- "Language therefore establishes bonds between all communities of human beings but at the same time set up barriers between communities." (Roberts, 1) I agree with this quote from Peter, language those unite and separate communities. I can see this happening locally in the island of Puerto Rico and internationally with us and other countries. Locally we all have the Spanish language witch unites all 78 municipalities. We are able to understand and speak with one another quickly and fluidly. However, we do have barriers in that some words vary from town to town. For example for me a "pastelillo", is not the same as an "empanadilla" but both foods are called the same in the metropolitan area. There are also some municipalities which call "olla" a "caldero" which for me a "caldero" is a completely different cooking utensil. These few different words can sometimes cause weird looks from people who have either never heard of them or because they mean something completely different too them. These small changes can cause me to feel out of place even if they seem insignificant. On one hand I find it interesting that they use that word and makes me realize how diverse we are on this small island and on the other I feel like I need to convert them to use the word I use or at least justify why I use it. Internationally our language is something that unites us to our other Latin American countries as well as Spain and separates us from the rest of the Americas and the world. In a big way it shows to the United States of America that we are different and shows some resistance to colonization.
- "The constant association with and experience of sameness leads to recognition of one's own features as normal and those of others as abnormal/strange/foreign." (Roberts, 2) Living on an island and under The United States of Americas control all these years has giving us a very skewed perception of what is normal. Our perception of the world is filtered through the USA first. The only other country we come in contact with is with the USA. So we see other countries and there cultures as strange and even worse we do not even know they exist and when we do we immediately disapprove of them without a proper evaluation just because they are different. Locally this can be viewed with people from the rural area versus the people from the metropolitan area. Both live different lifestyles, have different values ideas and opinions. If you are not from the metropolitan area you are referred to as "de la isla", which is a term that I personally hate, we live on the same island you do not float on a platform in the sky. I find city lifestyle to be draining, they find that the rural areas are boring. In short we find each other weird and different. Normal in the city is not the same as normal in the country. Living next to cows is normal back home yet seeing any sort of farm animal in the city can be very strange.
- "Because the human being does not necessarily remain in one place through a lifetime, home is variable and may be a place of birth, place of residence or may be defined by the popular notion'where the heart is'." (Roberts, 1) When referring to puertorican immigrants, many may have two homes one on the island and the other where they live. They have been born and raised either here on the island or over seas but still feel part of our culture and maybe even visit the island from time to time. For me personally in the road to becoming independent, while I still view my parents house as my home, I am looking for a new place to make my own home. I also feel by studying in the university in the metropolitan area I have a new home which is where I am currently lodged in.
Sunday, February 21, 2016
My Three Quotes From Peter Roberts Reading: "The Roots of Caribbean Identity: Language, Race and Ecology."
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I have a feeling that many of the people in our class chose the same quotes to elaborate from but we have all done so in vastly different ways. Your take on language differences for instance is not at all like the one I did yet still it offers a very important distinction that not only is there a language barrier between us and the US but also in our own Island depending on where we come from. For instance, having almost never left the metro area, I had no idea that some of our other municipalities had different meanings for "caldero" or "pastelillo" though now that I think about it, it does make sense; I also remember my dad telling something about it. Many Puerto Ricans that primarily live overseas or in the US do feel the Puerto Rico is their true home, especially if they leave when they are older. In some instances this feeling of home is present even in those who have never set foot on the Island yet have Puerto Rican parents where they can see the differences in the culture their parents where raised in compared to where they are now.
ReplyDeleteI agree on your opinion concerning languages where as we may have the same language but in different cities some slang words are different than others. Not only that, we can go even bigger where in Puerto Rico we speak Spanish but it's not the same Spanish as in Spain. Concerning on you're second quote, I just agree with you since you have been categorized with your area just like me where I sometimes get called "Guayna" with a negatice feedback because I live in Guaynabo. I also hate the feeling how we're all from the same little island but somehow we want to keep looking for any difference between us just because. Lastly, on your last quote I could relate how you talk about home as in your parents house and how it is a temporary thing since you have plans to move and out and live maybe with somebody. It made me realize a bit how home is a temporary thing, where as today home is your parents house but maybe in 20 years you got married and had children and that becomes your new home, and so on. I don't know, it made me really think.
ReplyDeleteMy quotes were very similar to those that you chose, but it's very interesting to see how you express a different point of view. I concur with the use of slang and different expressions through the different parts of our island, which is something very curious to point out. I definitely relate to your explanation of the third quote were you always have home, but want to look for your own. I was able to live for a while in my university in Atlanta, but I always knew that Puerto Rico was home, and even though I returned I still strive to find another place to call home in this journey.
ReplyDeleteAs Eva mentioned above, many people chose the same quotes or at least have a few in common. However, it's really interesting because I love seeing how people interpret them in different ways. It shows how one phrase can mean one thing to someone and another thing to someone else. One phrase that stood out to me the most from your post is when you mention that our perception of what is normal has been influences by the USA. Also, I really liked when you said you hate the term "de la isla" due to the fact that we all live in the same island and some don't float in a platform in the sky. I could not agree more.
ReplyDelete