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Literature And Society
Literature And Society
Literature And Society
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Although art is subjective, and every person’s life experience will alter the way in which they perceive it, there are often universal truth’s that are evident within a piece. Poetry is not only a form of art, but can also be used to make political and cultural literary statements. It can be a means to send a message and have it speak to a group’s common experiences. It can inspire a group, and make them feel more connected. Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales was able to unify his audience with his poem, “I am Joaquin”, through his commanding use of language choices and literary style. Throughout his poem he documents the duality of his heritage as a Latino individual. There is a particular passage that exemplifies some of the most common struggles …show more content…
(377-386) The first unifying element of this passage is his specific use of the word “our”. While in other parts of the poem he specifically refers to himself and his own experiences, in this passage he references the Mexican-American community as a whole. He pits the people that have abused them, specifically the Anglo community, against the Mexican-American with the line, “They frowned upon our way of life” (377). The choice to use “They” is a broad term that can reference not only the Spanish conquistadors, but also Anglos of today. He chooses to use “our” to incorporate the Latino experience as a …show more content…
He highlights the fact that the combined community of Mexican-Americans and Indian Mexican-Americans communities have been subjected to pillaging by saying, “and took what they could use” (378). The Latin people have been subjected to forced labor, rape of their women, looting of their precious materials, and the subjugation without representation within the areas the Anglos have moved into and taken over. While “they” removed anything of material value, “they” neglected what was of real worth which is their “art”, “literature”, and “music” (379-381). This is an additional theme that once again places the Latin community at odds with the Anglo community. “They” robbed the community. “They” took what was “ours”, but our author points out that their true culture is based in their shared history and art. Those are the most vital elements that strengthen their culture and community identities. Those are the very things that the Anglo community least appreciates, but the Hispanic community could uses as badges of honor and sources of true cultural identity. While “they” can still hire Latinos to plant their fields and do other seemingly menial jobs, the very music that the workers play to help them get through their day can be used as an anthem to inspire them to keep going and strive for better. Gonzales emphasizes the importance of these cultural artifacts by indenting the
Latin American identity, something so simple yet so powerful, an idea that has caused numerous countries great political, cultural, and economical problems. Something that has been lost at times and forced back into play, an ongoing dream that has taken its toll on an entire continent. In Calle 13’s song “Latinoamerica”, the idea of Latin American identity is portrayed through the thoughts of an actual Latin American. In this piece, Calle 13 brings up numerous issues occurring in todays Latin America. It is a manifest against great economic instability in Latin America, ongoing political issues, and what true Latin American identity means. Calle 13 brings these points up with great precision, for example “Soy una fábrica de humo, mano de obra
In Sueños Americanos: Barrio Youth Negotiating Social and Cultural Identities, Julio Cammarota studies Latina/o youth who live in El Pueblo, and talks about how Proposition 187, the anti-immigrant law, is affecting Latina/o youth in California (Cammarota, 2008, p. 3). In this book review, I will write about the two main points the author is trying to get across. The two main points I will be writing about are how Proposition 187 is affecting the Latina/o community, and about how Latina/o youth are copping in the El Pueblo barrio. Afterward I write about the two main points the author is trying to get across, I will write a brief description of the author and write about the author’s strengths and weaknesses.
She explains how Mexican and Chicano literature, music, and film is alienated; their culture is considered shameful by Americans. They are forced to internalize their pride in their culture. This conflict creates an issue in a dual culture society. They can neither identify with North American culture or with the Mexican culture.
Vallejo utilizes the form of free verse in this poem. He uses free verse to go beyond the constraints of usual structures and forms to express his point of view on the hardships of the world, without regards to the “beauty” of the poem. This poem consists of thirteen non-rhyming couplets, each being identical in structure. This poem is without rhyme because Vallejo wants the content to be perceived as deeper than a rhyme scheme. Rather than writing poems for the art form and beauty of it, Vallejo often writes to bring attention to human suffering and problems in the world
An American poet, Walt Whitman, once said, “I have an idea that there is much of importance about the Latino contributions to American nationality that will never be put with sympathetic understanding
This assimilation has caused the erosion of most cultural differences among the Hispanic and the Native Americans (Arreola 13). Therefore, these two cultures only compare in terms of their traditional aspects rather than their modern settings. Works Cited Arreola, Daniel D. Hispanic Spaces, Latino Places: Community and Cultural Diversity in Contemporary America. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 2004. Print Campbell, Neil, and Alasdair Kean.
Preceding her youth, in 1977, Anzaldua became a High School English teacher to Chicano students. She had requested to buy Chicano texts, but was rejected to do so. The principal of the school she worked for told her, in Anzaldua’s words: “He claimed that I was supposed to teach “American” and English literature.” She then taught the text at the risk of being fired. Anzaldua described, “Being Mexican is a state of soul – not on of mind.” All in all, the reprimanding she had to endure only made her stronger: “Until I can take pride in my language, I cannot take pride in myself.” It led to Anzaldua embracing her Mexican culture even more, contrary to shoving it aside. Anzaldua transformed her beliefs into something both cultures can applaud, and be honored
Torres, Hector Avalos. 2007. Conversations with Contemporary Chicana and Chicano Writers. U.S.: University of New Mexico press, 315-324.
By the beginning of the twentieth century Mexican Americans found themselves in situations that closely resembled that of American Indians. According to Healey, both ethnic groups were relatively small in size only about .5% of the total population and shared similar characteristics. Both groups are distinguished by cultural and language differences from those of the dominant ethnic groups, and both were conquered, imp...
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).
...community, equal rights and the right to follow your roots) with the central focus of the poem. As Susan Bassnett states in her essay Bilingual Poetry: A Chicano Phenomenon , there is a “Latin American tradition of the poet who occupies a prominent place in the struggle for freedom and national unity”, and as Cervantes and Gonzales demonstrated, the poet’s role in Latin America has not been diminished.
Virgil Suarez’s poem “Isla” is based off the poet’s personal immigration experience. Born in Cuba, Suarez moved to the United States at age 12. He became college educated, a writer, and a professor (Poetry Foundation, 2018). Suarez is well known for utilizing allegory in his poems to include family members, friends, and famous characters, both real and make-believe (Poetry Foundation, 2018). In his poem “Isla”, Suarez effectively uses allegory, in which he uses both his mother and the famous, love him or hate him creature, Godzilla. As this poem describes Suarez’s immigration from Cuba to America, allegory is fitting because how effective they are at explaining a voyage or dangerous expedition (Kirszner & Mandell, 2012). Specifically, allegory, is a method used to deliver a thought “…by using people, places, or things to stand for abstract ideas” (Kirszner & Mandell, 2012, p. 680). A
Garcia Lorca’s poem carries us all through the tragedy, to the bitter resolution. He paints us a morbid, cold but memorable scene of the death of Ignacio, while showing honesty in his feeling towards his beloved friend’s death. He refused to accept the bullfighter’s death at first, refusing to gaze upon his blood. But through this refusal he recounted the many wonders of his friend, which guided him to eventually look upon the body. As he does so, he ponders the mystery of death, and with the idea of death you will become nothing but a distant memory, and eventually be forgotten. But in Lorca’s final protest, or resolution, he accepts he will always carry his memory will him, and sing his name, giving him a permanent form that death cannot conquer.
The poem that I am analyzing is “Let America be America Again” by Langston Hughes. Langston Hughes was a writer backed with power and passion with what he wrote. He was born in a time period where racism and prejudice was still in full affect. The literature he wrote, he wrote to inspire people to make the right decisions based not on the way people looked, but their character and how they treated you. Hughes grew up in the time of the Harlem Renaissance. “He wrote novels, short stories and plays, as well as poetry, and is also known for his engagement with the world of jazz and the influence it had on his writing, as in his book-length poem Montage of a Dream Deferred” (Poets.org)
In the poem The Art of Poetry, by Jorge Luis Borges, the author describes what poetry is to him, what it represents, and how it makes him feel. Borges was born in Argentina in August of 1899. Even during his infancy in South America, Borges accomplished his first published translation when he was only nine years old. When he was fifteen years old, Borges and his family relocated to Europe and throughout a decade the Argentine experienced various European cultures. As a result, much of Borges’ literary work was influenced by Western European culture. Borges became considerably affected during in his mid to late fifties when he became completely blind resulting from a hereditary disease on his father’s side. Losing his sight did not stop him from becoming the new director of the National Public Library of the Republic of Argentina, and give speeches around the world. Borges writes about himself in his work: The Art of Poetry. Apart from Borges’ descriptions, he does not provide a clear answer as to what the art of poetry actually is. Like in most of his literary work, he chooses to make the reader doubt and think, by creating an incoherent reality; he uses ambiguous metaphors and numerous similes; he repeats the exact same word in his rhyme scheme ABBA which limits the words he can use, therefor using words that have multiple meanings; because of these steps taken by Borges, the reader must take it upon him/herself to understand what the art of poetry actually is.