It is often argued that there is no sense of cultural conflict in Bless Me, Ultima and that it is normal in the presentation of Chicano elements. Throughout the novel ¨Anaya traverses the boundaries of life and death to weave an allegory, a parable of hope and recovery twined in a synthesis of ancient and modern mythologies—both Anglo and Latino.¨ (Barrera 1) and because of these connections being formed by Anaya to his readers it can be assumed that there is purpose in what he is trying to say about what cultural conflict can do to young adults and children in their earlier years when they are still developing into who they will eventually grow up to become. Admittedly, there is a small amount of weakness in the presentation of objects …show more content…
The cultural differences in all the phenomenon presented throughout the book cause a great shifting in who Antonio is growing into as a young adult. These objects and concepts include but are certainly not limited to Antonios brother and family, Ultima´s use of curanderismo and culturally different forms of medicine and the golden carp, a pagan god from indian folklore. Overall in the future all of the cultural differences in Antonios childhood will result in a largely different adult compared to his peers from when he was younger as well as those who were just decidedly different from the rest. All of the producers of cultural conflict that are included throughout the book have a major effect on what Antonio believes in matters such as religion or basic respect for his elders and what he is going to believe in the future as he grows up with what he has learned from his childhood. As said by many people it is a general truth that your childhood is the basis of the person you are going to grow up to be but when your childhood is as conflicted as Antonios there is a larger room for error in becoming what is considered ´good´ by modern
Antonio’s mother, Maria Márez, says that "growing into manhood is a sin" because she believes that the pure quality that is bestowed on to children from god is lost when a boy becomes a man. She fears that Antonio will lose his pureness, so she constantly urges him to become a priest because she believe that God is the only one to “save” him from the destructive ways of manhood.
Sandra Cisneros “Never Marry a Mexican” and Junot Diaz’s The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao are stories that reflect on the cultures in which the characters grew up in. In Never Marry, Clemencia, the narrator, reflects on her past sexual relations as well as her childhood. She speaks of her parents’ marriage and then transitions into her relationship with college professor and his son. In Oscar Wao, Yunior, the narrator, gives a second-hand retelling of Oscar’s experiences in New Jersey growing up as well as in the Dominican Republic. A person’s identity is largely influenced by their culture, this is especially the case in Hispanic cultures. The social constraints that these cultures place on social class, sexuality, and gender norms can be very detrimental to a person’s self-esteem.
Alvarez demonstrates generational boundary when discussing,“The quince tradition has always been important, but there’s this retroculturation going on right now” (56). Alvarez illustrates that retroculturation is a pattern within the Hispanic community where loss of culture is present for a generation. Alvarez explains how the first generation wants to assimilate in America with their culture, while the second generation has adapted to American norms so they have lost their culture and no longer speak spanish; however, the third generation is born and bred in America and now wants to learn about their hispanic culture by learning Spanish. Teens shop at popular American malls but listen to Spanish radios to embrace diversity (56). Similarly, Munoz is confronted with the issue of generational boundaries when he admits, “I was born in 1972, a generation that learned both English and Spanish” (308). The generation before Munoz grew up speaking only Spanish which causes a barrier between one families generation to the next. Munoz speaks Spanish at home and English in public along with his other cousins who serve as translators for their household. While the second generation before Munoz have no way of following Spanish because they have already adapted to American norms and in some ways lost an important cultural aspect (308). Alvarez and Savan are interconnected because each
Both Dumas and Cordero are growing up in a culture that is different from their parents’; this difference is one reason why both girls have a feeling of ‘otherness.’ Even though both girls feel a struggle between their heritage and the American culture they live in, they deal with this struggle in dissimilar ways. Although Cordero does love her family, she feels as though she is trapped by her Mexican heritage. She is surrounded by Mexican-American females who are oppressed, unsatisfied, and often longing for a different life. We get many stories of her grandmother, cousins, and neighbors who are stuck in a place of discontent with no way out; and she does not be part of an endless loop of females who are under the control of men.
Throughout the time I spent between the covers of The Prince of Los Cocuyos, I was astounded by Richard Blanco’s dynamic relationship with the novel’s sole “antagonist”: his abuela. It seemed that no matter how many times he was chagrined at her attempts to negotiate the English language, or was forced to repress his very personhood to meet her traditional standards of manhood, she never ceased to be a pillar of support for a young Richard Blanco. But beyond his grandmother, Mr. Blanco made it quite clear that he was surrounded by a pueblo of family and friends throughout his childhood and adolescence, a village that would confound his “becoming” but foster his growth, make him question his identity and yet be intricately connected to it. It
The author highlights the Latino stereotypes and their effects on those stereotyped and on society. By carrying out a satirical tone, the author is able to manifest how Mexicans are treated; thus, achieving this through the secretary’s rejection of each character represented. The satirical tone elucidates on how people may acknowledge their own prejudices and comprehend how Mexicans feel. Through the Mexican-American character, the author makes it clearly evident of an attempt to end prejudice in itself. The author illuminates the ludicrous hypocrisy behind labeling; this play serves to help society see the injustice of their opinions and to meet their
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
Their experiences and the journeys of their lives are what most Hispanic teenagers go through. The 10 different stories explain the different themes shown throughout the book. The Hispanic community faces many problems and Diaz states a couple of them: gender, immigration, violence, drugs, family, cultural identity, and the Latino experience. In the beginning, Yunior and Rafa are both ignorant and show signs of hate towards Israel. The story about Ysrael is that when he was a baby, a pig bit him in the face.
Gonzalez, Araceli. “Discussion #2.” Chicano Studies 10. University of California Davis. Wellman 229. 8 October 2013.
The Chicana/o identity has developed through the history of Mexican-Americans living in the United States. Chicana/o identity is multi-layered and self-identified. Although, it does not have a set definition, I will highlight examples of different forms of representations that helped claimed this identity. Through various examples of Denise A. Segura and Beatriz M. Pesquera article “Beyond Indifference and Antipathy”, “Chicana Identity Matters” article by Deena J. Gonzalez, “Chicano Teatro” article by Jorge A. Huerta, “Their Dogs Came With Them” novel by Helena María Viramontes, and Murals by Judith Baca and David Alfaro Siqueiros, they will illuminate the historic struggle that creates and defines Chicana/o identity. The Chicana/o term has been very complex throughout time as a form of identity. However, Mexican-Americans were given this long history of misrepresentation as being dumb, lazy, inferior, servile, sexualized and/or criminal. One example of it would be the creation of Olvera Street in Los Angeles. In I will argue that through numerous forms of representations, Chicana/o identity is multi-dimensional and has developed through Mexican-Americans life experiences and the influence from the larger white U.S society. Lastly, I will demonstrate this by including the representations of gender, race, citizenship, and class to expose the self-identified Chicana/o identity.
The struggle to find a place inside an un-welcoming America has forced the Latino to recreate one. The Latino feels out of place, torn from the womb inside of America's reality because she would rather use it than know it (Paz 226-227). In response, the Mexican women planted the seeds of home inside the corral*. These tended and potted plants became her burrow of solace and place of acceptance. In the comfort of the suns slices and underneath the orange scents, the women were free. Still the questions pounded in the rhythm of street side whispers. The outside stare thundered in pulses, you are different it said. Instead of listening she tried to instill within her children the pride of language, song, and culture. Her roots weave soul into the stubborn soil and strength grew with each blossom of the fig tree (Goldsmith).
Anzaldua grew up in the United States but spoke mostly Spanish, however, her essay discusses how the elements of language began to define her identity and culture. She was living in an English speaking environment, but was not White. She describes the difficulty of straddling the delicate changing language of Chicano Spanish. Chicano Spanish can even differ from state to state; these variations as well as and the whole Chicano language, is considered a lesser form of Spanish, which is where Anzaldua has a problem. The language a person speaks is a part...
The third chapter is quite a different spin from what I read in the previous chapters from author's Gloria. E. Anzaldua's book entitled Light In The Dark/Luz En Lo Oscuro. Chapter three is quite interesting. In this particular chapter on page 48, she reveals her identity as a jotitita (queer Chicana). Anzaldua goes to further states that this "mexicatjena-to enter a museum and look at indigenous objects that were once used by my ancestors"(48 Anzaldua). What is interesting to me is the she ponders on whether or not she finds her historical Indian identity at the museum. In addition, she also questions whether her identity could be found along the ancient artifacts and their as she puts it their mestizaje. I really
She is the one that refuses to oblige to societal orders. She is the “Shadow-Beast” (38) with “Chicana identity grounded in the Indian woman’s history of resistance” (43). Although alienated physically, Anzaldua is “immobilized” (43) mentally the more confined she becomes in a culture engulfed in pure oppression. She claims her “shadow-beast” as the depiction of her highly wanted independence as an individual human being, which eventually forces her to leave her family behind to find herself separately from the “intrinsic nature buried under the personality that had been imposed” (38) for people like Anzaldua for many years. Her push for rebellion sets a voice for the silenced anger and pure resistance against the ostracism of herself, her family, culture, and the white-washed society she has been born into. To be the only Chicana, lesbian, and rebellious woman in her family is considered sinful, as women, according to Anzaldua, in Mexico only have “three directions she could turn: to the church as a nun, to the streets as a prostitute, or to the home as a mother” (39). Noticing that women are culturally restricted to these roles, Anzaldua creates the opposite role for herself claiming to take the “fourth choice” by “entering the world by way of education and career and becoming self-autonomous persons,” (39), which she uses to her advantage to transform the prolonged oppression into her long awaited freedom to live as an openly queer woman
Julia Alvarez was an example of how a Latina writer identified herself in a new culture outside of her comfort zone. She, as a Dominican Diaspora, had to reinvent herself as she migrated into a new scenario. Her assimilation into the United States culture allowed her to understand and relate to the reader’s needs and points of interests. After all the effort, Alvarez kept in mind that she could not comfort to all the reality that she lived in, so she re-reinvented herself all over again to process her thoughts and beliefs into her life. She put her perspective on her writing so that the new wave of readers, even if they did not understand, could relate in some way and appreciate the differences. The sole purpose of her writings was for everyone to change their perspective from “walk to the other side of the street in order to avoid sharing the same sidewalk” to “I do not know them, but I do not avoid them because I do not know them”. She instilled in her reader’s mind how ordinary events were viewed differently through other cultures’ eyes. Her story Snow was a great example of how she portrayed her technique.