Introduction
The invitation to a wedding in Malay Muslims traditions not only impressed me but also opened my eyes too as it provoked me to enlarge my knowledge about Indian style of life, their preferences, and interests. A close friend Zainab later invited me to their own household within two days after attending their wedding ceremony for her sister.
At the wedding, I got interesting stories from Zainab’s grand mother, revealing for me several facts about their family mutual support and care, I was eager to learn more and observe how these friendly people, this one big family live in one house, share their troubles, and improve their lives. For sure, how could more than ten people live in one house collectively? All my life, I think that it is so impossible and so incorrect for a family to live together; especially, it concerns such huge family as my friend Zainab’s family. Even taking into consideration such deep love and care, each person has a need of own space and a bit of privacy. This is why I cannot help but wonder whether this family always lives in love, without quarrels and numerous discussions. Actually my interest became more than just enquiring about what the family did together, but how they did it so harmoniously.
When I entered the yard of their household, I was amazed with its neat and tidy. There was enough place for children to play, enough space for grown ups to have a rest, and enough place for a little garden. The house itself did not look too big, and this is why the yard, around the house, made it like a center of own universe to them. It was high time to enter the house and be amazed with its beauty, cleanness, and style. It was not similar to those houses, I watched on TV. Almost everything reminds the America style of life: huge kitchen with numerous products, spacious hall with a sofa and TV in its center, and the stairs, which lead to the second floor, where the bedrooms might to be. The only detail that reminded me that I was at the Malay Muslim’s household was numerous photos on the walls with one or two candles near each photo. I comprehended that this family respected each member of the family, and especially those, who were not alive any more. This very gesture should help other members of the family, and especially those, who are born in America, always remember about their roots, their past, and their family support.
The Malay Muslim traditions is one of the few cultural traces that still hold their culture so dearly that one may wonder how they do this in a society so dynamic. In the modern society, people talk of harmony and unity to be the bedrock of any society’s success and the way these societal tenets are displayed by Zainab’s family would indeed make anybody question the extent to which a cultural identity would bring people together.
Aims of the Study
I have attempted to deal with the issues that relate to cultural identity, albeit covertly. However, it became apparent that more and more interactions with different cultures would create more desire to promote a more overt approach to my curiosity. To begin with, the present global system perspective demands that the most unique identical cultural systems be deconstructed and merged into one. The very notion of cultural globalization should create a major concern as it has proved less harmonious in the recent past. This report outlines the specific finings in a quantitative research that seeks to unlock the specific tenets of maintaining a cultural identity even in an increasingly diverse American cultural orientation.
Expected Results
My expectations were vast. First I clearly expected that it if the parents and close family members who convey the identity to their children stayed together, then the conflict between mainstream expectations in the American way of life and the traditions of the Malay Muslim community would conflict, if not carefully handled. I expected to find a family that hated the American diverse and integrated culture that they are forced to stick to their own culture.
Furthermore, at the wedding ceremony, I knew these people lived a life of indigenous people similar to the ones I see everyday from documentaries, because for sure which family would still remember his heritage after 30 years in a foreign country with completely different culture and behaviors.
It has also emerged to the researchers in the human and social sciences that there is a very large and almost uncontrollable world system of which we are inextricable part. When early social researchers like Kajas Ekolm Friedman first suggested that the cultural identity would become the issue in the modern globalization, many fellow researches dismissed him and instead supported cultural unification. However today it has emerged that cultural identity has proved more than just a topic of study but an area to create a social concern in the constantly dynamic society of today. Assmann, & Czaplicka (125) states, “Of all the social facts we construct, identity is probably the most critical. And of all our identities, cultural identity is one of the most central to who we think we are”. We also realize that people tend to learn their “cultural identities first within families setting” (126). However, it is also a common question among the social science studies on how family members can manage work together to construct an identity so distinct; how they remember all these traditions in a society so distinct from theirs; and the significance of these traditions in the families.
Literature Review
Dettemore & Hay (141) observed a “widespread interest today in the way different people recreate the past. The facts from different vantage points can yield very different conclusions, and ……different constructions of the past”. They further argue that “for accurate cultural representation, the collection of data, proper access, and the need for preservation” when documenting cultural identity is necessary (189). Their observations give a clear framework which can be used to identify, define as well as locate an interaction between cultural memory and authenticity as they connected to the cultural identity (191). It is logical to identify the memories of the cultural identity through research that would validate the theories, considering what Jan Assmann identifies as the “concretion of identity or the relation to the group” (Assmann 125). Inquiries about how the community or a family keep their culture alive down to the coming generation is represented by different artifacts kept at a close range for everybody to have access to, what Assmann named “figures of memory” (127). These figures of memory are represented by photographs, stories, ballads, spoken words, documentaries, music etc. (128)
Good, Halpin & Halpin (376) further note that the potential of fragmentation comes where there is lack of strong structure such as strong family unit to mediate and insure the access to informational artifacts for the present and future generation. Marshall (270) observes that cultural identity theoretical perspective is on the documentation of the cultural identity information that is expressed in the programs such as ceremonies, where the senior members of the society tend to reinforce the knowledge of their past through the use of traditionally accepted facts of beliefs.
Methodology
The study focused on the qualitative research methods. However, before settling on the qualitative research, I had to weigh the other option of quantitative research. Using the available literature, I came up with the following comparisons:
In qualitative research, there is no any information that is described as qualitative data since “everything is ether zero or one” (Schensul & LeCompte 21) or as I would call it, everything is either yes of no, with descriptive nature of explanation. Again on this type of research, I did only have a rough idea of what I wanted and as Nkwi, Nyamongo & Ryan (39) observe, it is normally recommended for early stages of research projects. On the other hand, quantitative research aims to classify some specific features, counting figures and leads us to construct statistical models in an effort to explain the observations we have made (40). In this case researcher tends to have specific information he or she wants.
Qualitative research is focused in understanding a given research problem from the perspective of a given population that has been involved (Denzin & Lincoln 181). According to Denzin & Lincoln (192) this type of research is more effective and important when inquiring about specific cultural information on values, opinions, behaviors, and most importantly the social context of the particular information (193). It also offers crucial information on a more personal perspective e.g. the existing contradictory behaviors, opinions, beliefs, motions and relationships between individuals (195).
From these explanations, I noticed that qualitative research has more ability to provide the description of people’s existence in a complex contextual manner, hence the cultural identity information that I eagerly craved for. I therefore resorted to use the two types of qualitative methods, i.e. participant observation and In-depth interviews. My own observations were critically important in collecting data on naturally occurring behaviors of the community in their normal contexts. At the same time in-depth interview proved even more useful in the collection of data on the individual’s and the family’s personal histories, perspectives, encounters, and experiences (from Zainab’s Grand Ma) through the discussion of some sensitive issues within the family. Even though Focus groups is a another very effective qualitative methods especially when it comes to eliciting data on a particular group’s cultural norms and the generation of a wide overview of certain issues that may relate to the group’s cultural identity, I did not use it for one major reason: the other family members of Ma are too busy at works that they could not find enough time to attend to my interview, not even enough time to cook for themselves.
The beginning of my data collection began immediately when I got an invitation to attend a wedding from my friend, Zainab. Zainab had invited me to attend the wedding ceremony of her elder sister who was getting married. Since I had not attended a ceremony of a Malay Muslim person, I was excited at the prospect of attending the wedding. In fact, I had the opportunity of attending all the important functions of my friend’s sister’s wedding and all of them were distinct and unique in their own ways. There were ceremonies like the “mehendi” ceremony in which the bride and her friends all gather together amidst much dancing and singing and apply henna on the hands and feet.
The mehendi ceremony was held 3 days prior to the final wedding day. There were also other important ceremonies and functions, which included rituals and religious traditions, which I found highly interesting to watch and experience, despite being unable to follow many things due to linguistic diversity. I took note of important issues that I actually needed, with the guidance from my research question.
Pleasantly surprised and amazed at the manner in which Malay Muslims strictly follow traditions and religious customs, I wondered how Zainab’s family continue to maintain their culture and traditions even while staying in an individualistic and completely different host country like America. Several questions struck my mind, such as how they manage to follow the questions and how they remember all these traditions in a society so distinct from theirs, and the significance of these traditions in Malay Muslim families. Taking this as an ideal opportunity, I carefully drafted an interview guide (See the attached) that I later used to interview some of the guests who I regularly met at the different ceremonies and to whom I had become quite close and friendly. One such guest was a 46 year old Abdul*, who even though did not give much detail, slightly highlighted the importance of such a ceremony in passing the cultural identity to the younger generation as they come. He stated that he could not afford to miss such ceremonies when he was young because their parents would take keen interest in every detail of their progress, prodding them everyday about their cultural progress. However, many activities coupled with fun made Abdul and some of my prospective interviewees not concentrate. So I resorted to interview the elderly, whose only role in the ceremonies seemed to be in charge of the smooth running of the ceremony as per the standards of cultural requirements. In other words, the elderly would only be consulted when a particular aspect was not clear to the active participants, the young and the middle aged. One such lady was Zainab’s grandmother, a lady of about seventy-five years of age, but with the strength, vigor and enthusiasm of a sixteen year old. I carefully planned interview session that was to be conducted later where I took the opportunity to ask questions over the several meetings which I had with her. I had become particularly close to the family and also addressed Zainab’s grandmother as Ma, like the other members of the family did.
The questions were systematic, beginning from their personal information like why the she came to America and for how long she has been staying in the country to the cultural identity questions on how and why they have retained their cultural questions. Even though I had most of the information in the interview guide in my mind, I found the document important in offering guidance on the flow of questions in a systematic manner. Whenever the respondent went off-track, I would refer to the guide to restructure my questions so as to make the information flow stay within the context of cultural identity. It is important to note that the guide was not restrictive to the questions I asked but were only used as a guide as such.
Results and Discussions
Family as an Institution and Cultural Identity
Malay Muslim family is the source of strength and cultural identity. It is the support from the first family that begins the sustainability of the cultural identity. Ma asserts this fact when she says, “…my husband is my first supporter. He realized that it was he, who made me move here. This is why when I want to remember some of our native traditions, he is always ready to help me and find all the necessary material, people, and time. My children are also eager to hear something about our native traditions, because they truly believe that our traditions are the ones, which help to support each member of the family and provide him/her with the necessary care and love”. She further states, “When I got married, my husband was so inspired with an idea of my parents to go to America, so, he tried to do everything possible to get promotion and change our location”, says Ma. Other than the ceremonies, the Malay Muslim community just do not just fancy the art of living together as huge but strongly nit family but also see it as away of keeping the flow of cultural passage smooth. This fact could be the reason why Ma says, “We came from India. For a long period of time, I lived in a joint family, where more than 35 people lived together”.
The family institution is headed by the elderly, who are accorded utmost respect. This could explain why most relatives and friends of the family who came for the ceremonies too addressed Zainab’s grandma informally as “Ma”. This tight family structure is what makes the family stronger and fosters the culture of love and care. Ma demonstrates this by saying that it is the love of her family including her children and grandchildren that keeps her strong and makes her functions continuously well. She states that she was extremely lucky to have a family, which loves and cares for her so much, especially her son and daughter in law, Zainab’s parents, whom she loved dearly. This concept brings us to another important aspect of family as unit in the development and maintenance of cultural identity, the role of the elderly in the maintenance of the cultural identity.
The Role of the Elderly in Fostering Cultural identity
According to the Malay Muslim community, it is the responsibility of the elderly to streamline the cultural identity stability. It is the moral duty of the elderly in a family unit to first show the passion for the maintenance of the culture, even if it calls for disciplinary actions on junior member of the family who does not follow the unwritten cultural guidelines. It is therefore an express obligation of the elderly and senior members of the families to teach and impart knowledge of the cultural values as well as morals to the coming generations. This is to ensure the family stay together and continue sharing the moral values and all aspects of life. This expresses the importance of unity, which accordingly could be interpreted as the source of strength and cultural identity, with the elderly as the “fulcrum” of strength in the family. The elderly and senior members of the community in a family unit are also tasked with offering the blessings to the individuals. For example, when the bride and bride groom form part of a new life, they need the blessings of the elderly in the presence of the relatives, friends, and family in order to begin the new chapter of life in a more harmonious manner. Again the elderly are known to be knowledgeable enough to impact the religious traditions on the family; it is their duty to ensure that all the religious customs and traditions are fulfilled.
The Role of Ceremonies
The Malay Muslim community value ceremonies so much. The fact that large number of people (comprised of all sorts of relatives) gather together to enjoy the ceremonies like the wedding is one way of strengthening and preserving cultural identity. Social gatherings included all-important relatives and friends and the elders and senior members of the house are given special importance. During such ceremonies, the environment is beautifully set and with amazing fragrance of the henna. For example, weddings that are considered the beginning of a new life are treated with such special designs. The value and significance of these ceremonies prior to marriage among the Malay Muslim community is critical and the family takes it upon themselves to ensure the ceremony run smoothly. Ceremonies take place in the presence of all distance relatives- a very important aspect in the preservation and extension of could be lost cultural values, in contrast to the western culture that only recognizes immediate family members. Such ceremonies are held primarily to celebrate the wedding and share the joys with relatives, friends and society. On the other hand, ceremonies act as reminders in to the attendants, who due to external cultural influence could have forgotten some aspects of the cultural values. This is why Ma states that customs and rituals play an important role in important matters like marriages, birth of a new child and even death.
During the ceremonies such as weddings, food and water are considered a good gesture in the community’s effort in remembering the poor and the underprivileged. This is why every member of the community is welcome in such ceremonies and they are served with food and water to their satisfaction.
Religion, Unity, Peace and Cultural Identity
Interestingly, the findings about the Muslim community about religion were contrary to the general perception of the rest of world or other religion. According to Ma, the religion emphasizes on communal harmony, peace and joy not in isolation but within the community in which they function. Islam as a religion necessitates that important functions and events should be shared with society and friends and although grand events are not necessary, rituals and customs are a compulsion.
Islam put strong foundation of great emphasis upon unity during celebrations and hosting meals is an important aspect of any ritual and tradition. In all religious events and wedding ceremonies, knowledge of traditions and customs are put to complete use during the wedding celebrations. In fostering the religious identity, the elderly and the senior members of the society are responsible for teaching the younger generations about the rituals and traditions in relation to Islam as a religious entity so that they would be able to continue the same with their children and pass on the knowledge to the newer generations. According to the Muslim community, the religion teaches unity and communal harmony and that is why religion is part as parcel of such events as marriage ceremonies, which are known to play a vital role in uniting families.
She asserted that even if there are differences, such moments and events are of crucial importance and it is expected that all differences are forgotten so that the ceremonies are conducted and accomplished peacefully and happily.
Muslim as a religion is not associated with terror and growth fanaticism, and instead it is a religion of peace. If Islam prohibits violence and unkindness even towards animals, so how could it propagate violence towards humanity? Ma explains that people are misusing and misquoting from the Koran for their political benefits.
Culture and Wellbeing
In the Malay community, culture is considered as a critical tenet of wellbeing. It is culture that ensures that each and every individual is respected and that is why all the rituals are processed in accordance with the customs, to ensure the mutual respect is bestowed on each and every member of the community. The senior most member of the house looks after all the younger members and plays the role of a responsible mother who looks after the wellbeing of her children. Culture and traditions are part and parcel of life and no member of the family can live without them. The elderly ensure that all the cultural values and moral are imparted to the children continuously, so that the cycle of culture would carry forward, since according to her, culture ensures happiness, love and unity among family members. The culture of staying together as a big family unit has helped the senior most members of the family acquire skills for managing and remember all the ceremonial traditions. Ma says that she was raised in a big family of ten and got married to an even bigger family. She says, “For a long period of time, I lived in a joint family, where more than 35 people lived together”. The Malay Muslim family cherishes the strength and sternness of the senior most members of the family and every young one would want to emulate them in order to create wellbeing to the family members and the community as a whole. It is also the culture of the Malay Muslim community to stay together in unity to help the underprivileged in the community. Serving food and water are considered to be the most virtuous deeds and that the poor are given supreme importance when it comes to distribution of food.
Love, Respect, Care and Cultural Identity
The Malay community love, care, and respect for each other and environment are amazing. Every member of the community is considered in designing the house and the compound which hosts the typically large families. They love maintaining the environment clean with cool ambience and style, with enough space for everybody, contrary to the western lifestyle of fragmented units of houses to fit one or two individuals. Naturally, people belief and take Muslims to live life with ruins just like what the media portrays on our television.
The respect is not limited to the living alone, but is also accorded the dead in a manner that is in tandem with the cultural orientation. The dead are constantly remembered with special artifacts like photos, placed conspicuously on the walls. These photos comprise of both the living family members and the dead. These artifacts are meant to remind the present and coming generation of their identity and their roots, past and the family support and care. This is specifically so for the ones who have been born in America. The senior most family members constantly underline the necessity of family support and care, which is shared by everybody in the family, including little boys and girls. These young ones demonstrate their respect for the family members including the dead in a unique way. For example when they come near the photos, they change their gestures and moves just to give the photos and their memories utmost respect. Ma affirms the love and care theme in their culture when she says, “my children are also eager to hear something about our native traditions, because they truly believe that our traditions are the ones, which help to support each member of the family and provide him/her with the necessary care and love”.
The Malay Muslim community is also quite respectful of other culture and they would not shy away from trying other ways of life. This is visible in the way their house is designed and, with all the American way of life in terms of furniture and house designs. As I observed, the only way you could separate the Malay Muslim house design and components are the photos ands other artifacts available on the rooms. Furthermore, Ma asserts this fact when she says, “…….Of course, it is possible to add something from American traditions in order to demonstrate our sincere respect to the Americans, however, at the same time, be able to show that we remember about our own traditions and can unite these different styles of life.”
One more thing that attracts attention is certain respect to food and drinks in the family of a Malay Muslim. For example it is impossible to find some alcoholic drinks in the household of a Malay Muslim except the medical ones in order to debride the wounds. The importance placed on food is seen in the type of foodstuff commonly used. In actual sense, they have a lot of respect for natural food and these foodstuffs dominate their food store. For example, tea, coffee, water, and juice complete the beverage section. suji ka halwa (a kind of semolina pudding) or yakhani (mutton with yogurt) and remain their favorite and the “taste” of their native country and their true or inborn preferences.
The children are oriented to the level that there is automatic respect and appreciation for every little thing they receive from the giver. For instance when one of the children takes some food, he/she says “Thanks mom or Ma” even if these people are not here right now. This is the way of how they are grateful to their parents, who provide them with some food. Even though in America it is not that famous to share food with poor people all the time; the Malay Muslim community still value a lot the sharing whatever little they have with the poor to extend love and care. According Ma, it is always necessary to be a human and realize that time could change everything very quickly, and one day you would be hoping that some people could share some food with you. Of course, her thoughts are rather philosophical and general; however, the community holds this philosophical view so dearly that they use it to extend love to other members of the society.
Ethical Issues
Since I was to interact with the community that is so distinct and respect their cultural values, I had to maintain the ethics that are necessary in the qualitative research. As a researcher I had to consider the concerns of the people we study, even if they don’t show the concern. I therefore made sure that all the processes of research were done in appropriate manner in tandem with the laid down guidelines and procedures of conduction qualitative research. From this perspective and view, I followed the following fundamental research ethics:
- Respect for the persons interviewed: one step I took to do this is to outline specific questions that were not offensive to the respondents of that which would go against their cultural disrespect. This is one of the reasons why the interview guide was carefully drafted in order to give a specific direction that interview process would take. It was also meant to ensure that I don’t just use my respondents to achieve my research objectives but to also to maximize their benefits out of the research.
- Beneficence; from the settings of the interview place to the names of the respondents, I placed some concepts of risk minimization to the participants. The setting of the interview was a confirmatory that the interview was going to receive some positive results as well as respect the individual privacy. This is why I had to seek the permission from the family that was interviewed to ensure there are some concepts of informed consent from the target family respondent. Again, the names presented here in the report are not real name to ensure the respondents are not faced with any form of disrespect and as a result of this research finding.
- Justice; the question, “What do you think should be done more in order to help not-native people remember about their traditions?” was a strategic one in terms of ethical concern. This was meant to ensure the respondent share the ethical benefits that may accrue from the research. This is why I chose the Zainab’s family because they uniquely represent the Malay Muslim community despite being in a dominantly universal culture like the America’s and their continuous existence with this culture be threatened from the perspective of multi-culturisation.
- Respect for the community; I took the obligation to acknowledge the importance of every unique aspect I observed or encountered. Thai is, I did not express my unnecessary surprise that would have shown any form of prejudice or disrespect to the respondents and their relatives or families or the community for that matter. For I knew that this aspect of ethical issue was very fundamental in the community wide knowledge, values and relationships, tenets that proved very critical in my research.
- Informed consent; because this research did not have very serious risk, that is, minimal risk, I decided to seek informed consent from the participant after a broad explanation on the risk and benefits associated with the research. I assured my respondents that I will protect their identity and confidentiality. The way to do this was to ensure the conversation did not go beyond the required standards. That is, I made sure I stayed within the content of the discussion.
Limitations
Despite easy access to the family for my research, I got some quite outstanding barriers to the study.
First, there was the language barrier that created a lot of difficulty during my first day in the wedding and successive meetings in the community. This made it quite difficult to access some crucial information that could have accompanied my observations and answers to my interview question. My sole reliance on interview answers and blank observation without hearing directly from word to word unfolding of events I believe did not give enough on the information on the material day of the wedding. However, there is much certainty that my main respondent, Ma did give the most of the information that I needed, if not all.
Secondly, there is more of certainty that qualitative research approach does not give a corpus analysis that would give the findings specific authenticity for specific expansion to wider population of the study. This is largely because my findings are statistically vague hence cannot be tested to discover the statistical significance. However, comparatively, this specific research would not do either better with quantitative research. So in simple terms, the counter problem associated with that demerit is neutralized.
Lastly, even though I did try as much as I could to be calm with everything or whatever information I found astonishing, sometimes I was overwhelmed and found myself expressing some sort of unsolicited reactions. For example, I could not understand what other people in America would refer to as a “community” sharing one house. This was relatively a strange encounter and it took me quite some time to comprehend. The good thing about that encounter and the subsequent reaction is that the respondent never expressed any form of prejudice or put in other words, did not show any form of negative feeling about my expression. Again my friendship cultivation at the initial approach to my study I believe played a pivotal role in the diminishing this short coming.
Conclusion
The observed household helped me to learn and comprehend deeper the style of life of foreigners in the United States of America. These people do not have a need of some communities and these communities’ support; they do not need to meet their countrymen in order to maintain their native traditions, because their family is a great treasure, that is, their community, their countrymen, and their supporters. Their mutual love and care is their success. And if all other Malay Muslim families have the same relations as the relations of my friend’s family, they have many chances to continue maintaining their traditions and teach their future generation to respect the same traditions for a long period of time.
This family demonstrates a wonderful idea on how to maintain native traditions in such a host country like America. People can do everything possible at their own homes, and even if a foreign country closes the doors to your native traditions, it is always possible for them to open these doors in own hearts, minds, and homes. This visit to Malay Muslim family, who have lived for more than 30 years in America, tries to keep own customs, and respects for each other, helped me comprehend how it is wonderful to believe in something, to be devoted to something, and have companions in the chosen affair. Even this house serves as a good example of care, love, and support. Nowadays, so many people are afraid of being sensitive and honest to each other. This family is always eager to share their thoughts, their traditions, and their happiness with the other people. And, it should not be considered as the sign of naivety or nonsense in America. It should serve as a good example to follow in order to improve this life. A bit love from the Malay Muslims and certain independence of the Americans may create another, more powerful group of people with mutual respect to each other.
In fact, Ma draws comparison between American and Malay Muslim family lives. She says, “In spite of the fact that Malay Muslims and American traditions are closely connected to family, Muslims demonstrate their respect to parents and grandparents, and Americans prefer some kind of democracy and personal independence even within families”. It is in order for anybody, including the community to draw parallel the difference between cultural prejudice and respecting the other people’s culture. That comparison leads to prejudice and lack of respects is not the way to show the value of one’s culture.
According Ma, it is important to note that the family is center of everything and the beginning of creating cultural identity. The common notion that such values can come from the community is a sham and instead one should consider his or her family as the unit of cultural identity. She says, “Those, who want to maintain their native traditions, community are not necessary, as their best community is their family.”
The specific roles of certain members in the society are very important in extending the cultural diversity. As demonstrated by the Malay Muslim community, it is critical to note that every institution has a structure and each structure is a culmination of specific roles as displayed by these members of the community. As demonstrated by this family, it is an express obligation of the elderly and senior members of the families to teach and impart knowledge of the cultural values as well as morals to the coming generations. This is to ensure the family stay together and continue sharing the moral values and all aspects of life according to demands of the culture.
For every attempt to conserve a specific culture it is critical to note that the ceremonies, especially those that deal with family and cultural lives are adhered to. Even though economic situation may dictate the express participation or organization of such events, it is also important to note that a classical cultural event may not be all that expensive and need to entail just a simple gathering. Ceremonies taking place in the presence of all distance relatives and friends are a very important aspect in the preservation and extension of the cultural values that could be lost. And the fact that people come together to share the moment of joy by through such common things like food sharing and is enough reminder for could be lost cultural values or as one may observe, reinforces the cultural identity.
The general perception that has persisted about some roles of specific regions may not be true, at least according these findings. The Muslim as a religion is in deed not peace oriented. No specific religion is specifically practiced to cause violence and it is the roles of some few individuals who may take advantage of the cohesion that occur to extend their aggression on the society for their own selfish gains. For example, this study has diffused a common notion that Islam place great emphasis upon unity and care for the poor. According to the Muslim community, the religion teaches unity and communal harmony and not fanaticism and terror. This is why religion is part and parcel of such events as marriage ceremonies, which are known to play a vital role in uniting families.
Culture is critical for fostering wellbeing. It is culture that ensures that each and every individual is respected and respects others as well. That is why all the rituals are processed in accordance with the customs. Culture and traditions are part and parcel of life and no member of the family can live without them. The culture of staying together as a big family unit has helped the senior most members of the family acquire skills for managing and remember all the ceremonial traditions. Ma says that she was raised in a big family of ten and got married to an even bigger family. Here I do not mean to say that the family units of American multi-culture should be broken, but an aspect of unity must be shown to foster the culture of friendship and love.
There is a connection between love, respect, care and the status of cultural identity. No one would claim that people who share a common goal jointly would hate and care less about the partner. If anything, each member of the family is supposed to be considered in the process of designing a particular resources in the family to ensure there is room for everyone to enjoy and feel wanted. It is through love virtue cultivated from the family that is extended even outside the precinct of the family as shown by this family of study. For example, for a preservation environment, it is a common knowledge that the idea of clean environment is the responsibility of everyone in the family. Such beliefs expanded to the outside of the family will result into the desired environmental conservation.
The other important thing to note from this study is the desire for respect for other cultures. Despite being completely unique, the Malay Muslim community displays an awesome respect for other culture. This was shown by the kind of response Ma gave in certain questions. The community is respectful of other culture and they would not shy away from trying American life. Furthermore, Ma asserts this fact when she says, “…….Of course, it is possible to add something from American traditions in order to demonstrate our sincere respect to the Americans, however, at the same time, be able to show that we remember about our own traditions and can unite these different styles of life.” She also refuses to draw comparison, acknowledging that each and every culture has its strength and fun moments.
It is also important to draw importance on the way children are brought up in the cultural setting. Identifying ones culture makes the young ones have opportunity to grow morally with specifically instilled guideline on their minds on the nature of the behaviors on certain issues. The children also develop the culture of respect and appreciation for every little thing they receive from the giver. For instance when one of the children takes some food, he/she says “Thanks mom or Ma” even if these people are not here right now. Even though in America culture is seen to be individualistic, it still has the elements of sharing and this shows that the human nature of sharing is still alive and thus should be observed.
Cultural identity is critical in the construction of cultural passage structure. And as Leeds-Hurwitz (2005) observed, “of all the social facts we construct, identity is probably the most critical. And of all our identities, cultural identity is one of the most central to who we think we are”. I can conclude that that people tend to learn their cultural identities first within families setting. It is also important to remember how the Malay community remembered all the cultural issues within this fragmentized society, how family members can manage to stay and work together to construct an identity so distinct; how they remember all these traditions in a society so distinct from theirs; and the significance of these traditions in the families.
Works Cited
Assmann, J. & Czaplicka, J. Collective memory and Cultural Identity New, 1995. German Critique, 65: 125-133.
Denzin,K, & Lincoln YS. Handbook of Qualitative Research. London: Sage Publications, 2000.
Dittemore, Margaret J. & Fred, J Hay. Documenting Cultural Diversity in the Resurgent American South. Chicago: Association for College and Research Libraries, 1997.
Good, J.M., Halpin, G. & Halpin GA. Promising Prospect for Minority Retention: Students Becoming Peer Mentors.. The Journal of Negro Education, 2000:69, 375-384.
Marshall, PA. Human subjects protections, institutional review boards, and cultural anthropological research. Anthropol Q 2003; 76(2):269-85.
Nkwi P, Nyamongo I, & Ryan G. Field Research into Social Issues: Methodological Guidelines. Washington, DC: UNESCO, 2001.
Schensul, J., & LeCompte M. Ethnographer’s Toolkit. Walnut Creek, CA: Altamira Press, 1999.