Truong Essays

Truong's essay about her birthday party in her American classroom very much reminded me of the end of Bich's story. Later in life, Monique, like Bich, has gained a new perspective on the struggles of her childhood. She is able to recognize her own feelings as well as her mother's. As a child, she longed to fit in with the other kids in school, simply to blend into the crowd instead of stick out with no hope of ever really blending. She wanted her mother to give her the typical birthday celebration that would signify that she was one of the whole, and her mother's attempts at this largely failed in the mind of a young girl. The cake was beautiful, made with more skill than any other mother had attempted. Instead of pride, she is embarrassed at the attention that it brings. Just like Bich, her idea of fitting in and being American was tied to the processed, boxed, quintessential standard American diet. Both girls turned to food because that was the one thing they had control over and could change about themselves. Their skin and hair would never change, but they could fit in at meals. With time, Monique realized that her mother was trying her best. She too struggled to fit in and to watch her children's unhappiness. This cake was a sign of her effort, a success in her mind as a mother showcasing her skill and feeing prideful in the moment.

Day 3

I really enjoyed the format of class yesterday. Breaking this novel into short stories that stood out to us was a helpful way to analyze the author's intentions and experiences. In this reading, one scene that stood out to me was when Bich decided to eat the plum out of the tree. It was interesting to experience this moment in which she tries to connect with her religion in the only tangible way that she can think of. She had admired her grandmother's faith in Buddha and the way in which she meditated and gave offerings, but it was clear that Bich was somewhat lost in her own idea of faith. Wanting to be American and fit in with the others, she is teased and pressured to accept Christianity, but this pressure was conflicted by the ideals of her own family. Rosa and her grandmother are very clear about religion in the family, but Bich is largely confused. Stealing the plum in the Christian family's tree is an ultimate test for her. It signifies the limbo in which she lives, and her attempt at connection.

Day 2

This section of the book involved many situations in which Bich was forced to confront the realities of growing up and a loss of innocence through conflicting identities. In her relationship with her sisters, she is largely left out and put down coming to the conclusion that she would not fit in or be welcomed by them at any point soon. Chrissy begins to rebel while Anh follows and Bich suffers some of the repercussions. She sees her sisters fully embracing American culture in the form of clothes, make up, music and relationships, something she longs to do herself, but she is still constrained by Rosa's restrictions. She begins to find her own alternate reality in her books. She enjoys reading because she is able to live through the characters, particularly through the descriptions of the meals that she longs to have herself. I thought it was very interesting when she compared her own immigration experience to that of the Ingalls family from Little House on the Prairie. At first, she is comforted by the similarity between the two experiences. Someone else had encountered the same difficulty assimilating to American culture as her own family did, but there was hope because Ingalls family made it and became "fully american." However, as she grew older and experienced more of life as an "outsider" she found several flaws within their story involving racism and judgement. She realizes that the life of these characters were unobtainable due to her economic and social status within American society.

"Stealing Buddha's Dinner" day 1

The first part of this story to stand out to me was the mention of the discovery of the Vietnamese market. This immediately reminded me of "Tastes Like Cuba" where both immigrant families forced from their homes to the United States find excitement, comfort and hope in the discovery of a place to provide something familiar for their families. In this story, the market is also described as a meeting place for many Vietnamese Americans to meet and build a community. Secondly, I noticed a very clear distinction between gender roles within the family. The girls and women congregate in the kitchen, served the father's friends at parties, mentions of finding a husband were very frequent in casual conversation, and Rose was largely abandoned for becoming pregnant out of wedlock. The father and Rosa come into conflict over these roles as she is strong willed and plays the role of financial provider. It is clear that this family resists conformity to their new surroundings. As other families adopted "American" names and cuisine, Rosa largely rejects this movement and seeks to preserve their roots despite the discomfort of the children. I, myself, felt somewhat torn in this conflict. I understood Rosa's motives but I could relate to feeling like a outsider and in a state of "limbo" between two identities that the children were experiencing. I found it very charming and innocent that the narrator was so enthralled by ice cream. I thought it was interesting that she used the Vietnamese word for ice cream more often than the English. Something to special to and loved by her was so directly connected to what she had left behind.

"Roots"

This reading was particularly interesting to me. In my high school and even in my college history courses, the treatment of Japanese Americans during the war was largely overlooked or overshadowed by lessons involving foreign nations. This was interesting to analyze because it is almost considered human nature to  hide from or diminish our own mistakes. I found the comparison that the congressman made between those in internment camps and rape victims to be very eye opening. Society tends to turn on the victim as it seems simpler to place blame then to address a larger problem. Especially in a time of raging patriotism, I cannot imagine being the "other" so marginalized and physically segregated. I thought that the story involving the wife and husband in the internment camp was particularly touching as she described her confusion when she was forced into a camp even though she was an American citizen. There is something to be said for the inability to control the definition of one's own identity. This "limbo" or rejection is similar to other readings that we have read so far as minorities are confined to a small segment of society and never fully incorporated.

Villarosa and Maya Angelou

"Making Whoopi"
Honestly, I was only able to interpret this piece from a surface-level perspective. I thought that the meal and alcohol seemed as thought it was an outlet for Karen. In the moment, it relieved her anxiety in the situation and pretty much was used as the platform to introduce her desire to be with a woman. I thought it was interesting that the author's initial anxiety about her sexuality became the commonality in the situation. I honestly was somewhat confused on how to apply this reading. I couldn't tell if the author was offended by Karen's proposition or just simply taken aback and not attracted to her.

Maya Angelou:
I have always enjoyed Maya Angelou's writing. There is a certain level of comfort in reading her work. It flows smoothly, and you feel as if you can picture each situation she presents. I thought that these excerpts did a good job of portraying the conflicting roles that her heritage and skin tone play in the labels that society places on her and the pressures to be or "fit" into a certain mold. She is African, southern, black, and American. Especially when looking for a job, she is pressured to conform to a select few of the stereotypes associated with just one of these labels. The white man wants her to be the southern, black cook in the kitchen making soul food to ease his cravings. I really enjoyed the second excerpt with the battle between recipes which essentially use similar ingredients but are considered widely different by the two women based on their own backgrounds.

"Sugar", "Aubade: Some Peaches, After Storm", and "The Bean- Eaters"

This class, we are encouraged to think about he obvious level of metaphors in a poem and from there, take it step by step into the deeper meaning. I am actually very excited about taking this approach because I definitely struggle with poetry.

Aubade, Some Peaches, After Storm:
Taking the obvious approach, a storm rolls through a peach orchard and knocks many of the fruit off of the trees onto the soil. Depending on the state of ripeness, they can ripen too soon and their flesh become soggy and soft or they can remain stiff and spoil after skipping the edible stage. The peaches are dependent on some other saving them, without intervention, they are helpless.

The Bean Eaters:
I assumed that this poem was referring to an old couple in their home going about a rather monotonous day to day life with little stimulation. I almost got the idea that they were somewhat of hoarders towards the end? That may have something to do with the idea of the elderly collecting mementoes from the past. Beans are easy to cook, soft in texture, somewhat bland in taste and make for a very casual meal much like the couple's life.

Sugar
The opening scene of this poem at Angola struck a chord with me because, if the author is referring to the same place, Angola is the state penitentiary of Louisiana and I have visited this prison with my high school government class. The prison is still today partially self-sustainable, and prisoners farm the fields for crops used to feed the prison as well as sold to the public and suppliers. Watching the prisoners farm looked like a scene directly out of a movie involving slavery. Almost all of the prisoners in the field were black and the guards rode on horses with shot guns over their shoulders. Sugar cane is an abundant crop in Louisiana, and it is also heavily tied to the history of slavery in both North and South America. This poem was similar in content to others we have read as writers draw on this connection and the conflicting characteristics of sugar cane as it is so sweet and craved by so many but also so heavily tied to the past.

"Ode to Chicken", "Ode to Okra", "The Preserving"

I must admit, initially I thought it was almost silly to be reading a poem dedicated to praising chicken and okra individually, but the more I thought about it, the more these two foods make up such a staple in my life, especially chicken. I guess we tend to overlook the presence of a food such as chicken that completely surrounds our lives. Just about every restaurant in the US contains some chicken item on the menu. It is our go-to meat. I actually thought it was kind of funny in the beginning of "Ode to Chicken" when the author talks about all of the other, rather strange, meats that remind him of chicken. I could relate to this because there have been multiple times when I have tried strange dishes and in the end, I have always compared them to chicken. Alligator meat, turtle, and frog legs simply taste like chewier chicken. One part that I found interesting was when the author pointed out that chicken retains the name of the animal while pork and beef do not. He seems to have a sort of respect for this meat and illustrates it in this way.  "Ode to Okra" reminded me of my mother and stories from her childhood. She grew up in north Louisiana and okra was a staple in their diet. Okra has been very familiar to me from a young age as it is very commonly incorporated into Louisiana dishes, particularly gumbo (seafood, sausage, or turkey). I personally have eaten it in many forms: fried, stewed, pickled, etc. I found it interesting how Young characterized the okra with human like actions and adjectives to describe the form that the okra takes when cooked or handled in different ways: "turned belligerent and too tough when ignored....weep when stewed"

"Geese" and "Ghosts"

"Geese"
I actually found this piece somewhat hard to read. I felt as though there was no hope and the characters would be left in a constant state of deprivation and fight for survival. In her search for a job and the description of the positions available to and occupied by specific ethnicities, I was reminded of my time in Europe last semester. In Spain and many of the other places visited, I noticed that all people considered "black" were very much African. Their skin was very dark, and they were largely confined to the street market sector of business. I could probably count on one hand the number of African Americans or even lighter skinned Africans that I encountered in my time in Spain, so I could understand the description of her foreign status with regards to skin tone. One piece that I found interesting was the description of the attention received from the locals. If it was not a look of confusion or amusement as an exotic foreigner, she was approached by men in with sexual undertones. I was a little confused by the encounter with the roommate holding a knife to her throat in the middle of the night. I wasn't sure about the origin of this outburst but my only guess was some sort of PTSD or mental disturbance.

"Ghosts"
I really enjoyed this reading to the point that I didn't want to take my eyes from my computer screen. The pigeon seemed to be a metaphor that I could not quite understand, but its importance in the beginning of the story line and to the culture of these people kept re-appearing. I found it interesting that a family so removed from the violence and corruption of the gang world could be so intertwined in its workings through the restaurant and his work at the radio station. It seemed as though he had a connection with the members that ran deep on an intellectual and emotional level which is one that is rarely explored when dealing with this subject matter. I found it interesting that the neighborhood was known as Bel Air as that is the name of one of the fanciest neighborhoods in America.

Jeffers, Dove, and Clifton

"The Gospel of Barbecue"

As a whole, I really enjoyed this poem. Admittedly, there were a few parts that I wasn't able to clearly interpret (I don't pride myself on being a skilled poetry reader), but overall, I felt as thought it was a good read. The poem as a whole is pretty somber and has some images of violence, the screams of the hogs, whipping and starvation. I got the idea that maybe barbecue came out of the process of trying to make the leftover, spoiled meat more edible? I found it interesting that the wisdom is referred to as "gospel" because religion was very important to slave culture. 

"Parsley"

This reading confused me the most by far. I didn't feel as if I was able to interpret the metaphors and symbols such as the parrot, so I am curious to hear what is discussed in class. I will say that I thought it was interesting that the master's home was referred to as the "palace." I am used to calling the main home on land worked by slaves a plantation, so I think that this reference is meant to be a larger metaphor. "Palace" seems to conjure up feelings of honor and hierarchy. 

"Cutting Greens"

I felt as though the greens in her hand were trying to escape but she held them with a tight grip ready to be placed in the boiling pot. I liked the description of the contrast between the black cooking supplies and her own skin against the color of "life" in the greens. 

"More than Just the Big Piece of Chicken"

The first thing that came to mind when reading this piece is the Popeyes chicken commercial that quite often airs here in Georgia but rarely at home in New Orleans. The spokeswoman and main subject of the commercial is a black woman who speaks in traditional black dialect with the slight twang of a cajun accent. She describes the fried chicken as her own recipe spiced with cajun seasoning and fried to perfection. There have been many times watching this commercial that I am taken aback by the fact that such stereotypes (both of blacks and Louisiana) are so publicly used by such a big corporation. After reflecting on this I found it interesting that the reading mentioned blacks confirming and perpetuating such stereotypes as African Americans are, at least in New Orleans, the main customer base for the chain restaurant. The most interesting and informative part of the reading to me had to do with the bartering process involving chicken in the time of slavery. This was new information to me and I found it interesting to learn the association of thievery with this trade and how that perpetuated white supremacy over slaves.

"The Night Beans Talked to Old Bear"

I actually really enjoyed this piece. The language was light and had a good flow of storyline, and as I read, I was able to pick out deeper analogies and metaphors. I thought it was really interesting that the main character was named "Bear" and sort of slipped in and out of human and animal- like states. I noticed a lot of mention of the "standard american diet" we have discussed before with products such as spam and cheese on white bread, canned vegetables, whipped cream etc. This may have something to do with the government subsidized diet that native americans are used to on the reservation. Bear seemed to be developing a more sophisticated pallet and was somewhat nostalgic for the recipes of the past such as his mother's fresh bread. I thought that maybe because he was so hungry and dreaming of so much food he may have been experiencing a time of food shortage. He seems almost delirious at one point dreaming about the government using beans in times of war. There was a certain amount of violence associated with this picture of food that was a bit confusing to me. There were many mentions of stereotypical native american practices that stood out to me such as abuse of women and heavy drinking.

"Almost Soup"

Overall, I really enjoyed this piece; although at times, I was slightly confused. I thought it was kind of interesting that dog seemed to be an important part of the community's diet, but the young girl was unaware of this. I thought that this may have hinted at a possible food shortage that the elders may have been trying to compensate for, or it may have just been a sign of her innocence, as even today, I am slightly turned off of meals that involve lovable creatures such as duck and rabbit. The dog, as the narrator, was given a human-like understanding of the world knowing the importance of procreation, knowing the ins and outs of the community and even understanding the inevitability and fear of death. I thought that this characterization of the dog may have provided insight to the importance of nature and animals in this community. One part of the reading that confused me a bit had to do with the women beading and the story line involving the girl with the twin mothers and Rozin's debate over the sharing of bodies. Towards the end of the story, I was a little lost when the dog speaks about keeping Cally's spirit safe and then putting it back into her at the hospital. This could be completely wrong, but I thought that maybe because the dog was purely white and death was described as a black dog that the white dog may symbolize the keeper of spirit or life.

Nora Dauenhauer and Jim Northrup

"How to Make Good Baked Salmon from the River"
In this piece, I noticed several comparison of old tradition and new ways. It seemed as if the cook was reluctantly succumbing to a new kitchen setting. The environment had changed, now cooking on a stove instead of near the river, the ingredients had changed, fruit cocktail instead of mashed, fresh berries, as well as the process of sharing involving plastic utensils and plates. The cook seems somewhat nostalgic for the times when all elements of nature were involved in the cooking process. Birds, insects, fire, water and other animals were an essential and respected part of the preparation of the salmon. All were acknowledged and appreciated for the roles that they play in both nature and that very moment. However, in the city these elements are largely absent and the cook must rely more heavily on her own senses to supplement this loss. As in other readings, community seemed to be important to the cook and the meal itself. All who loved the food were welcome to share in the fish and ingredients may be borrowed from neighbors.

"Mahnomin"
I really enjoyed this poem even in its brevity. I can relate to the ritual of tradition and being able to connect to those who are known to have taken part in the same actions before you. The ricing process seems to link relatives as well as ancestors. Again, Nature plays a role in this process as the actions of the eagle and the sun are acknowledged and welcomed. I was a little curious if this piece was hinting at some sort of food scarcity in this winter as the author writes that rice accompanied most meals that season. Rice is very filling and is sometimes used to supplement when richer proteins or vegetables are scarce.

"Ricing Again"
This piece explored several similar overall themes and, obviously, actions as the previous poem. This reservation is obviously heavily depended on the ricing season and individuals work hard to make a living from this farming. I thought that the idea of having ricing partners was very interesting. It seemed as if Dolly had been assigned to him for the season. I was curious who was responsible for these set ups. I got the feeling that there was a strong bond formed between partners as each are equally responsible for the collection and for looking out for one another as Dolly did with his wallet.  Family and community is obviously highly valued as they all were willing to help each other as needed even in the competitive environment. The act of ricing seemed to be well respected and a learned technique emphasized in the community and deeply rooted in tradition. I also enjoyed the innocence that came with the boy noticing the beauty in his partner as well as her potential in the skill.

"Bush's Mourning Feast"

Honestly, I was a little bit confused reading this passage. From what I could understand, the narrator was addressing someone who had passed or had been taken away, possibly a child. Bush, the grandmother, cooked a ceremonial, traditional feast as a part of the mourning process. The community was invited and attended even though it was clear that they may not be accustomed to this tradition but they knew that it was important to her and they could relate to loss. I thought that this showed great insight into the values of community that are emphasized among this group. Spirituality plays a big role in Bush's grieving process as she offers up food to the spirits and gives away precious belongings as a way of redistributing or processing grief. By the end of the meal, it seems as if there was a mutual understanding between everyone at the feast. They then understood and respected the tradition that they had just been a part of and related to the grief that Bush was experiencing. There was a part in the reading that I had a particularly hard time understanding involving the mother of the child and Bush's effort to protect the child from the mother's "coldness" so I will be interested to see how our class discussion clears that up.