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How to think about cultural identity
Culture and Identity
Culture and Identity
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“Our own culture is often hidden from us, and we frequently describe it as “the way things are.”” People do not even realize their own cultural identity, so then how do people know what shapes it? A person’s identity is shaped by cultural experiences that make them into the person they are today. Some of these experiences include someone’s parents, the media, and where they grew up. One of the main things that shapes a person’s cultural identity is their parents. Culture is passed down from generation to generation. In the story Two Kinds Amy Tan tells about a mother and daughter that clash heads because the mother wants her daughter to be something she’s not. They are Chinese, and in Chinese culture children are pushed to excel in everything
“Cultural identity is a broader term: people from multiple ethnic backgrounds may identify as belonging to the same culture” (Elise Trumbull and Maria Pacheco). Though people may identify themselves with a certain culture, their beliefs and actions varies and adjust to their experiences. “…We do not consciously pick and choose attributes from the total set; rather, the conditions and events in our individual lives…” (Elise Trumbull and Maria Pacheco). A person is easily influenced by their culture which also makes an impact on their beliefs as well as their view of the world which can cause conflict with another person.
Culture and identity are two very strange ideas. They are received at a very young age, yet they are very hard to give to someone else. They will affect you for the rest or your life, yet for the most part you are born into them. However, they soon become very important to us and we cannot, no matter what we do, live without them. They are a part of us, and a vital aspect of society. However, it took me a very long time to recognize that I had an identity and a little while after that before I knew what it was.
In the short story, "Two Kinds" by Amy Tan, a Chinese mother and daughter are at odds with each other. The mother pushes her daughter to become a prodigy, while the daughter (like most children with immigrant parents) seeks to find herself in a world that demands her Americanization. This is the theme of the story, conflicting values. In a society that values individuality, the daughter sought to be an individual, while her mother demanded she do what was suggested. This is a conflict within itself. The daughter must deal with an internal and external conflict. Internally, she struggles to find herself. Externally, she struggles with the burden of failing to meet her mother’s expectations. Being a first-generation Asian American, I have faced the same issues that the daughter has been through in the story.
To begin with, culture is something that may change evolve within time but culture is something that come with your heritage or your ethnicity the traditions and things that happen that make up your culture like how your parents raised you are culture. In the informational text “ What is cultural identity” by Elise Trumbull and Maria Pacheco, and in the personal essay “Ethnic Hash” by Patricia Williams, there are similarities and differences in how each writer conveys their message about cultural identity. Based upon their research, Trumbull and Pacheco present the idea that culture changes and that it will never stay the same, while Williams uses her personal experience to develop the idea that many things influence cultural inheritage but
Starting with one of the surface aspects of my cultural identity is my language. I speak English, like most people who were born in America I learned English and only English right from the start. I
Everyone has a way to view the world around him or her, either through experience or religion. Nevertheless, all of those ways of viewing the world all ties down to culture, where it defines a person’s background, personality, and history/experiences. With each person’s having their own unique culture that only belongs to them, and no one else. Such as: a relationship between a mother and her daughter, the comparison between two sisters, and how one is considered as a human being while the other is marked as an unknown species.
In today’s society there are many words that are used or said without giving it complete thought. For example, the word “identity” is something to which I have never really given much thought or even considered how I identify myself.
Cultural identity is a dynamic and a complex feeling and sense of belonging to one or more ethnic groups. It defines the way an individual identifies or positions himself or herself in different cultural contexts. In our modern society we are experiencing contact with different cultures like never before. As expressed in “If you are what you eat, then what am I” by Kothari, Down These Mean Streets by Piri Thomas, and Flight by Sherman Alexie. Kothari has her identity but tries to deviate around it with the type of cuisine she was eating, but only to find out that it was an impossible task for Kothari. Piri has his identity also, but going through different environments and cultures has completely puzzled and influenced Piri’s identity which
Who am I; my beliefs, values, morals, and views on society have assisted in molding me into the person that I am considered to be today. I was raced with specifics values, traditions, and norms. Being raised in a small town made being socially aware very easy. I was raised under the southern Baptist Christian religion. Church was always the same and it had a majority of women in attendance although the men and elderly people ran the church overall. It was always the same, repetitive habits and events that occurred in my town but after a while I became accustomed to always being near or known by others.
A person 's beginnings do not completely define a person, but it does serve as a permanent foundation from which their identity is built around. As children, we absorb every sight and experience like porous sponges. Family, religion, environment, culture -- all of these aspects slowly form the background of one 's identity. As an Asian American, this identity is very different from that of a native Chinese woman 's, for I have parts of both cultures within me. It is a unique identity which I believes acts as a double edged sword. Being born into two cultures is a wonderful in that one can be a part of two cultures, but it is also a very confusing to be "divided" between two very different cultures.
Cultural identity. Some think of it as where they come from. Others think of it as the same as ethnicity. Both of these types of people are wrong. Cultural identity is the way that a person identifies with a group, especially based on how they were raised. In this essay I will be giving an explanation on what cultural identity is, how it affects people, and what kinds of things develop a cultural identity.
According to the textbook, "Racial and Ethnic Groups" (Fourteenth Edition) by Richard T. Schaefer described Asian Americans trying to find a panethnic identity to be recognized as a whole. The individuals of Asian nationalities formed together in result of previous discrimination including present-day stereotypes. Vast majority of Asian Americans identify themselves as their nationality group, whereas most from time to time view themselves as being Asian American. Pan-Asian identity on numerous occasions assist to reinforce when Asian Americans are attempting to change their community while they're outnumbered as well as underrepresented; this is where unity is considered to be necessary. To my belief, the social phenomenon over the foreign
A person’s identity is shaped by many different aspects. Family, culture, friends, personal interests and surrounding environments are all factors that tend to help shape a person’s identity. Some factors may have more of an influence than others and some may not have any influence at all. As a person grows up in a family, they are influenced by many aspects of their life. Family and culture may influence a person’s sense of responsibilities, ethics and morals, tastes in music, humor and sports, and many other aspects of life. Friends and surrounding environments may influence a person’s taste in clothing, music, speech, and social activities. Personal interests are what truly set individuals apart. An individual is not a puppet on the string of their puppet-master, nor a chess piece on their master’s game board, individuals choose their own paths in life. They accomplish, or strive to accomplish, goals that they have set for themselves throughout their lifetime. Individuals are different from any other individual in the world because they live their own life rather than following a crowd of puppets. A person’s identity is defined by what shaped it in the first place, why they chose to be who they are, and what makes them different from everybody else in the world. I feel that I have developed most of my identity from my own dreams, fantasies, friends, and idols.
A person's identity is shaped by many different factors. Culture, traditions, family, and society help with shaping a person. For some people these factors may not have an impact at all, but for most people these factors are all put into one person.
How many times have people asked themselves, who am I? What defines me? Culture plays a very important role in the identity of people. People are born in a culture, their family's culture, but not with an already established culture. The term culture refers to the values, beliefs, customs, style of dress, food, songs and stories that are shared and learned in a characteristic group. On the other hand, identity is a set of features, attributes and characteristics that define a person. Identity is constructed by language, social structure, gender orientation and cultural patterns. Although many do not relate these two themes, there is a complex relationship between culture and identity.