Ethnicity and the Immigrant Experience

Ethnicity and the Immigrant Experience When thinking about immigration, most individuals imagine exclusively different types of cultural groups traveling to a separate land away from their own. Most imagine America. Immigration, throughout history, has occurred within all types of heathenities. When taking a closer look at the individuals living in America, it is apparent that everyone is not on the nose like one another. Assimilation be throw ins a popular word used when discussing migration, and both positives and negatives come on with it.Two theorists that discuss the meaning of immersion in their writings are Stephen Steinberg in his maintain, Ethnic Myth, and Milton Gordon in his book Assimilation in American Life. They discuss issues regarding immersion and how they affect the nation as a whole. A novel written by Chang-Rae lee side titled, aboriginal loudspeaker system, gives specific examples as to how the assimilation process affects others and the migrants thems elves, as also described in both Steinberg and Gordons books.In Steinbergs book, Ethnic Myth, he discusses with his readers the issues regarding ethnic identity element and assimilation. This is presented and explained in the chapter titled, The Atrophy of Ethnic Cultures. He first talks about the idea of the melting rear end and how it should not be analyzed lightly. He gives a quote from John Higham that says, Loud assertions of pluralism almost incessantly betray fears of assimilation (Steinberg, 59). This means that minority groups that try to maintain their cultural traditions may, in fact, risk assimilation by doing so.Another point he brings to the surface is that when looking back at second or third gear generations of a specific minority group, these people still can relate back to their original traditions and nicety identity. He then says, But can the same be said of the new generation which has know only the Americanized version of the original culture? (Steinberg, 60). This is an obvious prevailing issue when it comes to preserving ones culture.An example within the novel, homegrown Speaker, would be when Henry, the main character described as a Korean immigrant, explains the history with his father. His father, living in America, would gather with friends and participate in ggehs, or money clubs. Here they would win money and eventually, that is all that mattered to the Korean group. The shift from typical Korean traditions to owning all this land and money in American became a long transformation. Henry says about his father, In America, he said, its even hard to stay Korean. These alterations from one ethnic experience and tradition to another can be lost very quickly and potentially never be replenished. Throughout both Steinberg and Gordons writing, they both birth similarities and differences when regarding assimilation. Gordon talks about these ethnic meetings which rival to assimilation. Throughout Gordons chapter titled, The Na ture of Assimilation, he gives a numerous amount of definitions from theorists and writers that differ in sundry(a) ways.In an essay that Gordon leaves the author anonymous in this chapter defines assimilation as the process by which different cultures, or individuals or groups representing different cultures, are merged into a homogenous unit. Here Gordon talks about assimilation as positive, whereas Steinberg takes a different approach. Steinberg suggests that assimilation is not always a positive aspect but because it can result in the loss of a cultural identity. This is present in Native Speaker because Henry continuously tries indulging himself into American culture.He cannot fully accomplish this, which essentially results in his wife, Lelia, leaving him in the beginning of the novel. As there are differences within Steinberg and Gordons readings, they do agree upon their understanding of the genius within assimilation. Gordon says that cultural behavior changes may take p lace in the cultures of either one of the cardinal groups, or there may be a reciprocal influence whereby the cultures of both groups are modify (Gordon, 62).Steinberg agrees with this statement because he suggests that the changing of ones culture is at high risk when interconnected into a different culture. He says, The ethnic crisis only begins with the fact that the core elements of traditional culture have been modified, diluted, compromised, and finally relinquished (Steinberg, 62). Both writers describe this lack of identity in one way or another. Assimilation is apparent in any society, especially America. People of different backgrounds continuously trying to come together to create one nation is a crucial aspect in society today.Steinberg, Gordon, and Lee all discuss how assimilation has issues when it comes to preserving ones ethnic traditions and identity. What they all convey to readers however, is the fact that the merging of cultures will forevermore be essential and inevitable. Works Cited Steinberg, Steven. The Ethnic Myth Race, Ethnicity, and Class in America. Boston Beacon Press, 1978. Print. Lee, Chang-Rae. Native Speaker. New York Riverhead Books, 1995. Print. Gordon, Milton. The Nature of Assimilation. Oxford University Press, 1964. eBook.