Phonetic Transcription And Progress In Speech Synthesis

Phonetic Transcription And Progress In Speech Synthesis Phonetic transcription (or phonetic notation) is the visual representation of speech sounds (or phones). The most common type of phonetic transcription uses a phonetic alphabet (e.g., the International Phonetic Alphabet. The pronunciation of words in many languages, as distinct from their written form (orthography), has undergone significant change over time. Pronunciation can also vary greatly among dialects of a language. Traditional orthography in some languages, particularly French and English, often differs from the pronunciation. For example, the words bough and trough do not rhyme in English, even though their spellings might suggest they do. In French, for example, the s at the end of words is usually silent (militaire is pronounced the same as militaires) unless followed by a word beginning in a vowel. In the orthography of most European languages, the fact that many letters are pronounced or silent depending on contexts causes difficulties in determining the appropriate pronunciation, especially in the cases of English, Irish, and French. However, in other languages, such as Spanish and Italian, there is a more consistent-though still imperfect-relationship between orthography and pronuncia tion. Therefore, phonetic transcription can provide a function that orthography cannot. It displays a one-to-one relationship between symbols and sounds, unlike the traditional Roman alphabet. Phonetic transcription allows us to step outside of orthography and examine differences in pronunciation between dialects within a given language, as well as to identify changes in pronunciation that may take place over time. Phonetic transcription may aim to transcribe the phonology of a language, or it may wish to go further and specify the precise phonetic realisation. In all systems of transcription we may therefore distinguish between broad transcription and narrow transcription. Broad transcription indicates only the more noticeable phonetic features of an utterance, whereas narrow transcription encodes more information about the phonetic variations of the specific allophones in the utterance. The difference between broad and narrow is a continuum. One particular form of a broad transcription is a phonemic transcription, which disregards all allophonic difference, and, as the name implies, is not really a phonetic transcription at all, but a representation of phonemic structure. ]; the broad, phonemic transcription, placed between slashes, indicates merely that the word ends with phoneme /l/, but the narrow, allophonic transcription, placed between square brackets, indicates that this final /l/ is dark (velarized). The advantage of the narrow transcription is that it can help learners to get exactly the right sound, and allows linguists to make detailed analyses of language variation. The disadvantage is that a narrow transcription is rarely representative of all speakers of a language. Most Americans and Australians would pronounce the /t/ of little as a tap [É ¾]. Many people in England would say /t/ as [ʆ] (a glottal stop) and/or the second /l/ as [w] or something similar. A further disadvantage in less technical contexts is that narrow transcription involves a larger number of symbols which may be unfamiliar to non-specialists. The advantage of the broad transcription is that it usually allows statements to be made which apply across a more diverse language community. It is thus more appropriate for the pronunciation data in foreign language dictionaries, which may discuss phonetic details in the preface but rarely give them for each entry. A rule of thumb in many linguistics contexts is therefore to use a narrow transcription when it is necessary for the point being made, but a broad transcription whenever possible. The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is one of the most popular and well-known phonetic alphabets. It was originally created by primarily British language teachers, with later efforts from European phoneticians and linguists. It has changed from its earlier intention as a tool of foreign language pedagogy to a practical alphabet of linguists. It is currently becoming the most often seen alphabet in the field of phonetics. Most American dictionaries for native English-speakers-American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Websters Third New International Dictionary-employ respelling systems based on the English alphabet, with diacritical marks over the vowels and stress marks. Another commonly encountered alphabetic tradition is the Americanist phonetic alphabet, originally created for the transcription of Native American and European languages. There exist somewhat similar traditions used by linguists of Indic, Finno-Ugric, Caucasian, and Slavic languages. The difference between these alphabets and IPA is small, although often the specially created characters of the IPA are often abandoned in favour of already existing characters with diacritics (e.g. many characters are borrowed from Eastern European orthographies). There are also extended versions of the IPA, for example: extIPA, VoQs, and Luciano Caneparis. The IPA is not the only phonetic transcription system in use. The other common Latin-based system is the Americanist phonetic notation, devised for representing American languages, but used by some US linguists as an alternative to the IPA. There are also sets of symbols specific to Slavic, Indic, Finno-Ugric, and Caucasian linguistics, as well as other regional specialties. The differences between these alphabets and IPA are relatively small, although often the special characters of the IPA are abandoned in favour of diacritics or digraphs. Other alphabets, such as Hangul, may have their own phonetic extensions. There also exist featural phonetic transcription systems, such as Alexander Melville Bells Visible Speech and its derivatives. The International Phonetic Association recommends that a phonetic transcription should be enclosed in square brackets [ ]. A transcription that specifically denotes only phonological contrasts may be enclosed in slashes / / instead. If one is in doubt, it is best to use brackets, for by setting off a transcription with slashes one makes a theoretical claim that every symbol within is phonemically contrastive for the language being transcribed. Phonetic transcriptions try to objectively capture the actual pronunciation of a word, whereas phonemic transcriptions are model-dependent. For example, in The Sound Pattern of English, Noam Chomsky and Morris Halle transcribed the English word night phonemically as /nixt/. In this model, the phoneme /x/ is never realized as [x], but shows its presence by lengthening the preceding vowel. The preceding vowel in this case is the phoneme /i/, which is pronounced [aÉ ª] when long. So phonemic /nixt/ is equivalent to phonetic but underlying this analysis is the belief that historical sounds such as the gh in night may remain in a word long after they have ceased to be pronounced, or that a phoneme may exist in a language without ever being directly expressed. (This was later rejected by both Chomsky and Halle.) For phonetic transcriptions, there is flexibility in how closely sounds may be transcribed. A transcription that gives only a basic idea of the sounds of a language in the broadest terms is called a broad transcription; in some cases this may be equivalent to a phonemic transcription (only without any theoretical claims). A close transcription, indicating precise details of the sounds, is called a narrow transcription. These are not binary choices, but the ends of a continuum, with many possibilities in between. All are enclosed in brackets. Here every symbol represents an unambiguous speech sound, but without going into any unnecessary detail. None of these transcriptions make any claims about the phonemic status of the sounds. Instead, they represent certain ways in which it is possible to produce the sounds that make up the word. There are also several possibilities in how to transcribe this word phonemically, but here the differences are generally not of precision, but of analysis. The special symbol for English r is not used, for it is not meaningful to distinguish it from a rolled r. The differences in the letter e reflect claims as to what the essential difference is between the vowels of pretzel and pray; there are half a dozen ideas in the literature as to what this may be. The second transcription claims that there are two vowels in the word, even if they cant both be heard, while the first claims there is only one. However, phonemic transcriptions may also be broad or narrow, or perhaps it would be better to say abstract vs. concrete. They may show a fair amount of phonetic detail, usually of a phonemes most common allophone, but because they are abstract symbols they do not need to resemble any sound at all directly. Phonemic symbols will frequently be chosen to avoid diacritics as much as possible, under a one sound one symbol policy, or may even be restricted to the ASCII symbols of a typical keyboard. For example, the English word church may be transcribed as in church. A close approximation of its actual pronunciation, or more abstractly as /crc/, which is easier to type. Phonemic symbols should always be explained, especially when they are as divergent from actual / Occasionally a transcription will be enclosed in pipes (| |). This goes beyond phonology into morphological analysis. For example, the words pets and beds could be transcribed phonetically as and (in a fairly narrow transcript ion), and phonemically as /pets/ and /bedz/. Because /s/ and /z/ are separate phonemes in English, they receive separate symbols in the phonemic analysis. However, you probably recognize that underneath this, they represent the same plural ending. This can be indicated with the pipe notation. If you believe the plural ending is essentially an s, as English spelling would suggest, the words can be transcribed |pets| and |beds|. If, as most linguists would probably suggest, it is essentially a z, these would be |petz| and |bedz|. To avoid confusion with IPA symbols, it may be desirable to specify when native orthography is being used, so that, for example, the English word jet is not read as yet. This is done with angle brackets or chevrons: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹jetà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º. It is also common to italicize such words, but the chevrons indicate specifically that they are in the original languages orthography, and not in English transliteration. Symbol and Sounds: The International Phonetic Alphabet is based on the Latin alphabet, using as few non-Latin forms as possible.The Association created the IPA so that the sound values of most consonants taken from the Latin alphabet would correspond to international usage. Hence, the letters à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹bà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹dà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹fà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, (hard) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€°Ã‚ ¡Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, (non-silent) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹hà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, (unaspirated) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹kà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹là ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹mà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹nà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, (unaspirated) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹pà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, (voiceless) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹sà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, (unaspirated) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹tà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹và ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹wà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹zà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º have the values used in English; and the vowels from the Latin alphabet (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹aà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹eà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢ â‚ ¬Ã‚ ¹ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹oà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹uà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º) correspond to the sound values of Latin: [i] is like the vowel in machine, [u] is as in rule, etc. Other letters may differ from English, but are used with these values in other European languages, such as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹jà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹rà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹yà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º. This inventory was extended by using capital or cursive forms, diacritics, and rotation. There are also several derived or taken from the Greek alphabet, though the sound values may differ. For example, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ Ã¢â‚¬ ¹Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º is a vowel in Greek, but an only indirectly related consonant in the IPA. Two of these (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ½Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒ Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º) are used unmodified in form; for others (including à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ½Ã‚ ²Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€°Ã‚ £Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€°Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ Ã¢â‚¬ ¹Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º) subtly different glyph shapes have been devised, which may be encoded in Unicode separately from their parent letters. The sound values of modified Latin letters can often be derived from those of the original letters. For example, letters with a rightward-facing hook at the bottom represent retroflex consonants; and small capital letters usually represent uvular consonants. Apart from the fact that certain kinds of modification to the shape of a letter generally correspond to certain kinds of modification to the sound represented, there is no way to deduce the sound represented by a symbol from the shape of the symbol (unlike, for example, in Visible Speech). Beyond the letters themselves, there are a variety of secondary symbols which aid in transcription. Diacritic marks can be combined with IPA letters to transcribe modified phonetic values or secondary articulations. There are also special symbols for suprasegmental features such as stress and tone that are often employed. Letter Forms: The symbols chosen for the IPA are meant to harmonize with the Latin alphabet.For this reason, most symbols are either Latin or Greek letters, or modifications thereof. However, there are symbols that are neither: for example, the symbol denoting the glottal stop, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ Ã¢â‚¬ Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, has the form of a gelded question mark, and was originally an apostrophe. In fact, there are a few symbols, such as that of the voiced pharyngeal fricative, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, which, though modified to blend with the Latin alphabet, were inspired by glyphs in other writing systems (in this case, the Arabic letter `ain) Despite its preference for letters that harmonize with the Latin alphabet, the International Phonetic Association has occasionally admitted symbols that do not have this property. For example, before 1989, the IPA symbols for click consonants were à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ Ã‹Å"à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ -à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ -à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, all of which were derived either from existing symbols, or from Latin and Greek letters. However, except for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ Ã‹Å"à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, none of these symbols was widely used among Khoisanists or Bantuists, and as a result they were replaced by the more widespread symbols à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹ÃƒÅ Ã‹Å"à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€¡Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€¡Ã†â€™Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€¡Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º, and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€¡Ã‚ Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ º at the IPA Kiel Convention in 1989. Some of the new symbols were ordinary Roman letters typeset turned (= upside-down) (e.g. ÊÅ ½ É ¥ Éâ„ ¢ Ɇ É ¹ à ¡Ã‚ ´Ã… ¡), which was easily done before mechanical typesetting machines came into use. Usage: Although the IPA offers over a hundred symbols for transcribing speech, it is not necessary to use all relevant symbols at the same time; it is possible to transcribe speech with various levels of precision. A precise phonetic transcription, in which sounds are described in a great deal of detail, is known as a narrow transcription. A coarser transcription which ignores some of this detail is called a broad transcription. Both are relative terms, and both are generally enclosed in square brackets. Broad phonetic transcriptions may restrict themselves to easily heard details, or only to details that are relevant to the discussion at hand, and may differ little if at all from phonemic transcriptions, but they make no theoretical claim that all the distinctions transcribed are necessarily meaningful in the language. Phonetic transcriptions of the word international in two English dialects. The square brackets indicate that the differences between these dialects are not necessarily sufficient to distinguish different words in English. For example, the English word little may be transcribed broadly using the IPA as [ˈlÉ ªtÉâ„ ¢l], and this broad (imprecise) transcription is an accurate (approximately correct) description of many pronunciations. It is customary to use simpler letters, without a lot of diacritics, in phonemic transcriptions. The choice of IPA letters may reflect the theoretical claims of the author, or merely be a convenience for typesetting. For instance, in English, either the vowel of pick or the vowel of peak may be transcribed as /i/ (for the pairs /pik, piË k/ or /pÉ ªk, pik/), and neither is identical to the vowel of the French word pique which is also generally transcribed /i/. That is, letters between slashes do not have absolute values, something true of broader phonetic approximations as well. A narrow transcription may, however, be used to distinguish them: [pÊ °Ãƒâ€°Ã‚ ªk], [pÊ °iË k], [pik].

The Ideal Role for Business in Society

The Ideal Role for Business in Society Introduction Business has been going along since long before money, insurance plans, and global warming were even a glimmer in someone’s mind. The days of trading your skill for what you needed are still present today, but in a much different realm. Most people do not rely on their neighbor to grow vegetables for their family to eat while they herd the sheep. Disposing of chemicals and building a greener society were not a worry on the mind of anyone many moons ago. It has changed and businesses can overlook people’s personal issues, individual need, and impact on the environment. The ideal role for business in society is to treat their employees fairly by providing respectable employment plans that fit individual needs and being greener in society by caring to implement plans to reduce their carbon footprint. Ben and Jerry’s Ben and Jerry’s started out as small ice cream makers in Vermont with a very small company that grew astronomically. They did not intend on having a plan for responsibility to employees, society, and the planet. They are a prime example of how a business that is not focused solely on the bottom line can make a difference in the community and the world. In 2010 to make the company greener they said, â€Å"Our vision is that the entire country will switch over to hydrocarbon (HC) freezers that are significantly more energy-efficient and use gases with lower global warming potential than standard freezers, which use hydrofluorocarbons (HFC). † (Ben and Jerry’s Social and Responsibility Report 2010). They are making effort to do something to improve the environment even if it does cost them some profits. They give back to the community and support jobs with their foundaiton stating, â€Å"Through the Foundation, we’re helping immigrant workers, neighborhood groups, farm workers and dozens of other groups around the country to get organized and fight for a fair deal. In 2011, Ben & Jerry’s contributed $2,180,808 to the Foundation based on the 2010 sales of the Company. † (Ben and Jerry’s Social and Responsibility Report 2010). These are all things Ben and Jerry’s or any corporation could certainly overlook ithout many reprocussions , but being outardly accountable and charitable makes them a more appealing company to buy from. This also leads the way in showing other corporations that you can make a difference in the world, grow as a company, and be responsible. The Walt Disney Corportation When I think of The Walt Disney Company I think of fun amusement parks, Mickey Mouse, and entertaining childern’s movies. They are much more than that step ping up to the challenge of being reposible as a corporation to its employees and the environment. Disney has a very focused plan to do their part in the environment as shown in the chart below. (The Walt Disney Company 2010 Corporate Citizen Report) The goals and plan they have to minimize the effects of on the environment is something every company should be doing, and having it available for the public to read is another positive apect. The employees at disney receive opportunity to pursue further education and get great benefits packages. They state, â€Å"But we know your life isn't just about work. You have additional things going on – family, friends, personal interests, education and more. The Walt Disney Company offers a comprehensive total rewards package that helps you live your best life, grow personally and professionally, and get rewarded for the results you deliver. † (Disney Careers. Total Rewards). This leads me to believe that Disney has a vested interest in the employees they hire and care about them as individuals. Tyson I see a commercial for some hungry teenagers and how Tyson chicken nuggets or strips satisfies their cravings, but I rarely stop to think if they treat their employees fairly or the environment. Tyson is a leading corporation that does care saying, â€Å"We offer one of the best benefit packages, not just in the industry but in the nation. † (Tyson Corporation. Tyson Benefits. ) They a great plan for all realms of health care, stock options, retirement plans, a full service credit union, education and leadership training, discounts on all products. They participate in hundreds of community events, showing they care about the public. Tyson also is striving o not just follow the guidelines of the law but to go above and beyond to protect the enviornemnt, â€Å"For Tyson Foods, protecting the environment is about more than maintaining compliance with the environmental laws and regulations applicable to our operations. It’s about embracing a process of continual improvement aimed at protecting the environment for future generations. † (Tyson. Sustainablity Report. Planet). They recyle, reduce amount of water used, evaluate using an alternative fuel source, r educe packing waste, conserve energy, and reduce the number of trucks on the road. They are focused on the future and know that playing their part is not just about following the law but providing more for the community and the environment. Strengths| Weakness| Opportunities | Threats| Improving the quality of life for employees| Losing profits from spending time and money on things other than the product or service| To gain customers from being a reputable company| You may go out of business by focusing too much on these other items| Helping the environment| Stockholders may think this a waste of funds| Recognized as a company that does more for society| Bottom line is effected | SWOT Analysis For Tyson Foods, protecting the environment is about more than maintaining compliance with the environmental laws and regulations applicable to our operations. It’s about embracing a process of continual improvement aimed at protecting the environment for future generations. For Tyson Foods, protecting the environment is about more than maintaining compliance with the environmental laws and regulations applicable to our operations. It’s about embracing a process of continual improvement aimed at protecting the environment for future generations. For Tyson Foods, protecting the environment is about more than maintaining compliance with the environmental laws and regulations applicable to our operations. It’s about embracing a process of continual improvement aimed at protecting the environment for future generations. Conclusion Corporations need to be responsible while still earning a resonable profit to continue thriving, changing, and becoming better. â€Å"Doing no harm beyond meeting legal requirements regarding the environment, conditions of employement, community relationtions, and ethics. The law always lags behind the best practice. † (Charles Handy What is a Business for). It is the corporations reposnsibility to step up and take action instead of being forced to by law or any other orgainzaitons. Corporations need to start doing more and providing the information to the public so we can see that they are actually making not just a profit but a change to make the world a better place. Sources Ben and Jerrys. Social and Environmental Assesment Report 2010. http://www. benjerry. com/company/sear/2010/index. cfm Harvard Business Review. What is a Business for. Charles Handy. (Page 7) The Walt Disney Company. The Walt Disney Company 2010 Corporate Citizen Report 2010. http://corporate. disney. go. com/CITIZENSHIP2010/environment/overview/ourapproach/ The Walt Disney Company. Disney Careers Total Rewards. http://disneycareers. com/en/working-here/total-rewards/ Tyson Corporation. Careers. Why Tyson. Tyson Benefits. http://www. tysonfoodscareers. com/Why-Tyson-Foods/Benefits. aspx Tyson Corporation. Sustainablitity Report 2010. Planet 4. 0. http://www. tysonfoods. com/Sustainability/2010/Planet. aspx

Cultural Identity

Ticia R. Grant June, 1, 2011 Bridging Course for Women Assignment #2 Course Director: Brenda L. Blondeau The Consequence of Cultural Identity To understand the significant effect that our cultural background has on our identity, we must acknowledge the advantages provided by the sense of unity, of belonging to something bigger, and of collectively sharing a heritage with others. In contrast, someone who feels disconnected with said heritage might feel deprived of that highly sought after sense of belonging, which in turn can lead to a feeling of not knowing who they should e, a lack of identity. It is the causes and effects of this conflict that Apryl Gladue describes in her writing, and she makes the clear argument that the cycle of deprivation of her predecessor’s native culture is likely to keep repeating itself. This, in essence, is cause of the mourning of â€Å"paper† Indians. Gladue coins this term â€Å"paper Indians† which she uses to refer to Native Ame ricans who have learned their culture only through classes, in school and on paper. The term is also meaningful in the sense that according to overnment documentation, she is of Native status; however she was not raised or brought up as such. In addition to outlining the difficulties she has faced in losing her mother and her connection to her heritage, she also speaks of her triumphs despite her crises of identity. To quote Gladue on page 206 she writes â€Å"Unsure of how to make my way in the world, I soon formed my own identity in academics. † I believe this was a defining and transitional time for Gladue, as she no longer identified herself as being either white orNative but rather as a part of the academic community, wherein nationality, creed, gender, social status and even age are often overshadowed by an individual’s intellect and ability. She describes being admitted to the legal bar and pursuing a career as a civil servant as legal counsel to the DIAND, as a way of contributing her own ideas of law and policy concerning Natives in Canada, however she plainly expresses that despite her efforts she never felt like she â€Å"fit in† within her own community. This feeling of etachment, seemingly all stems back to never having been raised by a Native, as a Native, and it is this loss that plainly illustrates the permanency of this damaging cycle. I can definitely relate with the entire notion of feeling disconnected from my own culture, as I was also raised without a parent. I was raised by my mother, who was many ethnicities, but my father, who was born in Quito, Ecuador, left when I was very young. While I did learn some of the Spanish language, I was never brought up within the traditional Latin culture.Instead I was raised here, within western society and denied the opportunity to experience that part of who I am. I am reminded of this everyday by my boyfriend who was born in Spain, and his mother, who we currently reside with. T he differences in cultural behaviours and beliefs are immense, especially with regards to morality and family, in comparison to what I was taught to believe and how I was raised. To many people my features appear Hispanic, and when asked of my background I always answer â€Å"Spanish† because I do see it as part of my identity, but In terms of feeling ike I belong to the Spanish culture, I am sad to say that for me it is a reality that I will never know. The best I can do is listen to the music and learn the language to speak the native tongue of my father, who I never really knew. It is only then that I feel connected to him, to my culture and to that â€Å"something bigger† that we all seem to yearn for, however it is vital that we recognize that there are many other ways to define ourselves. References Apryl Gladeau, A Culture of Loss Canadian Woman Studies (Volume 26 3,4) pg 204- 207, 2008 Cultural Identity Losing Cultural Identity Both the authors Choy and Engkent focussed mainly on the ideas of culture, immigration and assimilation. These two essays showed that acculturation is bi-directional from both the sides and it requires neither a change value, although values may become acculturated nor the internal change. Assimilation is unidirectional, towards the dominant group and it requires change in values and the internal change. Losing cultural Identity : Immigrants always have fear that they will lose their identity when move into new society.In I'm banana and proud of it, Choy expressed his father feeling by saying that â€Å"Father used to say We lacked Taiost rituals, Taoist manners. We were, he said, â€Å"mo li. † Similarly, Engkent showed his father fear of losing cultural values and how he discouraged his wife not to learn English by saying these words † That old women will get rich doing nothing. What have these women learned ? Fan- gwei ways- make-up lipstick, smelly perfumes, fancy clothes.Once she gets through with them, they won't be Chinese about the land and the life they had been forced to leave behind. † Even the author Choy personally felt that he is caught between two cultures. He claimed himself as Banana, which means that he possessed both the Chinese physique outside and Western lifestyle inside. Acculturation of immigrants: The acculturation is process of cultural change between two different cultural groups who come in contact with each other. The media and language are greatly responsible for acculturation.In I'm a banana and proud of it, the author greatly influenced by the host culture through media. The host media like magazines, music and movies are the only choice for them to read, listen and watch. This showed great influence over immigrants soul and culture. On the other hand, there are some people unable to acculturate into new society due to greater affection towards their culture and lack of communication. In, Why My Mother Can't Speak English Engkent mother was unable to acculturate into new society. hat's why she offered. lai-shi to the officer, which means bribe in Canada even after 30 years stay in Canada. Further, she faced difficulty in learning English. The Berry (1990) psychologist defined acculturation is individuals change both by being influenced by contact with another culture and by being participants in the general acculturative changes underway in their own culture†. This means that culture is being influenced by internal force within the individual and external environmental factors.This acculturation leads to assimilation which gives either an harmony or conflict and stress. References Berry, J. W. (1990). Psychology of acculturation: Understanding individuals moving between cultures. In R. Brislin (Ed. ), Applied cross-cultural psychology. Newhury Park: SagePublications John W. Berry (2005). Acculturation: Living successfully in two cultures. Retrieved from ht tp://isites. harvard. edu/fs/docs/icb. topic551691. files/Berry. pdf Cultural Identity Ticia R. Grant June, 1, 2011 Bridging Course for Women Assignment #2 Course Director: Brenda L. Blondeau The Consequence of Cultural Identity To understand the significant effect that our cultural background has on our identity, we must acknowledge the advantages provided by the sense of unity, of belonging to something bigger, and of collectively sharing a heritage with others. In contrast, someone who feels disconnected with said heritage might feel deprived of that highly sought after sense of belonging, which in turn can lead to a feeling of not knowing who they should e, a lack of identity. It is the causes and effects of this conflict that Apryl Gladue describes in her writing, and she makes the clear argument that the cycle of deprivation of her predecessor’s native culture is likely to keep repeating itself. This, in essence, is cause of the mourning of â€Å"paper† Indians. Gladue coins this term â€Å"paper Indians† which she uses to refer to Native Ame ricans who have learned their culture only through classes, in school and on paper. The term is also meaningful in the sense that according to overnment documentation, she is of Native status; however she was not raised or brought up as such. In addition to outlining the difficulties she has faced in losing her mother and her connection to her heritage, she also speaks of her triumphs despite her crises of identity. To quote Gladue on page 206 she writes â€Å"Unsure of how to make my way in the world, I soon formed my own identity in academics. † I believe this was a defining and transitional time for Gladue, as she no longer identified herself as being either white orNative but rather as a part of the academic community, wherein nationality, creed, gender, social status and even age are often overshadowed by an individual’s intellect and ability. She describes being admitted to the legal bar and pursuing a career as a civil servant as legal counsel to the DIAND, as a way of contributing her own ideas of law and policy concerning Natives in Canada, however she plainly expresses that despite her efforts she never felt like she â€Å"fit in† within her own community. This feeling of etachment, seemingly all stems back to never having been raised by a Native, as a Native, and it is this loss that plainly illustrates the permanency of this damaging cycle. I can definitely relate with the entire notion of feeling disconnected from my own culture, as I was also raised without a parent. I was raised by my mother, who was many ethnicities, but my father, who was born in Quito, Ecuador, left when I was very young. While I did learn some of the Spanish language, I was never brought up within the traditional Latin culture.Instead I was raised here, within western society and denied the opportunity to experience that part of who I am. I am reminded of this everyday by my boyfriend who was born in Spain, and his mother, who we currently reside with. T he differences in cultural behaviours and beliefs are immense, especially with regards to morality and family, in comparison to what I was taught to believe and how I was raised. To many people my features appear Hispanic, and when asked of my background I always answer â€Å"Spanish† because I do see it as part of my identity, but In terms of feeling ike I belong to the Spanish culture, I am sad to say that for me it is a reality that I will never know. The best I can do is listen to the music and learn the language to speak the native tongue of my father, who I never really knew. It is only then that I feel connected to him, to my culture and to that â€Å"something bigger† that we all seem to yearn for, however it is vital that we recognize that there are many other ways to define ourselves. References Apryl Gladeau, A Culture of Loss Canadian Woman Studies (Volume 26 3,4) pg 204- 207, 2008

Black White And Jewish By Rebecca Walker - 845 Words

To feel lost is often a confusing and frustrating experience. To feel lonely is worse. Picture going through your entire childhood feeling lonely and lost. How well do you know yourself? When you look internally, are you aware of the things about yourself that are supposed to be readily known, such as your race, gender, ethnic identity? Imagine you don’t know who you are supposed to be. No matter where you turn, you feel as though you don’t meet the criteria for fitting in and fitting in is the one thing that you wish to be able to do. In Rebecca Walker’s autobiography, Black White and Jewish, she tells the story of her childhood and how the events that took place when she was growing up and how they ultimately molded her into the person she is today. It is arguably more difficult to grow up as a mixed race child, than a single race child. It is even harder if your parents, whom were once united, separate and reclaim their own ethnic identities without one anothe r. Throughout the book Walker provides the reader with many examples of her inner and outer struggle with her mixed race background, as well as the identity crisis that she grows up experiencing. From the beginning, Walker’s youth was not like the rest of her friends. She grew up with a white, Jewish father and a black mother in a time when it was not nearly as acceptable to have a bi-racial family as it is now. She refers to herself as â€Å" a mulatta baby swaddled and held in loving arms, two brown, two white, in theShow MoreRelatedBlack, White, And Jewish2360 Words   |  10 PagesRebecca Walker throughout the book â€Å"Black, White, and Jewish† portrays multiple identities that help her to understand herself and let others understand her as well. Rebecca Walker defines herself as a Movement Child, someone who is a child born during and as an outcome of the Civil Rights movement. Walker states, I am not a ***, the product of a rape, the child of some white devil . 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