How the Immigrants Identify themselves with their Culture

This assessment was done to identify family history and the life they have gone through in the United States. It is important in identifying how immigrants perform in the new environment they are in. It is carried out to show whether the immigrants still identify themselves with their culture and if they still remember it. The research identifies if the immigrants practice their culture while they are in the United States. This is observed on how they maintain their cultural practices.

It is observed in the following ways.

Need of a whole person

The research identifies the need of a whole person. The research shows history and origin of a person. Through the study, you can be able to know if the person is going through some difficulties in life. It shows the culture that people used to perform in their native land and the cultures that are still practiced in the present times. There are some cultures that were not healthy and were not friendly to the people example FGM. Through the research, you can be able to establish how people feel about their culture and beliefs. There are some cultures that people are proud of, and they feel good when they narrate them. They could be happy to be in a place without some cultures and beliefs and a sign of relief from bad cultures that they used to partake.

The researcher can be able to know the life that families live. One can be able to know if the families are comfortable in the life they live in. Although the research is more concerned about the social life that people lead, it is possible to know the family to see the hardships that the families undergo because you are physically there (Spector, 2002). You can be able to see the suffering they experience in their daily life. Financial problems can contribute to their mental suffering as they wonder what to do to improve their living standards.

Culture

The interview shows peoples culture and practices. They may have stopped performing them, or they are still doing them. The research shows the family origin and their original culture. You can know the history of a family and their practices from their previous generations. They are required to tell you their history from what they can remember. They may have taken part in the practices or witness them being done. They may also have learned from their ancestors in their ancestral land. Many people that move into the United States cope because of the US. Culture is diverse, and people are friendly irrespective of the culture that you may be in. However, not all people cope in the new environment. They may find it hard to live away from their culture and are stressed and depressed. There are some of the families that still practice their native culture just the same way they used to do in their original homelands. They choose to preserve their original way of life

Families

The three families involved still observe their culture. They can speak their native language and even read it. They can be able to communicate with their native languages fluently. They also remarked that they use the languages often in their new residence. Language is one of the important cultural icons. It is hard to identify yourself with a particular culture if you cannot speak their language. It is also hard to forget language no matter how many years you may be away. They may have difficulties in maintaining their pronunciation of words and intonation, but it is hard to forget the language fully. All the families involved also claimed that they attend important cultural festivals. This acts as a good reminder of their cultural acts and beliefs.

They are organized by people of the same culture and believe in a particularly suitable place where they can converge together and do their practices. During these festivals, they speak in their native languages and acknowledge the presence of each other. They encourage each other in the lives that they live in and lay strategies on how to improve their native homes and the people they left behind. They select leaders that keep them together and in touch. This also shows that they still acknowledge that they belong to a particular culture and are proud of it. They can maintain their culture through songs and poems that they can easily recite. They can keep the songs and poems recorded and keep singing them to remind themselves of their native cultural acts and believe.

Traditions

The three families involved recorded that they still perform their traditions. They sing traditional songs that carry significant traditional messages and information. They also dance the traditional dances as a sign of traditional identity. This shows that they still recognize their culture and practices irrespective of the place they live. They can be able to undertake traditional marriages that are later certified by the state for formalities. The Indian family indicated that they maintain most of the Indian cultural practices as the ones performed in their homeland India. They still consider marriage as an important cultural activity and would consider marriage between fellow Indians if possible. They dress in the same traditional way particularly women irrespective of them being far from their homeland.

How families engage in culture

Traditions in the three families are confined within the family lines. They commonly do not observe the culture individually especially the young ones. They choose to live like the other people talk and behave (Raymond & Heritage, 2006). They perform the cultural practices around people of the same culture or at homes. Some old people are rigid and fully use their culture irrespective of the place they are and the surrounding people. The culture at the family level is observed by dressing and language. The Indian family particularly is observant on how they dress especially the elderly women. They ensure that people are not against their culture and still perform them. They carry out religious practices and pray with their native language. They observe their religious practices and ensure that they are respected.

They prepare traditional meals the same way they used to prepare them in their native land. They prepare them and serve them in the same way it is done traditionally. This ensures that they are aware of their traditional meals. They engage in storytelling sessions where they tell traditional stories and how the people in their native land live. They are mainly given by the old to the young ones to remind them and inform them of their cultures.

Thesis

Many people are presumed to have forgotten their culture and religion. Many people, especially in the native land, believe that after moving to the United States, people forget their culture. It is not always the case as some people maintain their cultures in the United States better than some people in their native lands. There are people who are in the foreign land but do not live in the culture of the people he or she finds there. They practice the traditional songs and sing their native languages songs that are easily available online.

Transition

Some people completely change when they come to the United States. They forget significant cultures that they used to perform in their native land (Heritage, 2012). They change their dressing, talking, meals and other cultural practices. Others do not like to be associated with their original cultures and would wish to forget about their cultural practices and move on to adopt the American culture. Others do not even call home to find out how they live. They live a life of total denial.

Conclusion

Some basic cultures may be hard to forget even after a long period. It is important that when you move to a new place you adopt the culture of the people that you find. This change enables you to be able to cope with the people that you find without hardships. This also enables you to have an easy time interacting with the people that you find without struggles. However, it is not good to forget all the cultures that identify you. You should maintain the good cultures and let go of the bad ones. They should also maintain their religion and cultural practices. They should not be ashamed of their cultural practices.

References

Heritage, J. (2012). The epistemic engine: Sequence organization and territories of knowledge. Research on Language & Social Interaction, 45(1), 30-52.

Raymond, G., & Heritage, J. (2006). The epistemic of social relations: Owning grandchildren. Language in society, 35(5), 677-705.

Spector, R. E. (2002). Cultural diversity in health and illness. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 13(3), 197-199.

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