VOICES OF IMMIGRATION IN THE USA

Universidad Católica de Salta 6 y 7 de junio de 2014

Proyecto de investigación UCASAL: “Identidad y migración en discursos

anglófonos”

Lic. M. Fernanda Irrazábal

Prof. y Trad Públ. Ma. Soledad

Loutayf

Trad. Públ. Ma. Marta Michel

The aim of this workshop is to share

the voices of latino immigrants in

the USA in two articles published by

The New York Times with a view to

rethinking metaphor and hybrid

identities and culture.

THE NEW YORK TIMES

American newspaper founded in 1851.

One of the most influential papers in the

world

112 Pulitzer Prizes.

Its website is one of the most visited

news websites.

It is organized in many different sections.

Carlos Slim is the largest shareholder.

Number of immigrants Documented immigrants Access to education Conflict with the law Nationalities of immigrants

2- WHY MIGHT IMMIGRATION IN THE US MATTER TO US?

3- DO IDENTITY AND IMMIGRATION RELATE TO OUR TEACHING PRACTICE IN ANY WAY?

1- WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT IMMIGRATION IN THE US?

LET’S ANALYZE THE NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

REFER TO

Section in the newspaper and aim of this section

Titles or headlines

Authors

Format: online or printed version?

Date

Cities mentioned in the article

What does ‘border’ mean?

METAPHOR

The way we see the world is framed by

metaphors.

They are inherent in cognition.

Conceptual metaphors are linguistically

translated.

Conceptual and linguistic metaphors are

translated into action.

The metaphors we use reveal our views of the

world.

Metaphors are tied to history and culture.

They pervade everyday language.

They are conventional and easily interpreted.

Literary language re-elaborates them.

“Our concepts structure what we perceive,

how we get around in the world and how we

relate to other people” (Lakoff & Johnson, 2003).

ARGUMENT IS WAR Your claims are indefensible. He attacked my argument. I demolished her argument.

TIME IS MONEY You’re wasting my time The queue cost me an hour I’ve invested too much time in her as it is.

What kind of actions are prompted/justified by these metaphors?

HOW ARE THE FOLLOWING METAPHORIZED IN THE ARTICLES?

KEEPSAKES….. USA (l 12, 23)

Difference/distance between Mexico and USA (l 5, 10)

Violence (l 31)

LA SANTA CECILIA Culture (l 6)

Music (l 32, 41)

ICE (l 57, 60)

IMMIGRATION IN THE USA

Democratic party vs Republican party

9/11

11 million undocumented immigrants

http://www.rcinet.ca/espagnol/en-cartelera/entrevistas-2012/12-09_2012-11-29-seminario-sobre-el-pensamiento-de-raul-prebisch/http://factreal.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/cincodemayobeerday.jpg

MEXICANS IN AMERICAAMERICANS IN MEXICO

Identity is a construct tied to temporal, social and historical circumstances.

Hybridity is a comprehensive term including a mix of ethnic groups, musical fusion and religious syncretism.

Hybridization implies power relations which, in turn, imply economic inequality.

Some people are denied the hibridizing experience while others are forced into it (Garcia Caclini, 2010).

LET’S ANALYZE THESE ARTICLES…

ELEMENTS THAT IDENTIFY

LATINOS

ELEMENTS THAT IDENTIFY

AMERICANS

SPANISH LANGUAGE

HYBRIDITY - HYBRIDIZATION

ELEMENTS THAT IDENTIFY LATINOS

ELEMENTS THAT IDENTIFY

AMERICANS

- SPANISH- Besame mucho, Sabor a mi, guayaberas, mariachi, salsa.

- ENGLISH- Grammy Awards, punk rock, reggae

- Gloria Stephan, Mercedes Sosa, Trío Los Panchos, Lucha Villa, etc.

- An Argentine born producer

- Pájaro loco - Quinceañeras

- Janis Joplin, Nirvana, Grammy Awards

- Star Wars- Universal Studios- The Flintstones, The

Jetsons

- Pan dulce- Fe – Jesús – patrón saint

- Saturday Night Fever

- Clothes: hoop skirts, tutus, bright colours, etc.

- Economic gap, violence, insecurity

- Ocarino

- Green card – Social Security Card

- ICE- Interstate 7- Disneyland, Mickey

Mouse

- Cities: Yucatán, Mexico, Chichen Itzá, Toluca, Tulum, etc.

Cities: California,Hollywood, Los Angeles, New York, Miami. Texas, Austin

HYBRIDITY - HYBRIDIZATI

ON

- Spanish and English

- Switching (and translations)

- Latino rock- La Marisoul

- La Santa Cecilia band

- Eclectic mixture

- American cartoons with ads dubbed in Sapanish- Interstate- LAX

- Up North – Better North

Culture refers to routine practices, beliefs and meanings that have become thickly sedimented.

Identity refers to feelings of belonging to a collective based on emotions or shared interests.

Cultural borders do not always coincide with identity borders

CONFIGURATIONS OF CULTURE

A configuration is a space of shared symbolic patterns, horizons of possibilities, power inequality and historicity (Grimson, 2011).

It emphasizes heterogeneity.

It is articulated in a certain way depending on its contexts.

Difference is often based on inequality; it is often exoticized, folklorized….but nobody wants to live there.

Interculturality: multiple intersections

existing between cultural configurations

Different cosmovisions, myths, celebrations,

rituals, ideologies….are learnt in social life.

Cultural configurations refer to specific ways

in which actors confront each other, ally or

negotiate.

MIGRATION & DIASPORA The meaning of migration has changed.

Hypervisibility of migratory processes + space-temporal

compression of the planet impossible to interpret

other cultures as distant worlds.

New critical line circulation, permeabillity of borders

hybrid cultures.

Diaspora specifically related to strong feelings of

belonging or identification. It involves more or less fluid

ties between the groups living in different countries

through religious, political and cultural associations.

It is a transnational cultural configuration.

DIASPORIC TEXTS

Diasporic literature/ A diasporic text is

about remembering pervaded with a

general sense of nostalgia but also

about re-membering … creating and

imaginary homeland.

IDENTITY & LANGUAGE LEARNING

Identity how a person understands his/her relationship to the world, how that relationship is constructed across time & space.

SLA needs to develop a conception of identity that is understood with reference to larger and frequently inequitable social structures social interactions must be understood with reference to relations of power as well as the ongoing production of a language learner’s identity.

Identity as a site of struggle= identity is multiple and contradictory.

Immigrants: accumulated memories + families their relationship with the public world in the host country.

REFERENCESGeorge Lakoff and Mark Johnson (2003) Metaphors we live by. (

http://shu.bg/tadmin/upload/storage/161.pdf) The Metaphorical Structure of the Human Conceptual System in

COGNITIVE SCIENCE 4, 195-208 (1980) http://csjarchive.cogsci.rpi.edu/1980v04/i02/p0195p0208/MAIN.PDF

García Canclini, N (2010) Culturas Hhíbridas. Estrategias para entrar y salir de la modernidad. Buenos Aires: Paidós.

Grimson, A. (2011). Los límites de la cultura. Crítica de las teorías de la identidad. Buenos Aires: Siglo Veintiuno.

Hall, S. (1994). “Cultural Identity and Diaspora”. Colonial Discourse and Post- colonial Theory: a Reader. Ed. Patrick Williams and Chrisman. London: Harvester Wheatsheaf, pp. 392-401.

Král, F. (2009). Critical Identities in Contemporary Anglophone Diasporic Literature. United Kingdom: Macmillan.

Norton, B. (2000). Identity and Language Learning. England: Pearson.Prebisch, R. (2011). http://www.rcinet.ca/espagnol/en-cartelera/entrevistas-2012/12-09_2012-11-29-seminario-sobre-el-pensamiento-de-raul-prebischWordpress (2012). http://factreal.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/cincodemayobeerday.jpg

“EL HIELO”

Eva pasando el trapo sobre la mesa ahí está cuidando que todo brille como una perla. 

Cuando llegue la patrona, que no se vuelva quejar. No sea cosa que la acuse de ilegal. 

José atiende los jardines, parecen de Disneyland Maneja una troca vieja sin la licencia. 

No importa si fue taxista allá en su tierra natal Eso no cuenta para el Tío Sam. 

EstribilloEl Hielo anda suelto por esas calles Nunca se sabe cuándo nos va tocar 

ahora los niños lloran a la salida Lloran al ver que no llegará mamá 

Uno se queda aquí, otro se queda allá, Eso pasa por salir a trabajar. 

Marta llegó de niña y sueña con estudiar. Pero se le hace difícil sin los papeles. 

Se quedan con los laureles los que nacieron acá, Pero ella nunca deja de luchar. 

LAST BUT NOT LEAST…

Freewriting: the practice of jotting and scribbling; writing without rules; writing non-stop.

“Keep scribbling. Something will happen” (Frank Mc Court)