Job Discussion Forums

[Henry_Cowell]

[Chancellor]

[Henry_Cowell]

[spiral78]

To 'fully assimilate' means that you want all the things 'real' Americans want: big house, car (s)


..... and 30 pairs of black trousers in your closet (excerpt from a US ESL textbook on how to slim down your stuff, totally ironic as it's geared for new immigrants, who can't imagine owning 30 pairs of trousers of any description. Ok, of course the American book calls them pants, but I still have a problem saying 'pants' after the heat I took from my British work colleagues)......

This applies to all aspiring 'real' Americans. If you want something different from The American Dream, you aren't assimilating, you bad, bad person! But toe the party line, and you'll be accepted with open arms. Just keep on contributing to our consumer society, speak English, even if broken, and we will accept you into our society. So long as you see it as the epitome of all societies in the world, current and historical.

Hmmmm, it's a bit like a religion, isn't it?

[ls650]

This silly argument reminds me of an episode of the Simpsons where Apu has to pretend to be a real 'Murrican: �Let�s take a relaxed attitude towards work and watch baseball!�

[Henry_Cowell]

A "real American":

***Is as prejudiced toward his neighbor as the neighbor is toward him
***Will eat only the foods that his mother served him during childhood
***Believes that the English language is his most important defining quality
***Wishes that the younger generation could be more like his own generation in almost all respects
***Thinks that the U.S. of the Founders was homogeneous and uniform rather than diverse and varied

[Chancellor]

[Chancellor]

[guest of Japan]

Sorry if I'm hopping into this late, but I couldn't resist anymore.

Chancellor, your stated version of American culture actually represents immigrants more than actual born and bred Americans with the exception of the speaking English part. I don't know anyone as self-reliant and hardworking as the fruit pickers in the southwest or the kitchen staff in nearly every restaurant in the northeast. These people get so much less from the government than everyone else. They work countless hours for minimal pay and they do it so they can give their families a better life.

Why don't you just come out and say what you think, American culture is white upper middle class culture. If you read a good history book and not one that just focuses on dead Presidents you will quickly see that American culture has never been this idealized culture that you say. American culture has always been a culture of clashing. There have always been groups pushed to the bottom who had to fight their way to diginity. They are oppressed by the weak element of the dominant groups who fear for their livelihoods, and they are exploited by the economically powerful to support and elevate their livelihoods. I'm sure the pawns would happily act the parts of knights and bishops if they got to do the same moves.

[Henry_Cowell]

[Henry_Cowell]

[Chancellor]

[Chancellor]

[Chancellor]

[Henry_Cowell]