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The consequences of cultural assimilation
Assimilation, acculturation, accommodation, and amalgamation
Assimilation, acculturation, accommodation, and amalgamation
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Should immigrant parents Americanize their children? Should they prioritize adapting to the environment over their own cultural heritage? I don't think they should, and I don't think they have to. I can tell from my own experience that parents actually have much less influence on deciding how a child grows up than it would seem. But that is not to say that they have no role at all. As the perceived root of their children's culture they do play an important part. Personally, if I ever had questions about our customs, religion, or where I came from the people to ask were my mother or my grandmother. They always had an answer, even if they had to make it up. I feel that parents would best serve the purpose of preserving their heritage through …show more content…
His family stifles their heritage to make things more convenient, more acceptable. They “sang jingles from World War II/ in a language they did not speak” and offered the “fat boy” the staid soft drink, something he was already accustomed to. The coconuts, meanwhile, were neglected in their perches. They “sagged heavy with milk, swollen and unsuckled.” The coconuts, which Espada saw as part of his heritage were being wasted. In this poem, the author is making an appeal to the audience to not let their culture go to waste. He wants them to treasure it and in doing so they will be rewarded. Even if the adults aren't aware of it, by replacing their customs with something more comfortable they are depriving their children of something equally as important as a cushy job. Letting children know where they come from won't make them feel weird or out of place. They will just know a little more about who they are identifying …show more content…
It's not that I am ashamed or anything. I'm just mostly clueless. It both reminds me that I am a foreigner and at the same time that I have not done enough to protect my own heritage, that I haven't bothered enough to learn more about it. That is an odd and embarrassing place to be. I can see why a parent would want to spare a child from this kind situation, but I don't think “Americanizing” them is the way to go about it. Actually, I think a parent should freely dump as much culture as they want on a child, so long as he or she is willing to learn. In all likelihood, he children won't be getting any first-hand experience anyway. They only know what they have been told. I can truly say that the awkward situations in which I had to try to educate someone else about where I came from would have been much more tolerable if I actually had answers for
Ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1985. McQuade, Donald, ed., pp. 113-117.
Ed. Maynard Mack. 5th edition. New York: Norton 1987. 549-560.
Just as the Native Americans had to learn English from the Pilgrims, immigrant children need bilingual education to help them learn English. Everyone expects the immigrants to be able to speak English immediately, but that is rarely the case; they need time to learn our culture. In order for immigrants to succeed in this nation it is recommended that they learn English and every American should try to help them learn it. By immigrant children learning English through bilingual education they not only get keep their culture, but also learn the language to help them become successful in America. The Encyclopedia of Education says, “In most areas of the United States approximately 70 percent of the native-born currently are adopting English as their usual language” (Glenn). This ...
State University Press, 1989. http://www. Gioia, Dana, & Kennedy, X. J. Eds. of the book. (1999)
My parents did everything they knew to help my sister and I learn and respect our Mexican culture. Born into American culture but raised by Hispanic parents, often was difficult for me. Since I was little I had to manage and balance two very different cultures at the same time. There were many times while growing up that I encountered complex situations in regards to language, whether to speak Spanish or English and when it was appropriate. I felt a lot of pressure having to act as an interpreter for my parents when we were out in public. At home I was told to speak Spanish so I would not forget, but at school I was taught to only speak English with my teachers and friends. However, when we would go visit family in Mexico, I was expected to only speak in Spanish, since speaking in English in front of family members who only spoke Spanish was seen as disrespectful. So learning two languages has been very beneficial to my life and for my family. By
The type of parenting style used by parents may be determined by the parent’s own cultural heritage. As immigrants move to a new country, it will take time to learn the new culture and to be accustomed to their ways. Therefore, it would not be surprising if first generation immigrant parents place the hardest strain on their children. Since they have not yet been accustomed to American culture, they will be more likely to adhere to their traditional ways. Immigrants who have been in the country longer may have slowly compromised traditional views with new
Leaf, R., & McEachin, J. (1999). A Work in Progress. New York, NY: DRL Books Inc.
16(41), pp. 3. Retrieved on November 12, 2003 from EBSCO database (Masterfile) on the World Wide Web: http://www.ebsco.com.
In the United States of America we have become a large melting pot of ethnic and cultural peoples. Along with these peoples have come many different languages and alphabets. However the US has been seen as a mostly English speaking country. Yet many of this country's newcomers do not speak English. Adults and children alike come into the US speaking and writing only their native tongue. This poses a huge gap in communication. If the adults are unable to teach their children English, then it becomes the school districts' responsibility. However to make learning easier on the child, many school districts choose to teach the child in their native language, while they receive English lessons on the side.
Correspondence concerning this paper should be addressed to Corey Morgan, Central Community College-Hastings Campus, East Highway 6, Hastings, NE 68901. Email: Corey75231@cccneb.edu
...on. Vol. 34. Georgia State University, 2001. 39-53. H. W. Wilson Web. 22 Mar. 2004.
Bely, Andrei. Petersburg. Trans. Robert A. Maguire and John E. Malmstad. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1978.
Ed. Lee A. Jacobus, Ph.D. 3rd ed. of the year. Boston: Bedford Books, 1996. 672-709. 2.
Foreign language skills could have a positive impact on race relations in America. The number of minorities in America is rapidly increasing. In fact, "minority" groups will soon form a collective "majority" of the citizens in America. Considering the facts that many minority groups speak English as a second language and America has no official language, compulsory foreign language classes are viable options. Of course, opponents of mandatory foreign language courses will say that immigrants and naturalized citizens should learn and speak the "de facto" official language of the United States--English. It is a valid point, but misses the bigger picture. People who speak English as a second language are already bilingual, while American-born students typically are not. Language is the most fundamental aspect of a culture. Students who learn the not-so-foreign language of the predominant minority group in their region of the country will gain at least some insight into the different culture of their neighbors and perhaps have a better understanding of them at the personal level. If we take these bits of insight and understanding and couple them with compassion, fertile ground for multicultural harmony in America will be sown. While foreign language skills can improve domestic affairs, the same can be said of foreign affairs.
My family emigrated from the Dominican Republic when I was two years old. At the time, none of us spoke any fluent English. Due to their limited education,