Essay on "American Ethnic Literature"
Essay 6 pages (2099 words) Sources: 5
[EXCERPT] . . . .
In this argument, Anzaldua uses the concept of how language help define the experience of minority individuals, which is very often a theme that is not explicitly expressed in American ethnic literature. Here, she writes, "Chicanas who grew up speaking Chicano Spanish have internalized the belief that we speak poor Spanish. It is illegitimate, a bastard language. And because we internalized how our language has been used against us at the dominant culture, we use our language differences against each other," (Anzaldua 2950). There is a need for the individual and society at large to except these hybrid forms of identity in contemporary American culture. Language is crucial to the formation of both culture and identity. By being denied this by both Americans and Mexicans, the identity of Chicana and Chicano had long been ridden with shame and self doubt; "Ethnic identity is twin skin to linguistic identity -- I and my language. Until I can take pride in my language, I cannot take pride in myself," (Anzaldua 2951). It is important to Anzaldua to be able to use her own choice of language, no matter what the two groups think, in order to express her own unique identity.The final work to be examined here is Cathy Song's short poem "Lost Sister. This work expresses minority characteristics in terms of beauty, rather than something to be ashamed of our dulled down. It represents a sense of nostalgia for experiences long past, that is thus echoing Ellison in the embracing of minority traditions without fear of embarrassment or shame within a more contemporary context. One can never fully be Chinese nor American, but one is instead kind of caught in the middle, but still longing for a past never personally
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American ethnic literature aims to expose the previously silent voices of the minority groups here in the United States. As it progresses, it is clear that it aims to expose the racist past and embrace a sense of ethnic identity, rather than hiding it in order to assimilate into mainstream America. Yet, in this there is a great challenge in American ethnic literature; "The challenge, overall, becomes one of making ethnicity neither too prescriptive, nor yet so porous as the curb usable definition. The grand sweep risks losing particularity. Two particular a focus risks losing genuine overlap and linkage," (Lee 9).
References
Anzaldua, Gloria. "How to Tame a Wild Tongue." Borderland / La Frontera. Web. http://wolfweb.unr.edu/homepage/calabj/282/how%20to%20tame%20wild%20tongue.pdf
Ellison, Ralph. Invisible Man. Vintage International. 1995.
Franco, Dean J. Ethnic American Literature: Comparing Chicano, Jewish, and African-American Writing. University of Virginia Press. 2006.
Lee, Robert A. Multicultural American Literature: Comparative Black, Native, Latino/a and Asian-American Fictions. University Press of Mississippi. 2003.
Song, Cathy. "Lost Sister." Literary Arts. 1999. Web. http://www.literary-arts.org/pim/poems/1999/55/?PHPSESSID=a86ddca20df7140aec9b3ea5cbbfc695 READ MORE
Quoted Instructions for "American Ethnic Literature" Assignment:
“Write a 1400-1500 word paper in which you define American ethnic literature. Include the following: While the Harlem Renaissance had created a flowering of African American Literature, the decades after World War II saw an explosion of ethnic literature. This literature came from numerous cultures, such as Native American, Asian American, African American, and Hispanic. The authors wrote their own traditions in response to what they saw as the mainstream of American Literature and in response to one another.
Incorporate works from at least three distinct literary traditions so that your explanation is representative of the larger literary movement. Select at least one major author from each of these traditions. Please use and quote from the following: Ralph Ellison (African American) Invisible Man Gloria Anzalda (Hispanic) How to Tame a Wild Tongue Cathy Song (Asian American) White Porch, Lost Sister, and or Heaven
Describe how American ethnic literature is important and what factors influenced it. Answer the following questions in your analysis: 1. How is American ethnic literature influential on politics and education? 2. How does American ethnic literature respond to elements that it explicitly discusses, such as political inclusion and exclusion? 3. How does American ethnic literature respond to factors that are not discussed as explicitly, such as technological change? APA format; feel free to use other authors that fall into the same time period and ethnic category if the selected ones and works are too vague.
How to Reference "American Ethnic Literature" Essay in a Bibliography
“American Ethnic Literature.” A1-TermPaper.com, 2012, https://www.a1-termpaper.com/topics/essay/american-ethnic-literature/4491231. Accessed 14 May 2024.
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Tue, May 14, 2024
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