Personal Narrative: My American Identity

Words: 1336
Pages: 6
Open Document
It was April 30, 1975 when millions of people struggled to leave what was known as Saigon. Both of my parents left a couple of years later to establish a life in a faraway country with the idea that they will never be able to return home. With some money in their pockets and hardly anything on their backs, they gripped onto their cultural values as they enter a new world. Growing up, my parents have always told me that my Vietnamese identity should always precede my American identity. This, of course, has caused a lot of confusion later in my adolescence years as I tried to figure out what it meant to be just a Vietnamese or just an American person. Mixing both cultures was not an option, especially when there are many opposing views. …show more content…
The program dedicates a couple of hours every day for us to do our homework. Occasionally, I was not able to complete my homework in time, so I would try to complete it at home instead. At first, my mom was okay with it, but she would later yell at me for not being able to complete it in YMCA. She told me that every other kid completes their homework and I am the only one struggling with it and so, she spanked me. I remember being so afraid of being spanked again that I started lying about it. Later that year, my dad went to parent-teacher conference and was told that I have not been handing in my homework. When asked why, I told him, “I don’t want to get into trouble.” Little did I know that this was a start to a pattern. According to Alfie Kohn, research shows that focusing too much on obedience may have a more negative affect on the child than permissive parenting style (2015). Children who were punished are more likely to become aggressive and antisocial later in life. I see myself in this research because although I was never an outgoing child, my antisocial tendencies escalated during my young adolescence years and I began to distanced myself from others even
Show More

Related Documents: Personal Narrative: My American Identity

Personal Narrative: My American Identity

I’ll soon be hugging my grandparents and sharing a big family meal. This is my parents’ homeland, where both grew up in the microcosm that is the Mexican-Jewish community, only 0.03 percent of the country’s population, yet its sub-culture runs so deep in me that it coexists with my American identity. A culture that may seem odd to outsiders: With its Veracruz-style gefilte fish, kosher tacos, and matzo-meal handmade tortillas during Passover. I am a first generation American, and I share that common…

Words 635 - Pages 3

Convict: Personality Psychology and Valerie Coats Winston Essay

When I consider who I am as a person, my initial formulation is of a sociological master status. That is, an African-American female student at Howard University. This status could describe me in a nutshell, but because it is so general, it could also describe over half of my peers. Transitioning from being a student in high school, to a student at Howard has challenged many of my personal characteristics and sought thorough adaptation. Thus, my narrative identity is progressing and I am whole, but…

Words 339 - Pages 2

Rigoberta Menchu

lady from Guatemala who wrote an autobiographical story titled "I, Rigoberta Menchu: An Indian Woman in Guatemala". The book offers a first-person narrative of Menchu's experiences, illuminating the discrimination, oppression, and abuses of human rights that indigenous groups in Guatemala have to deal with.The main themes of the book are Menchu's personal experience as a Quiché community member, her participation in the fight for indigenous rights, and her observation of the heinous acts of violence…

Words 969 - Pages 4

Second Generation African Americans

Hispanic/Latino Americans in the United States and cultural identity and identity formation. Understanding the experiences of second-generation youth and their identities in the United States is crucial, given the diverse cultural backgrounds of children born to immigrant parents. This research topic gains significance due to the substantial population of Hispanics/Latinos in the United States. Second-generation Americans navigate the complexities of balancing multiple cultural identities, making it…

Words 2594 - Pages 11

Korean American Culture Analysis

second generation of Korean Americans generally feel that they are not accepted or they cannot properly fit in both Korean and American societies. Specifically, they sometimes receive the sense of isolation from American society because of their Asian appearance and Korean blood, but they also feel strangeness when they return to Korea as local Korean people see them as outsiders as Americans. Many of them are unlike their parents who are the first generation of Korean-Americans, their parents were cultivated…

Words 874 - Pages 4

The Harlem Renaissance

and embraced by African-Americans in the midst of rapid, progressive changes in the United States. This period sought to give a new perspective on the life of American’s most neglected groups, from black writers, visuals artist to poets and musicians, the birth of a new black identity. The Harlem Renaissance is a period that reflects black traditions, voices, and ways of life through the celebrated talent across a diverse…

Words 1769 - Pages 8

The Way To Rainy Mountain Summary

goes on a journey to find himself, particularly his cultural heritage, including values of his ancestors, as explained here. He considers “the role of landscape in The Way to Rainy Mountain” as “inextricably connected to the interplay of the three narrative voices” (14). The relationship of the three voices shows the extent of Momaday’s success on his journey of finding out his ancestry. The use of these three voices also gives the reader an idea of the cultural values and heritage of the Kiowa people…

Words 1924 - Pages 8

Summary: The Miseducation Of The Negro

n the beginning of the semester my professor was challenged with the task to help students develop analytical and compositional skills and create the awareness of socio-historical events affecting African Americans. In this paper I'm going to prove how our required texts and enrichment activities guides one back to the roots of African American history and creates a sense of self-actualization through life's experiences. In The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Gustavus Vassa, the African, Written…

Words 1800 - Pages 8

Stories Of Empowerment Summary

article they talk about a Nigerian woman Chimamanda Adichie who spoke about the dangers of the “single story” in her TED talk. She explained how we are vulnerable to confining places and people to a single story and nothing beyond that. For example, Americans hear many stories about how Mexicans hop the border and are all part of huge drug cartels, but we overlook is their beautiful cultures and hard working people. She empathises to avoid stereotyping people and places based on a single story because…

Words 920 - Pages 4

The Feminine Mystique Analysis

The Feminine Mystique is a novel written by Betty Freidan analyzing the sadness and depression American women felt during the 1950’s. Friedan’s research describes the subservient conditions women experienced and labels their mutual unfulfillment as “the problem with no name” (Friedan, p9). As a wife and mother living during post-World War II, consumer culture spread the stereotype that lifelong fulfillment would be found within marriage and motherhood. Friedan defines the feminine mystique as women’s…

Words 1918 - Pages 8