Evidence of Assimilation: Racial Identity and Family Perception
An investigation of Rodriguez’s ideas reveals that he has, in fact, undergone assimilation. He is no longer the immature child he once was; he considers himself more ‘American’ now. However, Rodriguez has not been completely deracinated.
Rodriguez continues to be identified as a member of a racial minority community, and his writings disclose that the social phenomenon of race has profoundly influenced his family’s thinking. This is visible when his grandmother differentiates their facility and Americans after Richard gained victory – “she whispered that I had ‘shown’ the gringos” (Rodriguez 6).
The Role of Racial Consciousness
Indeed, one of the most notable characteristics of minorities is their racial consciousness. Consequently, a comprehensive assessment of the underpinning assertions of the minority groups will disclose that race has a profound effect on who they are, what they think, and how others view them. Throughout the text, Rodrigues stresses the state of emotional uncertainty, given that the cultural environment was gradually changing him, “I felt such contrary feelings” (6). Such a condition is likely to result from the frequent process of assimilation. Rodriguez’s situation is a spectacular instance of what can occur when a child grows up in an impoverished societal context of choice, in addition to providing a brutally honest description of the occurrence of internalized racism.
Education and Self-Determination
In an equitable and progressive nation, a decent existence will be marked by a substantial capacity for self-determination. Rodriguez stresses that this is mainly possible via the means of education because of my schooling, “I had grown culturally separated from my parents, my education finally had given me ways of speaking” (17). Here, it might be assumed that assimilation alienated Rodriguez from his family to an exact degree.
Still, education has become valuable for him: “I came to trust the silence of reading and the habit of abstracting from immediate experience” (Rodriguez 17). He became a member of a society that is able to choose what it wants to be in connection to its political, cultural, and social circumstances without being bound by oppressive societal restrictions.
Works Cited
Rodriguez, Richard. “The Achievement of Desire.” Citytech, 1982, Web.