Blog Post 4 Topic 4

Although I was born in the United States, my parents are immigrants from China and Macau. At the age of three, my mom immigrated to America, so she learned to speak English fluently at a young age. However, my dad immigrated to the United States when he was twenty-five, so he had difficulty learning English and assimilating into American culture. Growing up, I witnessed the challenges that my dad faced as an immigrant, which are prevalent in “The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood among Ghosts” by Maxine Hong Kingston. This text describes Kingston’s memories as first-generation Asian American living in the United States. She reflects on her difficulties in speaking English to others and in adjusting to American culture. Through her memoir, she provides an accurate depiction of the many hardships that immigrants face.

Kingston raises awareness of the challenges immigrants face while speaking English in the United States. For instance, they may feel reluctant to speak in English because they are afraid being ridiculed by native speakers for not talking fluently.  She describes this fear as “A dumbness -  a shame – still cracks my voice in two, even when I want to say “hello” casually, or ask an easy question in front of the check-out counter, or ask directions of a bus driver…’What did you say?’…’Speak up,’ so I have to perform again, only weaker the second time” (63).  She illustrates the intimidating process that immigrants experience in attempting to communicate with others in English. In addition, she demonstrates how immigrants feel discouraged from talking in English when native speakers cannot understand what they are saying. Growing up, I witnessed how my dad often struggled speaking to others in English and how they looked down on him for that. He spoke in broken English with a heavy Chinese accent that others could not understand. Whenever the two of us would go shopping together, he would attempt to talk to the workers in English. However, they would get frustrated with him and turn to me asking what he had said. Eventually, my dad felt too embarrassed to speak in English and would have me talk for him instead. Although immigrants like my dad try to learn English to adapt to American culture, they are constantly discouraged from doing so because they cannot speak fluently.  

Even though immigrants attempt to assimilate into American culture, society is not always accepting of them. Kingston introduces this issue as the main character of the story goes into the drug store asking for reparation candy. “‘Mymotherseztagimmiesomecandy,’ I said to the druggist…‘What? Speak up. Speak English,’ he said…” (66). This shows that the druggist believes that the only language spoken in America should be English. Furthermore, this alludes to the lack of acceptance of various cultures and languages at that time. Unfortunately, this mindset is still prevalent in society today. In social media, I continue to see viral videos of people yelling at immigrants to speak English because they are in America. Since the United States is full of diverse ethnicities and cultures, it would be plausible to assume that society has become more accepting of immigrants. However, as seen in the recent immigration travel ban enacted by President Donald Trump, this is clearly not the case. This shows that despite how much American culture has changed since Kingston wrote this memoir, immigrants continue to be not accepted by everyone in the United States.

Although Kingston and I are both first-generation Chinese Americans, she was raised in a strict, traditional Chinese household, but I was not. Thus, compared to Kingston, I would offer a different perspective on living as a first-generation Asian American. In addition, I could elaborate on my experiences in living with one Americanized Chinese parent and one traditional Chinese parent. For instance, people are shocked when they discover that I can speak English fluently, but not Cantonese. Even though Cantonese was my first language, I lost my ability to speak it because I spoke English more often. This may have been a result of witnessing the challenges that my dad faced because he was unable to speak English fluently. So, I realized that speaking English fluently is more important than learning Cantonese if I want to become successful in America.

In conclusion, Kingston accurately portrays the difficulties that immigrants face, especially communicating in English. Although immigrants try to adapt to their new lives in America, society is not always accepting of them and their respective cultures. This is a problem that is still present in the United States today. If I were the author, I would elaborate on how this issue continues to persist today despite how times have changed. In addition, using my different upbringing compared to Kingston, I can offer a different perspective on what life is like as a first-generation Asian American.