The Harvest Documentary Analysis
a.) Culture/pg. 34: The language, beliefs, values, norms, behaviors, and even material objects that characterize a group and are passed from one generation to the next. In the documentary “The Harvest” all the people on there were Mexican and all stuck together as a family. They had their own culture as working together in the crop fields and even living together in the same roof. Since they’re financially unstable they struggled and barely fit in the same house which was usually a little shack. They all eat the same foods and have the same routines they do each day together. They struggle as a family financially, and while watching the documentary I noticed half of the families on there are religious and have Mary statues or pictures on the
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walls. Also, every family speaks Spanish and some English. They have the same beliefs and share the money and work they do in the fields. They have a structure where they understand each other and share money to support one another. They all have the same ideas and values on working and money and if they have to move to another place for work then they move together. The way the family is bounded is basically how their culture is. For material things, they don’t really have much, they share clothes, make up, food, and other things. Even though it’s hard they work together and try to make it through. Even the children help out the parents. The kids start at a very young age but for them it seems to be normal but to us it’s not. To them it’s a life and culture they go through to support each other. To them it seems like the material things aren’t important but I noticed that one of the girls on the documentary took make up serious and the way she looked was important to her.
b.) Globalization/pg. 29: The breaking down of national boundaries because of the advances in communications, trade, and travel. In the documentary you see the families moving a lot because of work. The weather has a lot to do with work and if they get paid or not. It’s always hot in the field as they work but when it isn’t there is no work for them. When the crops are all gone in the field then the families move to warmer areas where they know there will be good weather and a job. They try to get a job in the US but since most of them are immigrants they can’t be accepted. Where ever they work, the crops they pick are meant to be trade. They get mainly trades to certain places in the US. Some of the global issues is part of the reason some can’t get jobs in the field. Sometimes crops can’t even grow in some places and that seems to be a global issue. I have notices how important even global issue it has to be with the families because they would have nothing without crops or trade. I never understood the importance of it until I seen the documentary of the jobs on the line and how they always have to travel just because of a job that will maybe only last for a little while or even last at all. Trade is key in this situation too, because most of the stuff they do is important where we live. We live off of trade and the stuff we get is from them. Well, most of them, even from children that are only working to help support their families and don’t really know any better. Globalization is an important factor in the jobs and the documentary “The Harvest”.
c.) Language/pg. 42: Symbols that can be combined in an infinite number of ways for the purpose of communicating abstract thought. In the book it talks about how language, each word you say is actually a symbol. And the language the people spoke in the documentary is Spanish, although a lot of them knew how to speak English as well. They are all mainly Mexican in “The Harvest” so that’s why they spoke Spanish. Like said in the book, all human groups have their own language like how we speak English. Whatever they spoke meant something or a different meaning to them then what it means to us. “Language allows culture to exist.” And like I said in the first paragraph, I talked a lot and mostly about culture, what it is, and examples of it. And one of the examples is language. In the documentary, they spoke a lot of English to the camera and some Spanish so that we could see the different language but I noticed that as they were working in the fields all they spoke was Spanish because that’s how they communicated as a group and what they understood. It’s sad to say but because of how the families spoke and what their language and culture was, they aren’t to be considered. A lot of people won’t hire them, besides working in the field, because they are considered immigrants. That’s why they have a lot of trouble and struggle with work. They move a lot with work so besides speaking their own language they spoke English because that’s mainly where work is and the fields they’re in. Language plays a huge role in the documentary along with culture, because it shows the struggle each of them have and even having to put their child to work which is child labor.
d.) Values/pg. 45: Their ideas of what is desirable in life. When we uncover people’s values, we learn a great deal about them, since values are the standards by which people define what is good and bad, beautiful and ugly. Every family had their own values and something they needed, especially the kids. The first girl named Zuelma, although she didn’t know what she wanted in life or what her dream was, her value was she wanted to go to school and get an education. A lot of the kids on the documentary didn’t even know what their dreams were. A lot of the values I saw on there were, money and happiness. They didn’t have any money and couldn’t even go to school so some of their values are something that’s hard for them to get or have. One of the other girls named Perla, was to go to law school one day but her and her family values were to have money and not work in the fields anymore because her parents, especially her dad was getting hurt, and her mother got sent to the hospital because of it. Each family in the harvest had pretty much the same values and they were trying not to struggle and get enough money to provide for their family and enough so that their own children won’t have to work. While their children have values of having dreams some day and conquering them. In the book it also describes that values are what we hold worthwhile in life. And education seems to be all the kids in the documentaries value. And also just to get through life peacefully, having a good job and without struggling in the fields. And making sure their own kid’s don’t have to go through the same labor and go through life easily, successfully.
e.) Technology/pg.
56: In a narrow sense, tools; its broader sense includes the skills or procedures necessary to make and use those tools. We have technology in our everyday life and can never get away from it. Even the little things we have like a dishwasher, washer, dryer, etc. While watching “The Harvest” I noticed that the only technology they had was mainly a cellphone or a camera. Even their washer/dryer was old and what people used back then that was unsafe. They did everything by hand basically and since they didn’t have money, working in the fields was complete labor. Around here, working in fields we have machines to use, and equipment, but for them they use their bare hands and a simple small basket, which means they can get hurt easily and especially for the kids, to go through all that labor for their age. The youngest age on the documentary was 12 years old and the things she was doing was a lot for her age. In the one scene she climbed on a ladder on a tree to pick apples and almost fell, her back was already hurting as well. They don’t have the technology like we do which isn’t a good thing because of the work they do can be dangerous and especially not good for the kids. Technology is important now but since they can’t get a high paying job they will never get through an education and technology to make things easier for their lives. Where they are also is extremely hot, they don’t even have the money to buy an air conditioner. Technology plays a huge role …show more content…
in today’s society and can help a lot of people. It’s a shame that the families don’t have it and have to go through with their kid’s labor.
f.) Peer group/ pg.
75: Individuals of roughly the same age who are linked by common interests. Examples of peer groups are friends, classmates, and “the kids in the neighborhood.” An example of a peer group in the documentary is the families. They all one thing in common and that is child labor and working in the fields. Their children are all going through the same thing and they are all struggling with their lives and trying to survive. Their kids all have one thing in common and that’s not having a dream because they know they can’t have one because they will always be working in the fields and suffering financially and not getting an education. Another peer group is all the people working in the fields together, they have one thing in common and that is trying to make money to survive. The people who work in the field only make $45 a week. Not an hour, but a whole week. So that’s a lot of the time the children work as well to help maintain money for their family so they can at least buy food. Everyone in the documentary have the same things and same interests. They also all have the same life styles and struggles. And they are all workers and are trying to make it right in their lives and right in their kid’s lives. Peer groups can be any group but this group is mainly in the documentary. A peer group can be a mix of both genders, as long as they are linked with interests and common traits. After watching the documentary I realized that it’s not just some, but a group
of children doing child labor and a lot of families in the same position as the families on there. It’s very sad to see but something important to see to prevent it and help those people out.
walls. Also, every family speaks Spanish and some English. They have the same beliefs and share the money and work they do in the fields. They have a structure where they understand each other and share money to support one another. They all have the same ideas and values on working and money and if they have to move to another place for work then they move together. The way the family is bounded is basically how their culture is. For material things, they don’t really have much, they share clothes, make up, food, and other things. Even though it’s hard they work together and try to make it through. Even the children help out the parents. The kids start at a very young age but for them it seems to be normal but to us it’s not. To them it’s a life and culture they go through to support each other. To them it seems like the material things aren’t important but I noticed that one of the girls on the documentary took make up serious and the way she looked was important to her.
b.) Globalization/pg. 29: The breaking down of national boundaries because of the advances in communications, trade, and travel. In the documentary you see the families moving a lot because of work. The weather has a lot to do with work and if they get paid or not. It’s always hot in the field as they work but when it isn’t there is no work for them. When the crops are all gone in the field then the families move to warmer areas where they know there will be good weather and a job. They try to get a job in the US but since most of them are immigrants they can’t be accepted. Where ever they work, the crops they pick are meant to be trade. They get mainly trades to certain places in the US. Some of the global issues is part of the reason some can’t get jobs in the field. Sometimes crops can’t even grow in some places and that seems to be a global issue. I have notices how important even global issue it has to be with the families because they would have nothing without crops or trade. I never understood the importance of it until I seen the documentary of the jobs on the line and how they always have to travel just because of a job that will maybe only last for a little while or even last at all. Trade is key in this situation too, because most of the stuff they do is important where we live. We live off of trade and the stuff we get is from them. Well, most of them, even from children that are only working to help support their families and don’t really know any better. Globalization is an important factor in the jobs and the documentary “The Harvest”.
c.) Language/pg. 42: Symbols that can be combined in an infinite number of ways for the purpose of communicating abstract thought. In the book it talks about how language, each word you say is actually a symbol. And the language the people spoke in the documentary is Spanish, although a lot of them knew how to speak English as well. They are all mainly Mexican in “The Harvest” so that’s why they spoke Spanish. Like said in the book, all human groups have their own language like how we speak English. Whatever they spoke meant something or a different meaning to them then what it means to us. “Language allows culture to exist.” And like I said in the first paragraph, I talked a lot and mostly about culture, what it is, and examples of it. And one of the examples is language. In the documentary, they spoke a lot of English to the camera and some Spanish so that we could see the different language but I noticed that as they were working in the fields all they spoke was Spanish because that’s how they communicated as a group and what they understood. It’s sad to say but because of how the families spoke and what their language and culture was, they aren’t to be considered. A lot of people won’t hire them, besides working in the field, because they are considered immigrants. That’s why they have a lot of trouble and struggle with work. They move a lot with work so besides speaking their own language they spoke English because that’s mainly where work is and the fields they’re in. Language plays a huge role in the documentary along with culture, because it shows the struggle each of them have and even having to put their child to work which is child labor.
d.) Values/pg. 45: Their ideas of what is desirable in life. When we uncover people’s values, we learn a great deal about them, since values are the standards by which people define what is good and bad, beautiful and ugly. Every family had their own values and something they needed, especially the kids. The first girl named Zuelma, although she didn’t know what she wanted in life or what her dream was, her value was she wanted to go to school and get an education. A lot of the kids on the documentary didn’t even know what their dreams were. A lot of the values I saw on there were, money and happiness. They didn’t have any money and couldn’t even go to school so some of their values are something that’s hard for them to get or have. One of the other girls named Perla, was to go to law school one day but her and her family values were to have money and not work in the fields anymore because her parents, especially her dad was getting hurt, and her mother got sent to the hospital because of it. Each family in the harvest had pretty much the same values and they were trying not to struggle and get enough money to provide for their family and enough so that their own children won’t have to work. While their children have values of having dreams some day and conquering them. In the book it also describes that values are what we hold worthwhile in life. And education seems to be all the kids in the documentaries value. And also just to get through life peacefully, having a good job and without struggling in the fields. And making sure their own kid’s don’t have to go through the same labor and go through life easily, successfully.
e.) Technology/pg.
56: In a narrow sense, tools; its broader sense includes the skills or procedures necessary to make and use those tools. We have technology in our everyday life and can never get away from it. Even the little things we have like a dishwasher, washer, dryer, etc. While watching “The Harvest” I noticed that the only technology they had was mainly a cellphone or a camera. Even their washer/dryer was old and what people used back then that was unsafe. They did everything by hand basically and since they didn’t have money, working in the fields was complete labor. Around here, working in fields we have machines to use, and equipment, but for them they use their bare hands and a simple small basket, which means they can get hurt easily and especially for the kids, to go through all that labor for their age. The youngest age on the documentary was 12 years old and the things she was doing was a lot for her age. In the one scene she climbed on a ladder on a tree to pick apples and almost fell, her back was already hurting as well. They don’t have the technology like we do which isn’t a good thing because of the work they do can be dangerous and especially not good for the kids. Technology is important now but since they can’t get a high paying job they will never get through an education and technology to make things easier for their lives. Where they are also is extremely hot, they don’t even have the money to buy an air conditioner. Technology plays a huge role …show more content…
in today’s society and can help a lot of people. It’s a shame that the families don’t have it and have to go through with their kid’s labor.
f.) Peer group/ pg.
75: Individuals of roughly the same age who are linked by common interests. Examples of peer groups are friends, classmates, and “the kids in the neighborhood.” An example of a peer group in the documentary is the families. They all one thing in common and that is child labor and working in the fields. Their children are all going through the same thing and they are all struggling with their lives and trying to survive. Their kids all have one thing in common and that’s not having a dream because they know they can’t have one because they will always be working in the fields and suffering financially and not getting an education. Another peer group is all the people working in the fields together, they have one thing in common and that is trying to make money to survive. The people who work in the field only make $45 a week. Not an hour, but a whole week. So that’s a lot of the time the children work as well to help maintain money for their family so they can at least buy food. Everyone in the documentary have the same things and same interests. They also all have the same life styles and struggles. And they are all workers and are trying to make it right in their lives and right in their kid’s lives. Peer groups can be any group but this group is mainly in the documentary. A peer group can be a mix of both genders, as long as they are linked with interests and common traits. After watching the documentary I realized that it’s not just some, but a group
of children doing child labor and a lot of families in the same position as the families on there. It’s very sad to see but something important to see to prevent it and help those people out.