Essay On Two Ways To Belong In America

The world is like a rainforest. We live in a world that has a biodiversity of people mixed with their cultures. There are so many cultures in the world, that one alone cannot determine how many there are. Saying that culture is what makes a person is a bland definition. Culture is what makes people able to say that they are different and allows them to have a different perspective in daily life. In the text such as “Legal Alien”, “Ethnic Hash” and “Two Ways to Belong in America”, they make shown that other cultures and ones own may play a role in how one views others and the world.
In Pat Mora’s poem “Legal Alien”, it shows readers that people are sometimes guided by the culture of others. “Able to sit in a paneled office drafting memos in smooth English, Able to order in fluent Spanish at a Mexican restaurant”(Mora 40). Pat Mora has a Mexican-American heritage and is trying to slide back and forth between her 50% American and 50% Mexican life. “Their eyes may say ‘You may speak Spanish but you’re not like me’ an American to Mexican, a Mexican to Americans”(Mora40). Throughout this
“By choosing a husband who was not my fathers selection, I was opting… and renouncing 3,000 years (atleast) of caste observant ‘pure culture’ marriage in the Mukherjee family”(Muhkerjee89). Even though she was born and raised an Indian she did not want to choose the traditional Indian spouse. In contrast, her sister Mira even after becoming an American citizen was still attached to her Indian descent. “After 36 years as a legal immigrant in this country, she clings passionately to her Indian citizenship and hopes to go home to India when she retires”(Mukherjee89). So even after being here for a while, nothing influenced her to change just because she was in a different environment. It was her choice to stay the