinese control and French taxation. The Hmong people lead a nomadic lifestyle due to their “swidden” farming techniques. They resorted mostly to living in the isolated mountaintops where they could not only avoid control from other Lao people but also “[peer] down on their masters like eagles looking at mice [as to] maintain a sense of superiority” (Clapsaddle, 19). The Hmong farming techniques in addition with their opium cash crop allowed for them to be completely self-sufficient. This type of lifestyle reflects the beliefs that the Hmong people live by. They are strong-willed, stubborn, do not take orders very well, are sometimes arrogant, and would rather flee or fight for their cultural customs than surrender. These types of characteristics are heavily present when seeing the struggle between Western doctors and the Lee family. The reader sees right off the bat a cult... ... middle of paper ... ... own cultural practices on an individual level when dealing with Western medical institutions. Yes, I would recommend this book for use in this course in the future. I would even try to have this book become apart of the curriculum of other Public Health and Social Sciences courses as well. I think this book does a great job of depicting not only a Maternal and Child Health issue in an artistic and intriguing manner, but I feel it involves multiculturalism issues that are a great underlying problem within society today. The respect for newer immigrant’s cultures has been lost in time and I feel this book helps us return to our “melting pot” routes. This book opened my eyes to issues I didn’t even know existed and can help many learn to accept different cultures in a manner that is beneficial to both sides not only within the medical Maternal and Child Health field.
In The Latehomecomer, by Kao Kalia Yang shares her story and the story of her family’s search for a home and identity. Her family’s story voices the story of the Hmong people and their plight. From every stage of their journey, from the mountainous jungles of Southeast Asia to the freezing winter of Minnesota, Yang and the Hmong were compelled to redefine their identity, willingly or unwillingly. While growing up, Yang’s parents would often ask her, “’What are you?’ and the right answer was always, ‘I am Hmong.’” (Yang, 1) For “Hmong” to be the right answer, then what does it mean to be “Hmong”? From the personal story shared by Yang, and the universal story of the Hmong people, the Hmong identity cannot be contained in
How would it feel to flee from post-war Communist forces, only to face an ethnocentric population of people in a new country? In Anne Fadiman's The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, a portrait of a disquieting, often times touching, ethnography (i.e. a book that details particular data of an extended period of time an anthropologist spent living closely with a community of individuals during his or her field work) of Fadiman's experience living in Merced, California, which was home to the largest population of Hmong refugees, such as the Lee family, from Laos who suffered mass confusion when trying to navigate the American health care system. Because the Hmong could not speak sufficient English until the children gained language skills native to the United States, residents of California were not accepting of the Hmong community. Fadiman aims to better understand how knowledge of illness among Hmong and Western medical practitioners differ, which pushes the reader to understand how the complicate medical treatment in the past as well as the present from a perspective of an American observing a Hmong family's struggle with the system. In America, it isn’t uncommon to be judged for your clothing, your house, or the amount of money your family makes, so it is easy to believe that the Hmong people were not easily accepted into American society. As a whole, ethnocentrism, or the tendency to believe that one's culture is superior to another, is one of America's weaknesses and this account proves ethnocentric behavior was prominent even in the 1970-80's when Fadiman was in the process of doing her fieldwork in post-Vietnam War Era California.
I thought this book was amazing but heartbreaking as the same time. This book helps me gain new knowledge about the Hmong culture and their beliefs. This book also showed the differences between cultures and miscommunication between the family and medical professionals, which led to arguments between the Lees and the doctors. Lia belonged to a family who did not agree with western medicinal practices, as they had their own ways of caring for their people in form of traditional remedies. The Lia
As our textbook states, “Communication includes the willingness of individuals to share their thoughts and feelings” (Purnell, 2103, p. 21). To that end, the Hmong people are primarily illiterate. For this culture, they have a belief that Americans are rude because direct eye contact is maintained when conversing, as well as asking direct questions. In order for there to be successful education regarding the risks of cupping or coining as well as needle pricks, it is important to know that when speaking to someone of the Hmong culture to use quick glances without starting and to initiate a light conversation prior to asking anything regarding their beliefs, health, etc. The Purnell Model of Cultural Competence states that the domain of high-risk behaviors is one area that healthcare providers can make a significant impact on a patient’s health status (Purnell, 2013, p. 30). Advice to the parents, under these circumstances along with other obstacles that could potentially be faced due to the very different cultural aspects, would best be given via one-on-one or through family counseling techniques. From what I have learned so far from our readings, spirituality plays a very important role in a cultures health and well-being. Knowing the beliefs pertinent to the culture you are treating allows you as the provider to better assist them to attaining better health and well-being. Trust is also paramount and it is very clear that to interfere with a person’s spirituality could possibly hinder their physical recovery and actually cause physical
Foua and Nao Kao believed that the reason a Hmong person would fall ill, was because a “dab” had stole their soul. Doctors in Merceds didn’t understand this concept and that is why Lee’s felt many Hmong patients didn’t have good health outcomes. I got the impression that many of the individuals involved in the care of Lia and her family, put up a wall before they even entered the situation. There was a blatant lack of communication and understanding about the Hmong values and beliefs, which lead to ineffective care for Lia. Both the Lees and the American doctors were doing what they believed was best. Unfortunately, the cultural barriers that were created between these two groups didn’t allow for many positive outcomes. Preconceived notions
In Kao Kalia Yang’s memoir, The Latehomecomer, moving to America from a war torn country is not as easy, shown by the transition Yang’s family had to make. Racism, no money, and barely being able to survive doesn’t help the families cause. To make matters worse, Grandma, who has been with the family since the beginning, is now not with them, but hundreds of miles away in California, the opposite side of America where Yang’s family is staying. The separation of the family brings sense into the title, Latehomecomer, as well as the Hmong belief that the soul always finds its way back home.
She clearly portrayed the Hmong beliefs and their origins through her detailed explanation of the Hmong customs and history. She also uses keen details to explain the medications and medical procedures over the course of Lia’s treatment. It was evident that Fadiman entered the case with an open mind and avoided cultural/religious misunderstanding. While her explanation of the Hmong culture using the “fish soup” method laid a foundation for which the novel would build upon, I believe that maintaining aroused on the subject was slightly difficult. Fadiman also uses her knowledge of medical education to explain that blame for the culture clash cannot be assigned to the doctors since they were not educated on that matter (Fadiman, 61). Even though Fadiman attempts maintain an unbiased position on the issue, I believe her claim regarding doctor was biased. The author states, “Medicine, as it is taught in the United States does an excellent job of separating students from their emotions. … Dissociation is part of the job. … Neil Ernst avoided Lia Lee after she returned from Fresno with irreplaceable brain damage(he couldn’t bear it) (Fadiman, 275, 276). In the beginning of the novel the author explained how doctors Neil Ernst and Peggy Philp were some of the only people to provide satisfactory treatment for Lia (Fadiman, 42). With this being said, I believe that
The book narrates about the conflict between modern medicine and the ancient beliefs amongst Hmong culture.The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down is a book written about the life of Lia Lee. Lia is a Hmong child living with epilepsy in America. Her devastating story shows the risks and dangers of cross-cultural communication in the medical field. The book details an account of the fight over the body and soul of this sick girl. The author provides unbiased and balanced view of what happened, by sympathizing with the doctors and the girl’s family. The book delivers a challenge to readers to their view of divinity and medicine.
The Hopi, an Amerindian tribe, have a rich history. As one of the oldest living cultures in history, the Hopi people live in the Grand Canyon area, setting up villages along their mesas. For 2000 years, the Hopi have continued to persist teach their children their traditions against the forced assimilation of the white man. Sun Chief, an autobiography of Don Talayesva, captures the life of Don, recounting stories from his childhood and his experiences at school and beyond. During his time at school, Don catches a severe case of pneumonia which leads to his temporary death. While he is in between life and death, his Guardian Spirit comes to take him on a journey and teach him a lesson. Through this journey,
Fadiman’s The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down looks that the culture clash between the Hmong parents of an epileptic girl and the American doctors at Merced Community Medical Center(MCMC). The novel begins with the predicament of where to assign responsibility for the maltreatment of Lia Lee’s epilepsy. Fadiman uses the tension between the parents of epileptic Lia Lee and the doctors of MCMC as a way to show that the Western culture can be insensitive to other cultures. As the novel progresses, it becomes evident that this battle is rooted to differing cultural/religious beliefs and that neither the American doctors nor Lia’s Hmong parents are to blame. All of which could
In a conversation between Bill Selvidge and the doctor, Bill added “But if you took them to this setting, the way the Hmong have come here, and you dressed them up and they drove a car and came to MCMC, you wouldn’t expect to hear those spirit stories anymore”. (Fadiman, 1997, p. 112). A lot of the Hmong that came in blended it in with the rest of the patients so in the case of Lia’s family, it was hard to believe that they would believe that a spirit in particular was the one believed to be affecting Lia’s epilepsy. Some of the healthcare providers communicated great with the Hmong because some of them empathized with a chronic condition and the affect that it may impose on one’s life along with their families. From this I learned that empathy and pity have opposite effect on the care that I can provide as a nurse. Of course feeling a sense of empathy toward my patient will be more beneficial to the care that I provide, because it will show that I care, rather than me simply being annoyed. Such feelings can have a great impact on the nonverbal message that I send out to my
In Anne Fadiman’s, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, a young Hmong girl named Lia, endures an egregious form of epilepsy characterized by several general mal seizures each day. Lia and her family, are Hmong refugees from Laos that sought asylum by living in a highly concentrated Hmong community in California. The Hmong’s beliefs and cultures can be compared to typical Western culture, including their beliefs in the effectiveness of select medical techniques and not others, as well as having their own treatment methods. Lia was forced to endure the worst symptoms of her condition with little alternative because of a clash between the two culture’s beliefs. Ultimately, Lia
The first Memoir of 1795 was addressed to the heir of her natal family and took the form of a public appeal in her effort to reestablish her family’s moral legitimacy and honorable family tradition. Before we explore her memoir, it is important to note that she felt responsible for her family’s downfall – believing that her marriage into the royal house had led to directly their suffering and decline. Beyond the scholarly merit of her stories, they are important in the view Lady Hyegyong provides of the court life and the strict Confucian beliefs that stress filial piety, loyalty and virtue. To being with, the move from
The Hmong are a group who originated for Mongolia thousands of years ago. Since then, they have migrated into the mainland of china. The Hmong people speak their own language of Hmong, there native language. The Hmong religon is Animalistic. The total population of the Hmong group is 4 to 5 million people.
This essay will be evaluating the question: how did language and communication play a role in shaping what happened to Lia? Also, it will look at if Fadiman points out ways in which communication practices between doctors and patients could be improved. These were important in the book, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, because they shaped what would happen to Lia in the end. The evidence we will look at will include the facts that the doctors and the Lees couldn’t understand each other, the hospitals didn’t have enough interpreters for everyone, and that the Lees did not trust hospitals or doctors in the first place because of their culture.