Six Word Summary

In class we watched the Ted Talk on creating a six word summary to tell a longer story. When the talk first began I thought this was impossible but as it progressed I started to believe in it more. When the Ted Talk was over, we had to create our own six word summary and I thought I would not be able to. I started to think of things that I can summarize and I thought of my aunt. She was having trouble conceiving and she finally was blessed with a pregnancy.  Because she was at risk, she had to be on bed rest for the entire pregnancy. To make a long story short I came up with the six word summary, "special delivery: fragile, handle with care".

Writing styles

For our last unit we have been discussing narratives from various authora and how they influence the writing process. These authors use various techniques ti appeal to their readers' emotions. For example,  Jamaica Kincaid in her novela, A Small Place writes in 2nd person point of view and takes her readers through a tour of Antigua.  Through this tour we see all the beautiful there is to Antigua as well as the corrupt underlying structure that touriats do not seem to see or care about. She continuously repeats "you are on holiday" to show these tourists selfish acts. Through 2nd person point of view, us readers can empathize with Kincaid and how she feels toward tourists.  We can understand how the natives really feel about how the tourist is taken better care of than the native. A writing style can have an effect on the way a reader interprets a work.

Arab Feminism

Susan Muaddi Darraj wrote an essay called It's Not an Oxymoron: The Search for Arab Feminism where she discusses her views on feminism and it's role in Arabian culture versus in American culture. In her title, she is calling "Arab Feminism" as an "oxymoron" because usually people will see these to concepts as nonexistent together. Throughout her essay she supports her idea that Arab Feminism can exist. In her essay she says "I had encountered in my feminist theory class, but the standards of a different feminism- one that allowed women to retain their culture, to have pride in their traditions and to still vocalize the gender issues of their community" (Darraj 301). In my opinion Darraj feels that women can still perform their domestic duties as well as traditions in theit cultures while trying to find their own independence. Feminism is a movement for women to find their own way of life and not have to be directed into a stereotype that society usually holds about women. At the end of Darraj's essay she tells that she has successfully fulfilled the role of being an Arab Feminist. She is a married woman who plans to have children but also is a working woman. Through reading this essay I have gotten an idea if what it is exactly to be a feminist and that pursuing both sides of a woman,being both a working woman and a domestic woman. I think it is very important for woman to feel a sense of independence and importance in society as well as not forgetting that their role as a woman also includes taking care of a family. It isn't an easy task, but it just makes a woman all the more stronger.

A Prejudice America

We all live in a society where everyone is judged based on their appearance. People automatically assume the type of lifestyle you live and who you are based on the way you look, dress, speak, or present yourself. Gene Luen Yang discusses this issue in his graphic novel American Born Chinese. Jin Wang and his family have recently moved from San Francisco to a new neighborhood where Jin will start a new school. on his first day his new teacher introduces him to the class and informs them that Jin had just moved from China. Jin then corrects her by saying "San Francisco". the author is introducing the issue he is trying to address in this scene. he is elaborating on the issue that because Jin expresses Chinese features, people automatically are assuming he is from China when in fact he is just as American as the rest of them are. Yang also discusses the issue of stereotyping in his novel. Timmy, an american boy in Jin's new class makes a comment about Chinese people eating dogs. Because Jin is of a Chinese background, he automatically assumed that he also eats dogs because that is what he had learned about ALL Chinese people. Yang is emphasizing on the issue that many think just because a few people do something, EVERYONE of that particular group does it also which is not always the case. Americans do tend to prejudge people of a certain ethnicity or people who are "different" than the average American. this is usually done for Americans to feel a sense of superiority over these minorities or to downgrade their customs and traditions to make themselves look better.

Is Being Different a Bad Thing?

 In the novel, the topic of being the "typical Dominican man" occurs widely throughout. You were categorized as a great Dominican man if you had a way with women. Being someone who can easily attract women and sleep with them meant that you were "the man". In Oscar's case, he was Dominican, but not your average Dominican. He was once seen as "the man" when he formed a love triangle between two girls in his high school years. Once his heart was broken by one of them, his life began to change. Oscar began to gain weight and had a deep interest in the sci-fi genre. All he would like to do is stay in and write stories as opposed to be out getting women. All the other Dominican men felt Oscar was not Dominican and just excluded him out of that category. But why does it have to be that way? In my opinion, everyone has their differences. Oscar, to an extent, did have a part of his Dominican culture with the fact that he was crazed for woman but he also had his own personality and way of life, which in my opinion is perfectly fine. Every one should have something unique about them because, if not they would be categorized with other people and never have the chance to be their own person. I feel differences are a very good thing, as they are something that makes you special, something that can identify you from everyone else. Although Oscar was constantly criticized for who he was, I feel he stood his ground and continued to be the person he was. He knew what his interests were and stuck to them because he knew that those things were what he enjoyed. Often times people who are supposed to be in a certain category try to change who they are to be accepted by others. Like for example, when Yunior insisted that Oscar needed to change, Oscar did take it into consideration and began running with Yunior. But, this didn't really work for him and he went back to doing the same things he was used to. I feel that Oscar was made to be the way he was and couldn't change it because it was who he was destined to be. I feel people shouldn't have to change to fit in ,but should be accepted for who they are.

The Perfect Daughter?

In the novel, Lola describes what it is to be the "perfect daughter" within her Dominican culture. Basically, the perfect daughter is a slave for their mother, they cook, clean, and complete any other task their mother asks of them with no debate. From the family I come from, this too is something that contributes to being the perfect daughter. Not so much doing it all yourself, but helping around the house and just contributing, as opposed to depending on the adults of the household, does persuade your mother that you are trying your best and they will see you as the perfect daughter. But, there was one thing that I didn't agree so much with in Lola's story. I felt that the fact that her mother would constantly put her down and talked bad about her own daughter was very harsh and something that a mother should not do. In the novel Lola says, "For a long time I let her say what she wanted about me, and what was worse, for a long time I believed her. I was a fea, I was worthless, I was an idiota. From ages two to thirteen I believed her and because I believed her I was the perfect hija" (Diaz 56). This quote was very surprising to me when I read it because I just couldn't believe that a mother can talk so bad about there child to the point where their child would believe it. In my opinion a mother should always lift up their children, make them always feel good about themselves and always push them to be the best person they can be. In my own experience, my mother always pushes me to do better and when I know I am good at something she would tell me to work harder to be great. I actually felt really bad for Lola when reading her story because as a daughter myself I know that having a good mother is really important since they are the ones who you are supposed to look up to, they are the ones who are supposed to teach you all the things you need to know about being a woman. Lola then begins to rebel against her mother, cutting her hair, talking back, and even running away. I also thought this was wrong on Lola's part. I had a lot in common with Lola especially the fact that her mother was very ill. My mother is a very sick woman as well and I know that putting all of that extra stress on her would make her worse. I think Lola should have taken a different route and instead of rebelling, she should have tried to talk to her mother, telling her how she felt, and maybe even asking her to stop the negative commentary. In my opinion, it is a great way to tell someone of higher authority than yourself how you feel with out disrespecting them. All in all, I think Juno Diaz did a great job with Lola's story, it was very easy to empathize and I actually felt like I was in the story because of how well detailed it was and how much emotion was put into his writing.