Saad Bakr 12/716 Term Paper The Sense of Human Belonging and Having a sense of belonging is a common experience. Belonging means acceptance as a member or part. It is such a simple word for huge concept. A sense of belonging is a human need, just like the need for food and shelter. Feeling that we belong is most important in seeing value in life and in coping with intensely painful emotions. From a psychological perspective, a sense of belonging is a basic human need, with many psychologists discussing this need as being at the level of importance of that as food, water, and shelter. A sense of belonging can be so powerful that it can create both value in life and the ability to learn healthy coping skills when experiencing intensive and …show more content…
What researchers have found is that when this is combined with a strong emotional engagement, a baby 's developmental growth and its recognition of self increases significantly. Throughout the rest of our developmental years and life cycle, a sense of belonging also has a positive impact on many other areas of our lives. Intellectual levels, social skills, mental health, physical health, and motivation are just some of the many areas of our lives that are improved when we live with a sense of belonging. Some find belonging in a church, some with friends, some with family, and some on Twitter, face book or other social media. Some see themselves as connected only to one or two people. Others believe and feel a connection to all people the world over, to humanity. Some struggle to find a sense of belonging and their loneliness is physically painful for them. Some seek belonging through excluding others. That reflects the idea that there must be those who don 't belong in order for there to be those who do (Madina 2007). It is exactly reflected in “Two Ways to Belong in …show more content…
It was away from the concept of speech community and more about the emotional attachment. If we read the essay without having studied speech communities, as our class has, we probably wouldn’t have made any connection to speech communities. At first, none can recognized the implications of the differing speech communities that Bharati and Mira decided to join upon their arrival in America rather an exposure to different sense of belongings. Bharati explains in India she and Mira were “almost identical in appearance and attitude”. However, in America, Bharati chose to marry outside of her ethnic community, and therefore entered into an entirely different speech community from her sister Mira, who married her ethnic equal and maintained her membership within her Indian culture’s speech community. Because Mira decided to preserve her Indian heritage and lifestyle, she did not desire to become assimilated into American society, but instead wanted to maintain her own identity as an Indian immigrant working in America. Mira did not welcome the new legislation that encouraged legal immigrants to become American citizens like Bharati did. The sisters found themselves viewing their new life through the eyes of two completely different speech communities. Mukherjee, actually accentuated the voice of those who struggle for
The story is about two sister who currently lives in America. It has to deal with moving to the United States in the 1960’s. Both sisters moved to the United States in hope to pursue their dreams and to achieve they goals with college and further education. Both having similarities in appearance and religious values. Both Bharati and her sister Mira had planned to move back to their homeland India after their education. This story relates to our point of culture having a major impact on how people judge each other because it has a huge impact on how people view the world differently because, in this example, I feel manipulated and discarded. This is such an unfair way to treat a person who was invited to stay and work here because of her talent” it is basically stating on how even immigrants (like the sisters themselves) who have come into the U.S., are sometimes given fewer benefits and rights than everyone else and that they feel discluded from being able to express themselves if they wanted to, or to have good thoughts that America is as good as people has said it was, with all this freedom. The last example is, I feel some kind of irrational attachment to India that I don’t to America. Until all this hysteria against immigrants, I was totally happy.” This demonstrates that it isn’t the country itself that makes people unsafe or unsure, it’s the people running it who try to put limitations
Attachment is an important aspect through the developmental stages of a child. It is the process through which an individual develops specific bonds with others (). John Bowlby theorized Attachment Theory, which focuses on a behavioral system that demonstrates the response of an adult when a child signals which can lead to a strong trusting relationship (). Through attachment infants develop strong emotional bonds with others, which can result in a more positive outcome later in life.
"To feel a sense of belonging, you need to accept yourself and be accepted by others."
We all need to belong somewhere and feel comfort in our lives. We as human beings need to open our eyes and see we can all belong together and live in one society without dropping our culture but before this can happen we need to end racism and stereotyping. These are the two main factors that push people, more commonly native people, into the loss of belonging the loss of their culture and the loss of the core of their identity.
Mukherjee begins her essay with an exposition of her and her sister’s story. She uses repetition in order to emphasize the main differences between the two. For example, she states, “I am an American citizen and she is not. I am moved that thousands of residents are finally taking the oath of citizenship. She is not.” This line is used to set up her subject. She is stating that she is an immigrant whose dream was to envelop the American culture, while her sister does not believe that she should be assimilated into it. The use of repetition also appeals to her audience, Americans, by capturing their attention. Many Americans are nationalistic, if not jingoistic, and believe that America is the greatest country in the world. The notion that others do not feel this way may intrigue them, or potentially offend them, causing them to read on in attempt to find flaws within her argument.
In what ways does this text explore the development of belonging through connections to people, places, groups, communities or the larger world?
...cal, emotional, and cognitive development for the child. The warmth and empathy shown to the child helps the child develop at a normative rate. While the attachment is important during infancy, it is also important to maintain the attachment throughout adolescence. Children who continue to share a secure attachment with the parent oftentimes have an easier time making friends and working through social issues (cite).
others in the same situation for support. Thus, they develop an exaggerated sense of belonging
Attachment is an emotional bond that is from one person to another. The attachment theory is a psychological, an evolutionary and an ethological theory that is concerned with relationships between humans, specifically between mother and infant. A young infant has to develop a relationship with at least one of their primary caregivers for them to develop socially and emotionally. Social competence is the condition that possesses the social, emotional and intellectual skills and behaviours, the infant needs these to success as a member of society. Many studies have been focused on the Western society, but there are many arguments to whether or not this can be applicable to other cultures, such as the poorer countries.
Attachment is the continuing and lasting relationships that children form with adults. Attachment refers to how secure the child feels in the company of a particular adult, which is the key in forming secure relationships in the future. (Wittmer, 2011) Attachment typically begins in the child’s first year of life through repeated interactions between the baby and the caregiver. When the caregiver responds appropriately to the baby cues, such as a cry or a smile, the baby learns to trust the caregiver that his needs will be provided, and the baby develops a sense of security. (Erickson, n.d)
Through the onset of peer pressure and family relations we see how these influence individuals into making certain decisions and acting in a way that will suit others. Meditations explains how even though it would be normal to want to follow our in-group that we must be able to break free of those confines that tie us down and become our own independent persons. It goes on to explain in a broad sense of group dynamics how our social norms and relations can cause individuals to sway in their own personal thoughts and feelings. An example of this would be discussing political preferences among friends and family. A person could change their own views based on what their family believes in and tells them about certain parties as they are growing up; this sways them to assimilate into group beliefs despite their own in order to blend in without any complications. This concept is not limited to family, but more common amongst peer groups and friendships. A good example would be when one wants to smoothly integrate into their desired group. Said group could have a political standpoint of conservatism while the individual’s personal views are liberal. To merge into the faction, they could state that their political party is the same as their peers, thus eventually altering their claims to being conservative. In “The Need to Belong can Motivate
Bharati Mukherjee’s story, “Two Ways to Belong in America”, is about two sisters from India who later came to America in search of different ambitions. Growing up they were very similar in their looks and their beliefs, but they have contrasting views on immigration and citizenship. Both girls had been living in the United States for 35 years and only one sister had her citizenship. Bharati decided not to follow Indian traditional values and she married outside of her culture. She had no desire to continue worshipping her culture from her childhood, so she became a United States citizen. Her ideal life goal was to stay in America and transform her life. Mira, on the other hand, married an Indian student and they both earned labor certifications that was crucial for a green card. She wanted to move back to India after retirement because that is where her heart belonged. The author’s tone fluctuates throughout the story. At the beginning of the story her tone is pitiful but then it becomes sympathizing and understanding. She makes it known that she highly disagrees with her sister’s viewpoints but she is still considerate and explains her sister’s thought process. While comparing the two perspectives, the author uses many
It is human nature for us to have a strong sense of belonging to a group. Humans get to experience a deeper commitment to a group when they make decisions and actions. This sense of ...
Baumeister & Leary (1995) proposed a hypothesis stating that the need to belong is a fundamental human motivation. They see human beings as having this desire and motivation “to form and maintain at least a minimum quantity of lasting, positive, and significant interpersonal relationship” (p.497). They went on to state that a lack of belongingness could lead to a verity of ill effects on health, adjustment, and well-being. As such, having an interpersonal relationship with individuals in a stable and enduring context where one feels affirmed and supported is good for our overall well-being. This speaks to the important of relationship in our development as human beings.