Full Description
The sixth edition of this cross-cultural writing anthology contains eight thematically organized units that introduce students to a wide variety of cultures in the United States, allowing them to analyze cultural differences and reflect on their own cultural background. Each selection has been chosen because it is accessible and puts forth a subject and style that will engage college students and provide thought-provoking material for class discussion as well as compelling ideas for writing. The thematic units provide logical groupings for class study, but the text is also flexible and allows teachers to pair readings in a variety of ways. A headnote for each piece provides background information to help students prepare for the reading. The questions that follow each selection guide students through the reading and help them analyze both the content and style of the work. The writing questions can be used for formal paper assignments or as prompts for less formal writing.
Contents
I. GROWING UP. Elizabeth Wong, The Struggle to Be an All American Girl. Gary Soto, The Jacket. Maya Angelou, Graduation. Harry Mark Petrakis, Barba Nikos. Maxine Hong Kingston, Girlhood Among Ghosts. Maria Laurino, Scents. Grace Paley, The Loudest Voice. Lindsy Van Gelder, The Importance of Being Eleven: Carol Gilligan Takes on Adolescence. Vendela Vida, Bikinis and Tiaras: Quinceaneras. Countee Cullen, Incident. II. EDUCATION. Sun Park, Don't Expect Me to Be Perfect. Daniel Meier, One Man's Kids. Sherman Alexie, Indian Education. Mike Rose, I Just Wanna Be Average. Marcus Marby, Living in Two Worlds. Martin Espada, Who Burns for the Perfection of Paper. III. FAMILIES. Dan Savage, Role Reversal. Susan Douglas and Meredith Michaels, The Mommy Wars. Jane Howard, Families. Stephanie Coontz, Where Are the Good Old Days? Ruth Breen, Choosing a Mate. Alfred Kazin, The Kitchen. Theodore Roethke, My Papa's Waltz. IV. DEFINING OURSELVESS. Gish Jen, An Ethnic Trump. Robin D.G. Kelly, The People in Me. Roxane Famanfarmaian, The Double Helix. Tony Morrison, A Slow Walk of Trees. Nicolette Toussaint, Hearing the Sweetest Songs. Judith Ortiz Cofer, The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria. Malcolm X, Hair. Nell Bernstein, Goin' Gansta, Choosin' Cholita: Teens Today "Claim" a Racial Identity. Wendy Rose, Three Thousand Dollar Death Song. V. AMERICAN ENCOUNTERS. Bette Bao Lord, Walking in Lucky Shoes. Michel Guillaume St. Jean de Crevecoeur, What Is an American? Recapture the Flag: 34 Reasons to Love America. Brent Staples, Night Walker. Piri Thomas, Alien Turf. Walter White, I Learn What I Am. Malcolm Gladwell, Black Like Them. Jeannne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston, Arrival at Manzanar. Dwight Okita, In Response to Executive Order 9066: All Americans of Japanese Descent Must Report to Relocation Centers. VI. CHANGING PLACES. Bharati Mukherjee, Two Ways of Belonging in America. Anton Shammas, Amerka, Amerka: A Palestinian Abroad in the Land of the Free. Mark Salzman, Teacher Mark. John David Morley, Living in a Japanese Home. Laura Bohannan, Shakespeare in the Bush. George Orwell, Shooting an Elephant. Jamaica Kincaid, On Seeing England for the First Time. Jonathan Swift, A Modest Proposal. Gloria Anzaldua, To Live Unplugged. Pico Iyer, Home Is Every Place. Robert Levine, Tempo, The Speed of Life. Lars Eighner, On Dumpster Diving. Barbara Brandt, Less Is More: A Call for Shorter Work Hours. Michael Pollan, Town-Building Is No Mickey Mouse Operation. Aurora Levins Morales, Class Poem. VIII. COMMUNICATING. Gloria Naylor, The Meaning of a Word. Amy Tan, Mother Tongue. Eva Hoffman, Lost in Translation. Ian Buruma, The Road to Babel. Jack G. Sheehan, The Media's Image of Arabs. Alexis Bloom, Switched on Bhutan. Jasua Gameson, Do Ask, Do Tell. Lisel Mueller, Why We Tell Stories. Credits. Author/Title Index.
