Frankly, this is one of the best classes I have taught in a long time.
I have several more samples that I could post here, but I will contain myself.
I have several more samples that I could post here, but I will contain myself.
COMMENTS: pick the essay that you connect with the most and explain why.
Hazelanne
Blackette
“The
Way They Lived” This was very difficult for me to watch. I had
to pause, watch something else, and then come back to it. It just reminds me of
America’s checkered past that continues to plagues us all. This is why some
countries have an aversion to Americans and in some places, it isn’t safe to be
an American. Images like this make me want to be a part of making things right.
I would like for my generation to be the generation that influences our
government to make changes that will give people the tools to help themselves.
===========================
Kara Criscione
FIND a major theme in these images and write
your reactions to that theme:
EX: children, women, workers, or
MAKE UP YOUR OWN CATEGORY: ex: PAIN, DESPAIR, HOPE, ACCEPTANCE, RESILIENCE etc.
“Lost” - I choose this theme because everyone is
lost in some way. One can argue and say, “No, they are not lost. They are at
this street or this avenue. They know where they are.” They do not know. They
have little foresight. They do not know what will come tomorrow, let alone
later that day. They didn’t know if they would go to bed starving. Mothers and
fathers did not know if their children can be fed. Mothers and fathers did not
know what potential disease could kill their children, or even them for that
matter. No one knew if their job was reliable. No one knew if they could save
money and become wealthier in years to come. They were all lost. They escaped
terrible conditions at home to come to a new country because they were told it
could potentially be better. They did not know.
===========================
Justine Del ValleTask 4
WRITE: what feeling
(longer lasting emotion) were you left with after listening several
times? Were the song successful in depicting the soul of NEAPOLITAN
IMMIGRANTS?
The longer
lasting emotion that I felt after listening to these songs were emptiness. In
Santa Lucia Luntana, they are leaving Naples and speaking about how it slowly
is disappearing from their sight while on the ship headed to America. He is
singing about how they feel lonely away from Naples. With feeling, comes
feeling empty. I feel that these immigrants were feeling as if they lost a
piece of them once they left Naples. As if a part of them has died, knowing
their days will never be the same without Naples.
In Lacrime
Napuletane, I also felt as sense of emptiness. This was someone who had already
left their homeland and misses it immensely. He speaking about how he wants to
hear the bag pipes play ad asks that they have a table setting for him at the
table so he can be there in spirit. He compares America to Naples saying that
their bread (America’s) is very bitter. He is sharing how America has cost him
so many tears and although he has money, it doesn’t mean anything because he
feels low, very low, like a bum. He repeats that they cry a lot, its costing
them many tears. This shows how much pain they were going though and felt that
they already lost their home and they felt obligated to stay now because they
had to work for their families. It just gave me a hopeless and empty feeling.
To know the pain that was caused by being away form home. Having them
constantly think of their homeland and dream about being their and yet feel
that they have lost their honor by coming to America when they should be
honored for doing such a brave thing.
==================
Nicoletta
- After listening to Santa Lucia Luntana
multiple times I was left with the feeling of want. Wanting to go back to this
place, wanting to be able to see the water from the land of Santa Lucia,
wanting to see the sunset one last time from the gulf. It makes me want to
remember all my own memories of going to Greece and the beautiful water and
sights that are there to just take in, the freshness in the air and the sun on
your skin. Its a different life than the one we live in America, and this song
brings me back there, the want to have that life and go back to it.
===========================
I connect the most with Hazel's comment. Although my initial reaction to that text was not the same as hers, I can wholeheartedly agree on the intense desire to want to play a role that improves the lives of immigrants. Immigrants (From every race and creed) tend to be marginalized in this country. Coming from a family of immigrants as well, I have a strong tie to matters like this.
ReplyDeleteI connect most with Kara's comment. I believe all immigrants are lost when they first come to an unknown nation. It may take years, even decades, for them to identify their economic or social status. As an immigrant myself, I still cannot define either, and I have been in the US for 14 years now. I am young, so that makes sense. But, my parents, who were of working-age when we immigrated, also are at a loss of identification.
ReplyDeleteI connect with Nicoletta’s comment the most. Having gone to Greece, I know exactly what she is talking about. When you leave Greece you start to miss the beach, the beautiful sights and the relaxed atmosphere. When you create memories in a place that is so beautiful and great to live in, it's hard not to feel the feeling of want when you leave.
ReplyDeleteNicoletta's comment is something I myself thought of when listening to the song. As I listened, I could not help but think of the beauty of Pakistan. Mind you, the streets are full of trash and the air of pollution. But you have to look past that at the atmosphere of love, of acceptance. I remember the same beach I went to all of my childhood. It is the same beach I go to today whenever I visit. There are horse rides and camel rides and corn made live. They have added some new electric cars that we can take for a spin on the beach. These little things are definitely missed.
DeleteI would have to agree with Kara's comment. My reaction to the the songs was not the same as Kara's from the beginning but reading her response and the feeling it left her I can completely relate to being left with the feeling of lost. The immigrants were lost, they did not know up from down when they first arrived. They had no idea where the money was going to come from or the food, or where they would sleep at night. That is all a feeling of lost and that is scary. I cannot imagine having to move to another country and not know how I would be able to feed my daughter, not know if I could protect her from the diseases and all the other struggles that these immigrants had to deal with.
ReplyDeleteI agree with kara comments .Lost is something that we all deal with on the a lot . But being lost regular define you , its how you come out of it that does.Poverty and being lost is something that is usually associated with each other . regular of their people rather there children ,parents all were usually working of just faith . Their life brought Almost of struggles, ones that they had no control over .
ReplyDeleteAlthough my response is posted here, I would have to say that I also agree with my two classmates. I think that I lean more with the feeling of lost. It's so true that people think of their exact place such as as street name when someone asks them where they are. The bigger picture is, where are they in life. You can be in your own home and feel lost. Kara makes a good point in saying that these families did not know what to expect in their next day to come. Would they have a job or loose a job? not knowing whether or not food would be on the table in the evening or even if coming to America was the right thing to do. They were lost in every way possible and that alone, is a scary thought.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kara's statement about the feeling of being lost. As she said, even though we know where these people were (which street, in a building...), they themselves didn't know. These immigrants came to a new country and had to learn a whole new way of life from scratch, with extremely limited communication and resources. Without being able to read street signs, they were probably lost - literally - with no idea how to get around. In addition, they were emotionally and mentally "lost" in this new culture, trying to fit in. I think feeling lost is one of the worst feelings out there. There is so much insecurity and fear, not knowing where you are and what the future holds. I think Kara's description sums up the lives of these immigrants very well.
ReplyDeleteKara Criscione
ReplyDeleteKara, I understand the empathy and compassion you feel for” The way they lived”. In today’s America there are cities, towns, neighborhoods that still live in deplorable conditions and they are born here. The Italians came to for a better life but today’s politics, laws and new government haven’t changed towards immigrants. We have gained so much by being diverse which makes better as people. But the last elections changed all that. The Immigrants today are experiencing the same ordeal and to top all off with fear of deportation at every corner. We are heading in a scary direction. And I hope your generation makes smart changes for the better.
I might sound like an activist and I am sorry. But we need to see the big picture. We are all immigrants not just because we have money and feel secure means it over.
Alexandre Legrand
I relate the most to Nicoletta's essay. Spending many summers in Poland, you realize how different the life is compared to America. I can relate to her saying how it brings her back to Greece. The song is definitely nostalgic and after I read Nicoletta's response I started to have the same feelings.
ReplyDeleteI can identify with Kara because yes, we are all lost. We all at one point search for our purpose in life and seek to reach our full potential. The frustration of performing menial tasks on a day-to-day basis knowing you aren't reaching your full potential is devastating. I think a major problem is that everything is too compartmentalized without accountability. And what should we be accountable for? Perhaps the big picture. Money as our end goal hasn't been doing too well for us. There should be mandatory objectives in the interest of the masses such as environmental accounting that every corporation must meet. It is okay for individuals and corporations to have personal goals. However, those goals should not interfere or threaten the big picture. Everything is interconnected and cannot be addressed sector by sector, again, when one is dependent on the other. For an example, the interdisciplinary field of econophysics may provide answers regarding the perpetuation of inequality. As explained by professor Victor Yakovenko, The Boltzmann Gibbs Distribution shows a static relationship between the lower and upper middle class over the next couple of decades. Interestingly, "the 1 percent", may be operating outside of natural law or under something called power law that increases their capital margin. In simple terms, nothing will change and the rich will get richer. Until we start respecting and applying the interdependent and interdisciplinary concepts to our problems, we will remain lost.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I believe America is beautiful, I do yearn to be places other than America. Nicoletta and I share the same reasons to explore and appreciate beautiful scenery throughout the world. Wanting to experience beauty and traveling to see it is very relaxing and calming I still remember the soothing winds, from the ocean surrounding St. Lucia. Santa Lucia Lantana was sang so beautifully that it captured the feelings that many people have toward their native land and although I travelled to beautiful places, America still remains beautiful to me, so this song also reminds me of the country that I love so much.
ReplyDeleteI connected with Kara's comment the most. That is a perfect word to articulate the photos and more importantly the immigrant experience. They move to America with no plan. They move with hopes of a new life, but they don't know how to obtain that life. They have to find work, they have to put food on the table, they have to pay rent. They have no support system, no sense of community. They leave everything they ever knew and move to a different country, a different culture, a different society. No one teaches them how to act, they are completely alone, lost.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is the country known to fulfill anyones dreams and desires. This is the land of opportunity for many. I am first generation in America so I have heard stories of life outside of America and I can say that we are very much lucky to be born in this country. Even though this may be true, I try to stay connected with family in other countries. All I hear is happiness. No-one is running for money, no-one is slaving away to pay for a beautiful car or home. People outside of America truly know the meaning of happiness and they feel it. I was visiting Israel last summer and I came back to America with a different feeling. The feeling that I experienced in Israel was real and pure. I was surrounded by happy people. This song reminds me of that happy place. The place where nothing matters other than the people closest to you. Happiness is real and its out there, we just need to learn how to properly fin it.
ReplyDeleteI most connected with Kara's response, being American and seeing so many that I know from other cultural backgrounds and experiencing people's astonishment with me being of pure American decent from the south I have often felt lost. I have often felt no belonging, overtime I think I know, I don't. I should feel privledged that my citizenship will never be questioned but my cultural norms are from a grade of people who despise others. I am lost because I have been taught to conform, I am lost because I have been taught to turn my nose up at others who don't conform. I am lost because everything this country is built off of is on lies, and on forced labor and on hurting other people to move ahead. I am lost because there is nothing truly here that is American. I am lost because I know only of privilege and less of the struggle of new land and bad conditions. These families struggled but stuck together, I am lost because families today give up on each other. I am lost because values are no longer values if they ever were once of true value in the first place. I share in Kara's sentiments and interpretation: "They were all lost. They escaped terrible conditions at home to come to a new country because they were told it could potentially be better. They did not know." We are lost because we do not know the true meaning of today and we are even lost because we do not know what tomorrow means, we citizens, we emigrants, we the people.
ReplyDeleteDeidra, your comment is truly enlightening. I had not thought that those born in the US could also be lost. Forgive me for my ignorance. You have taught me that unknowingly, I am still critical of others. I thank you for exposing me to your perspective as a US-born citizen.
Delete