The Girl Of The Tangerine Scarf

In the essay “Growing up Asian in America” by Kesaya E. Noda, being who you are, or accepting yourself is portrayed through her own life story. “Being Japanese means being a danger to the country during the war and knowing how to use chopsticks. I wear this history on my face” (Noda 34). Living in America can be said to be great, from those who are already the average American, because they don’t deal with the everyday life of being racialized. They also don’t have the label of having another ethnicity besides being American. “Clean, quiet, motivated, and determined to match the American way; this is us, and that is the story of our time here” (Noda 35). Kesaya struggled to learn about herself and her history, due to the fact that she didn’t know much about her Japanese race. When finding out that her family had been apart of the Japanese camps, Kesaya found it easier to just go along with the American way instead of being herself because she was ashamed of herself. “I come from a people with long memory and a distinctive grace. We live our thanks. And we are Americans. Japanese- Americans” (Noda 36). Kesaya had then accepted herself as a Japanese- American because she was proud of all that her family, and all Japanese, went through. Being American isn’t just about living in America, or being a citizen, but about knowing that you belong because America is your home. Along with being American, if it officially says it on paper or not,

Being independent is also an important factor to being an American. Jerald M Jellison and John H Harvey’s “WHAT IS Freedom?” gives the reader a look positive and negative aspects to having the

While taking this course I benefited from learning a variety of things about the American government, as well as refreshing my memory on somethings I already knew. What didn’t work for me was my time management skills. I am used to writing papers may be two days before the due date. This did not work so well for me because the most difficult part of the paper tended to be the last part. On one of my papers I could not finish the last section of the paper because I didn’t give myself enough time. Videos that were played in during were also very helpful in this course. I did enjoy watching the clip about the Veterans. It was very shocking that many benefits that Veterans now have they weren’t automatically given. Fighting for a country is a very

American beliefs and opinions give a great understanding of what an American values. The want and need for freedom is described in many different ways based on origin or social beliefs. The main backbone of America today is freedom. Through the building of an American empire everyone can’t come to an understanding of what it is to be equally free. By comparing and contrasting the perspectives of Patrick Henry’s speech to the “Virginia Convention,” to take up arms and fight for our freedom. Frederick Douglass’ “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July,” who feels it’s time to end slavery. It is clear that the struggles of the American story are still prevalent and America has not yet found a way for freedom for all.

The relationship of Andrea Roman and her mother in We’re Not essay, shows a young girl who was uncomfortable with her family culture. Roman wrote about wanting to attend a sleepover, borrowing clothing, and doing homework on sundays which Bolivian culture doesn’t believe in. Roman shows how she was uncomfortable by repeating “We’re not American, Andrea.”(227) Those were the words she would hear if she did or wanted to do something her mother did not approve. Roman comes to appreciate her family culture after some time, “I had become comfortable enough with my identity and culture that showing pride in another country would not take away from my heritage.”(229) In Fish Cheeks essay, Tan wrote how she was uncomfortable when her crush Robert came over for dinner. Tan was worried about the Chinese food her mother prepared, noisy

defining what it is to be an American. The thought of the American Dream brings to mind

America is a country full of ideas that create opportunities and memorable moments people enjoy with the company of others. Within the United States of America, diversity is a huge aspect that allows numerous races, ethnicities, and genders, etc. to roam our flourishing nation. Our nation is exceptional by having a beautiful range of natural wonders, collection of first-rate cities, and a wide variety of art and pop culture.The values and beliefs that unite Americans and define our nation’s purpose are the ideas of our nation steps forward to perform actions for the betterment of society, the lack of and enforcement of equality, and the citizenships that people fought to achieve.

In today’s society, the variation of social, cultural, political, and economic life mirrors our Founding Fathers dreams. Since then, America has learned to adjust and accept every citizen's differences with the help of The Bill of Rights, US Constitution, Northwest Ordinance, and the Declaration of Independence. As these documents represent the development of America then, books like the Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore reflect the variations of social, cultural, political, and economic life today. Over time, the definition of being an American has evolved and molded with society to make what the United States citizens know now.

“ A dress down to the ground… yellows and oranges enough to throw back the light of the sun. Earrings gold, too…Bracelets dangling and making noises…” Her hair, “stands straight up like the wool on a sheep.” (183, Walker). This is how Mrs. Johnson describes her daughter‘s new appearance. Although Mrs. Johnson does not disapprove of Dee’s new African fashion she is not comfortable with it. Dee had taken on the task to flash her African roots while she failed to understand the true meaning of her heritage. Dee makes the mistake of believing that one’s heritage is something that one puts on to display. Mrs. Johnson does not display African fashion. Nonetheless she knows the true meaning of her heritage; something that Dee does not seem to understand. Through “Everyday use”, Walker conveys that culture and heritage are taught from one generation to the next and it is not suddenly acquired and definitely it is not something that one suddenly puts on.

What does being American mean to me?As America is a first world country, world police, economic powerhouse, and land of the free. With an advanced nation like ours comes advanced ideals, beliefs, religions, so on and so forth. Cores are a fundamental requirement for a nation to successfully prosper and communication within ourselves and other nations is a must to prevent an economic collapse, eventually leading into failed state status. I see cores as spiritual possessions that you use as a celestial guide to govern your life and should abide by, at the same level as morals. As you read this opinion based passage, ask yourself, what American cores effect you?

In Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”, Walker juxtaposes two different daughters in their quest for a cultural identity. The narrator, their mother, talks about how each daughter is different; Dee went off to college and became well-educated, contrary to their impoverished and low status as black women in the south. Meanwhile, Maggie isn’t nearly as educated as Dee is, but is still literate. The entire story centers around Dee’s visit with her new Muslim significant other. The story’s climax is when Dee wants to take two special quilts back home, but those quilts are for Maggie. These precious quilts comprise their culture. Henceforth, Dee does not deserve to take the quilts with her because she has decided to take on a culture that varies significantly from her own and she is already used to getting what she wants.

Wealth. Freedom. Equality. The pursuit of happiness and opportunity. From John Winthrop’s “The City Upon A Hill” to Thomas Jefferson’s “The Declaration of Independence”, the term America has been universally defined by these ideals. As a citizen living within this country, I have grown up being taught that upholding these values defines being an American. While this was a generic and naive response to what it means to be American, I simply accepted this because it was what others told me. Looking back, I realize that I blindly accepted this definition because of a false and hopeful view of humanity in general. I did not see the world for what it is, rather, I saw it as filled with blissfully optimistic hope, I idealized the world, dreaming that America and, by extension, Americans were shining beacons of freedom, equality, and opportunity in the world, cultivating my previous

Hard-boiled detective fiction sets the scene for a cold and harsh reality. Dashiell Hammett’s, “The Girl with The Silver Eyes” is no exception to this rule. In this short story Hammett paints a picture of a brutally realistic urban center filled with characters that not many people would want to call friends. The realistic qualities of Hammett’s story are drawn from his own life’s experience working as a Pinkerton detective. The detective in “The Girl With The Silver Eyes” works for the Continental Detective Agency and is, therefore, known simply as the Continental Op. In the beginning of the story the Op professes, “a detective, if he is wise, takes pains to make and keep as many friends as possible among transfer company, express

Many ideas are important within the American culture, but to the American sense of patriotism, freedom is most fundamental. The idea of freedom is central to the American politics – which is at times referred to as liberty. Since the birth of the nation, freedom has been the vocabulary of the American language and its importance cannot be underestimated. The Declaration of Independence, for instance, ranks liberty as an inalienable right. On the other hand, the Constitution reckons that it purposes to protect civilians’ liberty. The importance of freedom has even stretched further than the political arena and has prompted the birth of civil rights movements and other activist protests. The Cold War and the Civil War were all for the cause of freedom. The importance that Americans attach to freedom can also be demonstrated from the erection of statues, banishment of slavery, use of liberty poles and a right to vote for adults. For many years, women and the African Americans have for a long time fought against denial and infringement of their freedom . However, given the importance that Americans affiliate to freedom in the conceptualization of their country, it has been the subject of modifications over the course of years especially before the Revolutionary War.

In “Imagining Homelands” by Bharati Mukherjee the author makes an observation that when immigrants come from their countries they are forced to give up or suppress their home cultures because of the overwhelming amount of exposure of the “American culture”. Mukherjee is quoted in the text saying “The question I meant to raise was simply this: Which one of us is the freak? Someone who retains the food, the clothes, the accent of expatriation, or her T-shirted, blue-jeaned sister? The answer is by no means clear.” She poses the question of wither or not the suppressor or the expresser is the weirder one in the situation of being thrown