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Similarities and differences between cultures
Similarities and differences between cultures
Compare and contrast two different cultures
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Prologue: This is the tale of Messer William Nicholas Kimmey Polanco de Andalusia and Holanda, the envoy of the King George Baroud to the men of Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, and the immediate surrounding area. In this narrative, he tells of all he saw in the lands of the Bayonners, the Jersey Cityans, the Hobokeners, the Lower Manhattanites, the Central Brooklynites, and others, their various customs, and news from their lands. He provides an ethnographic analysis of the cultural mixing of disparate people in a contained region, as well as the reasons why different migrants converged on a specific locale and how they may be more similar than originally believed. Installment I: The Journey Messer William set out from the City of Two Bays …show more content…
Strong, sturdy, yet not overly attractive structures dotted the landscape in this realm, with the exception of a temple dedicated to transport along the coast of the city. The inhabitants quite apparently possessed the wealth of the inner Jersey Cityans, however their clothing for the most part struck a middle ground between the excessive lower class inhabitants of outer Jersey Cityans and the more modest Bayonners. Messer William also states that while the realms of Bayonne and Jersey City boast populations of various colors and origins, the Hobokeners are of a more homogenous kind, both in age and …show more content…
He describes how the realm’s inhabitants moved with a speed that was a middle ground between the Lower Manhattanites and the Jerseyans, hold a similar level of diversity as the Jersey Cityans, and dress in a manner reminiscent of that of the Hobokeners. He also recounts that while these details were interesting, the mission outlined by the King required more specificity than the superficial, and that required direct inquiry into the affairs of the Central Brooklynites. As such, Messers William and Leopoldo began their expeditions into various trading locales within the
A review of his methodology shows the time and energy that entering this book. He uses a variety of sources for his research and evidence of good sources such as newspapers; memoirs; diaries; census figures; real estate listings; private letters and documents; journals and memoirs; public records and statements; the federal and local
African or American? Black Identity and Political Activism in New York City, 1784-1861., Alexander, Leslie M., 2008
The Reeve is continually silenced by other pilgrims and himself, which is paralleled in his tale, and in turn suppresses his emotions, which leads to even more explosive conduct. I. Characterization In order to appreciate the melancholic and serious temperament of the Reeve, it is nec-essary to view him in comparison to other characters, as Chaucer intended. The identities of the pilgrims are relative. They are characterized by their description in the General Prologue, but not fully developed until they are seen in contrast to the pilgrim they are “quiting.”
Horsmanden’s journal provides a wealth of information about eighteenth century New York if one is willing to analyze it critically and ignore the bias present in it. If one does this they catch fascinating glimpses of a divided world, one where people are partitioned by race, economic status, homeland and religion. A world filled with fear and suspicion caused by the tension inherent within such societal division. The same tensions that either gave rise to a massive conspiracy to destroy the town of New York or gave credence to a nightmare constructed by the minds of the people and fed by individuals’ self-serving nature. Regardless, eighteenth century New York was a troubled place and Horsmanden’s Journal of the Proceedings gives us a partial but valuable insight to the lives and interactions of colonial New York’s peoples.
Lefler, Hugh T., and William S. Powell. Colonial North America. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1973.
In “Part One: The Negro and the City,” Osofsky describes the early Black neighborhoods of New York City, in the lower parts of Manhattan: from Five Points, San Juan Hill, and the Tenderloin. He describes the state of Black community of New York in the antebellum and postbellum, and uses the greater United States, including the Deep South, as his backdrop for his microanalysis of the Blacks in New York. He paints a grim picture of little hope for Black Americans living in New York City, and reminds the reader that despite emancipation in the north long before the Civil War, racism and prejudices were still widespread in a city where blacks made up a small portion of the population.
Often when looking at American history, people tend to lump all the characters and actors involved as similar. This is especially the case in regards to Early American Colonial history. Because the Puritan communities that grew rapidly after John Winthrop’s arrival in 1630 often overshadow the earlier colony at Plymouth, many are lead to assume that all settlers acted in similar ways with regard to land use, religion, and law. By analyzing the writings of William Bradford and John Winthrop, one begins to see differing pictures of colonization in New England.
The setting is London in 1854, which is very different to anything we know today. Johnson’s description of this time and place makes it seem like a whole other world from the here and now....
In his essay, “ Brooklyn Bridge,” the author explores the “appetite” of a particular New Yorker. This woman is described as staring,full of awe,at the New York Skyline from another borough. She is ambitious and sees New York as full of endless possibilities. Throughout the collection he portrays New York transplants or prospective residents as being driven by the longing to grab a piece of the city for themselves.This drive is a pattern that is repeated in these works of Whitehead. In his essay “Port Authority instead of focusing on the New York ideal of one individual Whitehead focuses on a body of people about to move to New York. Througout the collection Whitehead switches back and forth between focusing on an individual and focusing on a crowd. In this essay Whitehead also highlights the sameness within the people hustling and bustling in and out of Port Authority. He implies that the same quality of brokenness has led them all here, “They’re all broken somehow… Otherwise they would have come here differently,”(15). Even though they are all from different places and all have different destinations the essence of New York has drawn them all here. Colson’s account of the passengers shows that they are all feeling the same feelings of hope in regards to coming to New York. Although they all hope for different things the theme regarding the passengers is
Hickey, Andrew S. The story of Kingston, First Capital of New York State 1609-1952: New York, Stratford House, 1952
Colson Whitehead explores this grand and complex city in his collection of essays The Colossus of New York. Whitehead writes about essential elements to New York life. His essays depict the city limits and everyday moments such as the morning and the subway, where “it is hard to escape the suspicion that your train just left... and if you had acted differently everything would be better” (“Subway” 49). Other essays are about more once in a while moments such as going to Central Park or the Port Authority. These divisions are subjective to each person. Some people come to New York and “after the long ride and the tiny brutalities... they enter the Port Authority,” but for others the Port Authority is a stop in their daily commute (“The Port Authority” 22).Nonetheless, each moment is a part of everyone’s life at some point. Many people live these moments together, experiencing similar situations. We have all been in the middle of that “where ...
Dumenil, Lynn, ed. "New York City." The Oxford Encyclopedia of American Social History. N.p.: Oxford UP, 2012. Oxford Reference. Web. 8 Apr. 2013.
Burrows, Edwin G., and Mike Wallace. Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898. New York: Oxford UP, 1999. Print.
The setting for this novel was a constantly shifting one. Taking place during what seems to be the Late Industrial Revolution and the high of the British Empire, the era is portrayed amongst influential Englishmen, the value of the pound, the presence of steamers, railroads, ferries, and a European globe.
Jackson, Kenneth T. The Encyclopedia of New York City. 2nd ed. New York City: Yale University Press, 2010.