Question- How have texts you have studied explored the relationships between language, culture, and identity?
Through a nuanced examination of various texts, it becomes evident that the relationship between language, culture, and identity is a complex and multifaceted concept. The crafting of identity and use of language determine an individual's connection to their culture, ultimately shaping both the individual and collective narratives within diverse societal contexts. This is examined in texts such as Maureen Ten’s Translucent Jade and Ouyang Yu’s New Accents, where each author creates a reflection on their culture through elements like one's name, accents and a unique sense of belonging. Firstly, Maureen Ten’s poem Translucent Jade, delves into the intricate nature of identity and culture, offering insight into the significance of individual names and cultural heritage. Secondly, by showing the binary aspects of identity, New Accents comments on how language can influence perceptions of culture. As such, the concepts of language, identity and culture are linked to each other as when one changes so does the other.
Firstly, an individual’s connection to their culture is dependent on their identity and their ability to understand themselves within a broader societal context. This is shown in Maureen Ten’s poem, Translucent Jade in which she highlights the various ways individuals can form a sense of self by commenting on the value of one's culture through identity. This is shown in the quote “My grandfather made me a gift when I was born. I used it for a while until another gift, my mother's gift, flashed in view”. A metaphor is used with her grandfather's gift being her Chinese name, while her mother's gift is her chosen English name, symbolizing her detachment from her culture as she has two names, one is traditional and has more cultural significance while the other is an English name representing her disconnection and westernisation of self. This disconnection to culture is highlighted in the quote “Her gift sparkled and sang, replaced the other… No one seemed to mind, if they noticed, as it lay in disuse”. The use of imagery in the first half of this quote describes the vibrancy and life within the “gift”, a metaphor for the shining appeal of acceptance and convenience that comes with using an English name in Western society as opposed to a traditional Chinese name. This is also shown with the use of personification with the word “sang” reinforcing her positive view of her English name and the disconnection she feels to her culture. The imagery of her name in the form of a physical gift in this quote conveys the idea that her Chinese name is unused and unkept, further emphasising the disconnection from her culture. This is elaborated upon in her use of contrast in the quote “Today I retrieved his gift from its silence. Barely, rarely used, it seemed mostly new”. “Silence” in contrast to “sang” in the first stanza represents the way in which her Chinese name was left untouched and unused further proven with “Barely, rarely used, it seemed mostly new”. This can be seen as a reconnection to her culture as she “retrieves” and begins to rediscover her traditional name. These examples have shown that through identity, an individual's connection to their culture can be influenced by their self-recognition and understanding of themselves.
Secondly, through the exploration of how language influences our perceptions of others, a disconnection to culture can be seen, and subsequently a struggle to find acceptance both internally and externally. This is represented in Ouyang Yu’s poem New Accents, where the author highlights how the expectations of migrants impact their sense of belonging in different cultures. This is explored in the second stanza, where Yu shows the diversity in language by using people from different parts of China to show that even though they are both in China, they have different accents and mannerisms. By having these people denoted as only one letter he diminishes their identity, saying that their name is just a letter, reducing their identity and culture. Yu shows how language is explored by the quote “They tried to fool me around because I couldn't speak ‘anguish’.” The technique of malapropism is used, replacing the word English for “anguish”. This demonstrates that to Yu, speaking English comes as an intense emotional pain and his not being accepted but judged is a great anguish, further proving how perceptions can disconnect us from culture. This is highlighted in the quote “And they, professors, rightly, lost a genius in me. With their English. And my Anguish”. The poem has a satirical and facetious tone in “rightly, lost a genius in me”, showing his high personal responsibility towards himself and this feeling of loss creates a deprivation of his sense of self-worth and a connection to his culture. This quote also examines the struggle to properly express one's true and articulate thoughts when attempting to do so in a second language. This along with his repeated use of anguish once again demonstrates an intense suffering and a detechment towards society as a contrast of English and anguish is created again. As these examples have shown, language shapes our view of people, leading to cultural disconnection as a struggle to fit in impacts their sense of belonging in different cultures.
Therefore by studying these poems, it is clear that language, culture and identity are linked together in a complex way, as a person's culture is heavily influenced by their sense of identity and their use of language. These shape both the personal and shared experiences in different societal contexts. In Maureen Ten’s Translucent Jade, she comments on individuals’ connections to culture and how their identity and sense of belonging can change that connection. Whereas Ouyang Yu’s New Accents explores how language influences our perceptions of others, and how negative perceptions can create a struggle to find acceptance in ourselves and our culture. These poems have shown the interconnectedness of language identity and culture, where changes in one aspect affect the others. Through identity, individuals’ connection to their culture is shaped by their self-recognition and understanding. Additionally, language influences our perceptions of people, contributing to cultural disconnection as individuals struggle to fit in and find acceptance in diverse cultural contexts.
Through a nuanced examination of various texts, it becomes evident that the relationship between language, culture, and identity is a complex and multifaceted concept. The crafting of identity and use of language determine an individual's connection to their culture, ultimately shaping both the individual and collective narratives within diverse societal contexts. This is examined in texts such as Maureen Ten’s Translucent Jade and Ouyang Yu’s New Accents, where each author creates a reflection on their culture through elements like one's name, accents and a unique sense of belonging. Firstly, Maureen Ten’s poem Translucent Jade, delves into the intricate nature of identity and culture, offering insight into the significance of individual names and cultural heritage. Secondly, by showing the binary aspects of identity, New Accents comments on how language can influence perceptions of culture. As such, the concepts of language, identity and culture are linked to each other as when one changes so does the other.
Firstly, an individual’s connection to their culture is dependent on their identity and their ability to understand themselves within a broader societal context. This is shown in Maureen Ten’s poem, Translucent Jade in which she highlights the various ways individuals can form a sense of self by commenting on the value of one's culture through identity. This is shown in the quote “My grandfather made me a gift when I was born. I used it for a while until another gift, my mother's gift, flashed in view”. A metaphor is used with her grandfather's gift being her Chinese name, while her mother's gift is her chosen English name, symbolizing her detachment from her culture as she has two names, one is traditional and has more cultural significance while the other is an English name representing her disconnection and westernisation of self. This disconnection to culture is highlighted in the quote “Her gift sparkled and sang, replaced the other… No one seemed to mind, if they noticed, as it lay in disuse”. The use of imagery in the first half of this quote describes the vibrancy and life within the “gift”, a metaphor for the shining appeal of acceptance and convenience that comes with using an English name in Western society as opposed to a traditional Chinese name. This is also shown with the use of personification with the word “sang” reinforcing her positive view of her English name and the disconnection she feels to her culture. The imagery of her name in the form of a physical gift in this quote conveys the idea that her Chinese name is unused and unkept, further emphasising the disconnection from her culture. This is elaborated upon in her use of contrast in the quote “Today I retrieved his gift from its silence. Barely, rarely used, it seemed mostly new”. “Silence” in contrast to “sang” in the first stanza represents the way in which her Chinese name was left untouched and unused further proven with “Barely, rarely used, it seemed mostly new”. This can be seen as a reconnection to her culture as she “retrieves” and begins to rediscover her traditional name. These examples have shown that through identity, an individual's connection to their culture can be influenced by their self-recognition and understanding of themselves.
Secondly, through the exploration of how language influences our perceptions of others, a disconnection to culture can be seen, and subsequently a struggle to find acceptance both internally and externally. This is represented in Ouyang Yu’s poem New Accents, where the author highlights how the expectations of migrants impact their sense of belonging in different cultures. This is explored in the second stanza, where Yu shows the diversity in language by using people from different parts of China to show that even though they are both in China, they have different accents and mannerisms. By having these people denoted as only one letter he diminishes their identity, saying that their name is just a letter, reducing their identity and culture. Yu shows how language is explored by the quote “They tried to fool me around because I couldn't speak ‘anguish’.” The technique of malapropism is used, replacing the word English for “anguish”. This demonstrates that to Yu, speaking English comes as an intense emotional pain and his not being accepted but judged is a great anguish, further proving how perceptions can disconnect us from culture. This is highlighted in the quote “And they, professors, rightly, lost a genius in me. With their English. And my Anguish”. The poem has a satirical and facetious tone in “rightly, lost a genius in me”, showing his high personal responsibility towards himself and this feeling of loss creates a deprivation of his sense of self-worth and a connection to his culture. This quote also examines the struggle to properly express one's true and articulate thoughts when attempting to do so in a second language. This along with his repeated use of anguish once again demonstrates an intense suffering and a detechment towards society as a contrast of English and anguish is created again. As these examples have shown, language shapes our view of people, leading to cultural disconnection as a struggle to fit in impacts their sense of belonging in different cultures.
Therefore by studying these poems, it is clear that language, culture and identity are linked together in a complex way, as a person's culture is heavily influenced by their sense of identity and their use of language. These shape both the personal and shared experiences in different societal contexts. In Maureen Ten’s Translucent Jade, she comments on individuals’ connections to culture and how their identity and sense of belonging can change that connection. Whereas Ouyang Yu’s New Accents explores how language influences our perceptions of others, and how negative perceptions can create a struggle to find acceptance in ourselves and our culture. These poems have shown the interconnectedness of language identity and culture, where changes in one aspect affect the others. Through identity, individuals’ connection to their culture is shaped by their self-recognition and understanding. Additionally, language influences our perceptions of people, contributing to cultural disconnection as individuals struggle to fit in and find acceptance in diverse cultural contexts.