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Comparing american and spanish culture
Spanish culture vs american culture
Comparing american and spanish culture
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The following paper will be comparative of the cultures and ideas of the Americans and the Spanish. It will be primarily referring to the paper “Lived Ethnicity: Archaeology and Identity in Mexicano America, by Bonnie J. Clark”. The similarities as well as the differences will be discussed. After the comparisons and contrasts have been established, there will be a prediction of what will happen when these two cultures meet and begin to interact with one another. One of the first comparisons that can be made is how the living space of the Spanish was drastically different from that of the Americans. The Spanish lived in Plazas that were made from sandstone, while the Americans made there houses out of trees. The way the Plazas where built was also a unique part of the Spanish culture. Clark states: “At La Placita, five of the seven structures have doorways facing out to the central site area”1. This leads to the conclusion that the Spanish where very community oriented with their living spaces. Even the land that the Plazas sat on where communally held, no one person could c...
Junot Diaz is Dominican American, and he came from a very poor family with five other siblings. Since they were not that wealthy, they lived in a simple way. Even though his mother was basically the bread winner of the family since his father could not keep a job, she still manages to send money back home every six months or so. When they got home from their vacation, they had found out that someone has broken into their house and stole most of his mother’s money. It was easy for them to be a target because they were recent immigrant, and in their neighborhood cars and apartment were always getting jacked. His mother was very upset; she blamed her children, because she thought it was their friends who had done such a thing. “We kids knew where
Meso-American religion involves a variety of beliefs and rituals of the people of Central America and Mexico before the arrival of the Spanish in the 1500s C.E. The beliefs of the ancient Meso-American religious traditions were focused around an annual calendar that had an accompanying ritual cycle. This calendar was associated with various Meso-American deities, often representing different aspects of the cosmos including a creator god, a god of war, a sun god, a fire god, etc. Various beliefs were practiced by the ancient Meso-American peoples that included diverse forms and levels of the afterlife, with each containing its own deity. Religious rituals and practices were typically governed by priests that had been educated in astronomy and genealogy. These priests were often adorned with jewels, ornaments of many colors, exquisite jewels and many had dual roles as diviners. Using idols was common in Meso-American religion and they were usually depicted in the form of animals or having animals as a part of them. Several of these ancient traditions included rituals of sacrifice to the gods, even human sacrifice.
of the native tongue is lost , certain holidays may not be celebrated the same , and American born generations feel that they might have lost their identity , making it hard to fit in either cultures . Was is significant about this book is the fact it’s like telling a story to someone about something that happened when they were kid . Anyone can relate because we all have stories from when we were kids . Alvarez presents this method of writing by making it so that it doesn’t feel like it’s a story about Latin Americans , when
The Spanish and English cultures were scarcely similar and notably different because of the interaction with indigenous people and the timing in which the interactions occurred. The Spanish and English were very different in how they interacted with the indigenous people. The Spanish main reason for coming to North America was to spread Catholicism. In the Catholic church if two people were both Catholic then the two people would receive the sacrament of marriage. After marriage the two would create a Catholic of their own. This had created 5 new races of people. The races of humanity was then looked at as social classes. The highest social class was a full white European, then a mestizos, which was a someone who was European and an Indian, followed by Indians, African slaves, and lastly a Zambos,
Mexican civilization is very much affected due its contact. with France, New Orleans of the USA.”Design, style and gastronomy are expressions that show the vibe of Yucatan, sentiment relevance more than its personal kingdom.”(4).
Mexican American struggles in the United States date back to the Spanish discovery of the New World in 1492. For over five hundred years, Mexicans have endured social injustices and inequalities at the hands of their superiors. The mistreatment of the native people of this land is constantly overlooked for "…the main goals shaping Spanish colonial policy were to maintain and expand political control and to convert Indians to Christianity." (Vargas p.30) With this mindset, the basic nature of relations between the dominant Anglos and the inferior Mexicans was that of suppression, rejection, ignorance and separation as opposed to establishment of ideals that would foster cultural relations and produce the true definition of a "melting pot" society.
Texas Indians were very unique in their culture and way of life. The Texas Indians had a unique social order; physical appearance, acquired subsistence in many different ways, and had many unique cultural practice. As a result, many historians study the native Indians in Texas with awe and amazement. With a deep and interesting analysis of the Texas Indians, historians can understand the people; and their way of life. Based on the text, “La Relacion” which was written by Alvar Nunez de Vaca, an analysis of said subject can be conducted.
The way of behaving or thinking, beliefs, custom, or arts in a particular society is known as culture. There are many different cultures in todays society, however some parts are alike while other parts are more diverse. American culture versus Hispanic culture has some similarities and differences. Whether its food, religion, language, politics, marriages, sports, family, hobbies, or technology; Americans share some of the same things as Hispanics.
When someone say’s “hispanic,” what definition comes to mind? Hispanics are not one nationality, nor one culture. Instead, Hispanics are greatly diverse people. Our language and cultural origins are Spanish and Latin American, regardless of race and color. Hispanics can be European, Indian, or of African descent, or any combination of the three. The culture could be linked to Mexico, the Caribbean countries, Central America, South America and Spain. Hispanics were once considered a rarity in the United States, now we are found throughout the country.
Compare and Contrast Between Hispanic Culture and American Culture I. Introduction The Hispanic population has experienced incredible growth in the past decade in the United States of America. In 2006 it was estimated that the Hispanics cover 11% of the population in North America. Their origin is in Mexico and the few Spanish speaking countries in the Caribbean. American culture is derived from people who originated from the European nations like Italy and the Great Britain.
Gina Valdes was born in Los Angeles, California and grew up on both sides of the U.S.A-Mexico border. Growing up on both sides of the border greatly influenced her life and her writing, since she was able to experience both traditions and customs at first hand. Crossing borders and identity are both reoccurring themes that Gina decides to interpret in her writings. The English and Spanish languages as well as both cultures weave through her life. Valdes received degrees from the English and Spanish departments at the University of California, San Diego. She has also taught both languages at various universities such as at the University of California, San Diego and San Diego State University. Gina Valdes is the author of two bilingual poetry collections Puentes y Fronteras (Bridges and Borders) and Comiendo Lumbre (Eating Fire) both are from the Bilingual Press. English con Salsa is a poem from one of her poetry collections where she uses all the techniques and themes she is best known for.
In central and southern Mexico, there are fundamental characteristic that deserve emphasis at the outset. The size and distribution of Indian peoples before the arrival of Europeans had a huge effect on the development of Mexico. The differences in the historical development of central and southern Mexico and the rest of North America derive in large part from the dense concentration of Indian peoples in the highland valleys of Mexico. The Spaniards had a huge role in the changing of the native peoples if Mexico not only politically and culturally as well. The timing of the colonization was also a huge fundamental influence on its development. Spain introduced their most important legacy to Mexico, the Reconquista. This was an 800 year long process of “reconquering” the Iberian Peninsula from Muslim control. This helped define the social and economic patterns that were introduced to Mexico. Along with the reconquering, Spain was full of a renaissance drive for knowledge, wealth and power. They attempted to recreate as accurately as possible the life of the medieval lord with his titles and power based ownership of large landed estates and control over subordinate and retainers. This was only made possible through the large population of Indians living in the area. They were the ones who did the heavy lifting and built the new society so that the Spaniards could accomplish their objectives. Unlike the central and southern Mexico, the northern section had a smaller Indian population, harsh climate and wide-open spaces helped develop a completely different culture. This section was a land of opportunity during much of its history.
When Spaniards first set foot on Mesoamerican shores in the early sixteenth century, they encountered not the godless mass of natives they believed they found, but a people whose rich spiritual traditions shaped and sustained them for thousands of years. These diverse spiritual practices legitimized nearly every aspect of Mesoamerican daily life, from science and architecture to art and politics (Carmack 295), in many of the same ways Catholicism did in Spain. The collision of these cultures in the Great Encounter and the resulting Spanish colonial state mixed not solely two different peoples—Indian and Spanish—but thousands of variants: elites and slaves, peasant farmers and traders, priests and traders, organized and local spiritual customs, all with different degrees of diversity in their respective religious practices. This diversity set the stage for the syncretic religious traditions that emerged in Mayan society and remain a vital part of that culture today.
One of the most known civilizations that thrived in Mexico was called the Mayans. The Mayans where considered to be pre-Columbian America’s most brilliant civilization. They thrived between 250 and 900 A.D. Thanks to the Mayans we are able to say that we have a calendar and a writing system. They also built cities that functioned as hubs for the surrounding farm towns. A key part of the Mayans was their importance of religion. Their altars were carved with significant dates, histories and elaborate human and divine figures. Just like many civilization the Mayans eventually collapsed in the 10th century. The exact reasons of the collapse are unknown but the most probable reasons are either overpopulation or the damage to the ecological balance.
The ethnic- Mexican experience has changed over the years as American has progressed through certain period of times, e.g., the modernity and transformation of the southwest in the late 19th and early 20th century, the labor demands and shifting of U.S. immigration policy in the 20th century, and the Chicano Civil Rights Movement. Through these events Mexican Americans have established and shaped their culture, in order, to negotiate these precarious social and historical circumstances. Throughout the ethnic Mexicans cultural history in the United States, conflict and contradiction has played a key role in shaping their modalities of life. Beginning in the late 20th century and early 21st century ethnic Mexicans have come under distress from the force of globalization. Globalization has followed the trends of conflict and contradiction forcing ethnic Mexicans to adjust their culture and combat this force. While Mexican Americans are in the struggle against globalization and the impact it has had on their lives, e.g., unemployment more common, wages below the poverty line, globalization has had a larger impact on their motherland having devastating affects unlike anything in history.