Free “Child of the Americas” Essay Sample

Morales’ short poem,“Child of the Americas” highlights racial segregation in America and the perception of immigrants in the American society. Following the elimination of slavery, a new model of lenience has enforced a new approach for the children of settlers and inhabitants to analyze their own identities. The writer, a product of two cultures, Jewish and Puerto Rican, was inspired by different cultures and ethnicities in America, and she argues that these should be the strengths in building the nation.

Content:

Morales’ short poem explores the diverse cultural backgrounds of America and how the writer was brought up from this diverse lifestyle. The writer has constantly referred to US as a “melting point” due to opportunities brought forth by human diversity. The speaker sees US at a different perspective because he knew his family history. He appreciates the country because she feels it is the only country where a child could be of any ancestry, from Africana, Spanish and Jewish among others. "Child of the Americas" gives the reader a variety of images that materialize from the diverse and vivid history from which the modern American country has been formed (Christian 11).

The diversity theme, which the writer portrays, is a representation of the US society. The writer explains how the United States “melting point” should be as she describes herself to be, “a product” (Christian 12). US can make use of its different backgrounds to come up with a living example; where the differences are embraced without any stereotype. Towards the conclusion of the poem, the narrator merges all the diverse opinions into a character that is a mixture of all the other descriptions; an exceptional American.

Form:

“Child of the Americas” is a work written in the form of a poem to portray the theme of race and ethnicity in the American society. The literature work displays the theme of the work from the first stanza when she describes herself to be a Caribbean child of America. She refers herself to be the child of many Diasporas born in American society at a crossroad. The writer has used the first-person narration as she tells the story about the Americas diversity in terms of races and ethnic groups. At the same time, the poem uses a sympathizing tone against those who stereotype the immigrants. The tone used by the writer is suggesting that the American society exists as a home of ex-slaves who were rescued when slavery ended (Christian 20).

Style:

In the “Child of Americas,” the writer has used different writing styles to pass the information that enhances better understanding of the short poem. For instance, the writer has used imagery, symbolism, personification and diction to ensure there is clarity. The speaker has used symbolism, personification, and diction to reclaim the natural rights of the US natives and the whole human generation. Imagery has been used in this literature work more than once. For example, she says her people remain unknown in the US society because their names have never been “written anywhere” and that they relied on the “first names and pet names such as honey, sugar, and dear” (Christian 24). She has constantly used such imagery in his work to pass the information that she is a product of nature and has the same rights as others.

The writer has additionally used imagery to provide her background and ethnicity. “I am what I am; History made us, eats dear eats” (Clugston 42), and further says that they were all an introduction of the minorities who lived in a society where other cultures and race are dominant, and they suffer from a dual identity. Imagery has been used to show her connection with the nature, for instance,” I come from the dart where the cane was grown, Africans were supposed to water the roots of most trees, but myself could not return.” The imagery has been used to indicate how the immigrants are swallowed by the dominant American culture but still able to trace their roots (Christian 25).

Diction has been employed to elaborate the theme and the harmful impact the minority individuals living in a dominant culture face. The word “root” has been used by the writer in her work as she traces her roots also in search of a fertile ground where she can take her roots. In her phrase “she is not African and Africa only waters the tree, of her roots, and she cannot return" (Clugston 43). She further says, "she is not a Taina; but a late leaf of that ancient tree with roots reaching into the soil of two Americas” (Clugston 43). She has continuously used the diction in elaborating that she is a product of mixed heritages, which US should be proud of and embrace. Use of words like “Spanglish” upholds the argument in that inheritance becomes a component of the new knowledge born in both the narrator and the reader, and she has both incorporated and risen above her old self to become a new person.

The speaker has used symbolism in telling about her mixed background and little knowledge about lineage. She maintains “she is of Latin-American” but maintains she is not Latin-American. She also clarifies, “I am not African: she is grown from Caribbean, and that Spanish was her and this came from her tongue and so many examples (Chamberlain and Matta 51). The poet explores her diversity and ethnicity and heritage through the use of symbolism in shedding more light and in capturing the reader’s attention. She has also used personification in referring to herself as she tells the story of her struggle to retain her identity as she constantly used the phrase “I am” (Chamberlain and Matta 53). She also says, “I speak English with a passion: it's the tongue of my consciousness, a flashing knife blade of Cristal, my tool, my craft” (Clugston 45: Section 12.1 Lines 7-8).

 

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