Going Native

As I read “Going Native” by Francine Prose I was struck by the concept of “transculturals”, as she put it, those who don't feel as though they've truly settled in their culture of upbringing and find a deep connection with a foreign culture. Transculturalism is a concept that I haven't considered before, other than scoffing at those who seem to be trying too hard, like the 4^th grade boys mentioned in the beginning of the Prose's essay. I've felt at home in my typical middle-class Alaskan culture for most of my life so to seriously consider that there are those who truly yearn for another cultural setting seems distant and unexplored.

Prose does an excellent job of analyzing the meaning behind those who self-identify both sympathetically and fancifully with different cultures. Those who self-identify with other cultures on an experiential level are often those who feel a shared burden of disenfranchisement or social ills with the other culture and choose to express themselves within the context of that culture. Prose uses the example of poor, working class Irish children who find encouragement, and perhaps a sense of identity, in performing soul music and who find identification “with the poverty, alienation, and disenfranchisement of African-Americans.”

In my personal experience I've found such identification with blues music and performers, which historically has been a musical outlet for oppressed African-Americans who told their stories of economic and racial discrimination through song. Though I am not an African-American and have lived a rather comfortable life, when life is bad and I am depressed I find comfort in listening to the blues; when the performer bemoans the loss of a special loved one or of some personal betrayal,“that's right, brother” springs from my lips and I shake my head knowingly in shared misery. The performers problems become my problems, his “woe is me” becomes mine as well and offers a bit of comfort, knowing that I'm not the only one with problems.

As mentioned earlier, those who self-identify with other cultures, past and present, on a fanciful level, seem to be the ones who are not so much disenfranchised but rather have lost their sense of purpose within their culture and seek meaning from the ideals of past cultures, such as Native Americans, or traditional Irish culture, both of which have been characterized as simple, hard working, purposeful, and communal. These cultural characterizations offer individuals a chance to be part of something greater than themselves, where ideals such as pride and honor are worth fighting and dying for. I find it amusing, and a bit ironic, that while I am half “white” and half Native American, there are certainly thousands of white people who share a deeper kinship with Native American culture and history than I do; I was born and raised in Alaska but my tribal ancestors are from Taos, New Mexico.

As I compared the two types of people mentioned in Prose's essay I found it interesting that regardless of whether individuals share common experiences or just idealize the principles of a given culture, there seemed to be a common thread of desire for identity outside of “self”. In addition to shared identity, skin color, often an indicator of race and culture, means little to those who are “transcultural”, which challenges the assumption that skin color equates to cultural heritage.