#hybrididentity

[matmatto1]

STOP! IDENTITÀ IN FRANTUMI ASFISSIA EMOZIONALE

[daisytalksstuff-blog]

Remembering My Roots

It has been exactly twenty-six days, two hours, and eleven minutes since I’ve officially moved to Metro Manila or “The Big City”, as we called it back home. And for me, home would forever be described as Cebu. I am a proud Bisaya, a proud Bisdak, and a proud probinsyano even if, ultimately, it was me who decided to move far, far away from everything I’ve ever known. But, to be quite honest, I thought that this would be much harder. 

I thought that the last brunch with my closest friends—who cheered me on at my highest and also stood by me at my lowest—would be more of a tear-jerker. I honestly thought that my stomach would drop from something other than the intense altitude the exact moment that the plane took off from Cebu. I certainly thought that the homesickness would kill me when my parents and my brother said their final goodbye to me. Yet, it didn’t. None of these things proved to be true even if they should’ve, and I’m not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing.

I do miss everyone back home, obviously. I miss everything from the food to the close proximity of the beach to anywhere you were even if you were deep into Cebu’s latest urban development. However, I didn’t know if I was just repressing the crippling depression, or if I was just adjusting well.

Because I have gotten used to living here, on my own. In my more than three weeks here, I’ve pretty much memorized where everything is on campus. I have a vague sense of important places along Katipunan like the grocery, the bank, and even the best place to hang with friends.  I’ve also become more accustomed to living in a small dorm with an introvert roommate whereas I, myself, am an extrovert. I have even made new friends—good friends, in fact.

I’ve made friends with Manileños, although I initially thought that they would be the ones causing me grief during my four-year stay here; considering I was from the province. I really, really thought that they’d make fun of my deep accent, but so far, I’ve just gotten asked to bring some lechon the next time I go back home and even got some requests for me to give them a tour if they ever come to the “Queen City of the South”. I’ve also made friends with others who speak Bisaya from different provinces like Cagayan de Oro. And all of these friends of mine, including my quiet roommate, have kind of helped me in my transition to college and my transition from Cebu to Manila.

Even if it has only been a few weeks since I’ve arrived here, I’ve noticed little changes in myself. I noticed that I’d spoken the best Tagalog I ever have even if I had been taking Filipino as a core subject during my entire grade school and secondary school experience. My mother would even comment during our nightly video chats that my filler words were no longer Bisaya in origin but things like parang and naman. I also noticed that I had grown to be more responsible and independent compared to when I was still living with my parents, for I no longer had anyone to nag me on to do my chores or to do my homework but now I had to do things on my own prerogative. But overall, the most recent and the most noticeable adjustment in me was the fact that I was more open to opportunities to become a better person. Extroverts can be shy and I used to shy away from new things and new people until now. I could honestly say that I’ve recently come out of my shell and started making the most out of the many opportunities I can find here in the Ateneo. And I can honestly say that I’m better for it. It has made my decision to study here, and not in Cebu, even more worthwhile.

So, to conclude, I don’t particularly think that I’ve forgotten my roots, but rather, I’m doing my part to honor them by doing my best here. I still regularly contact my friends and family. I still speak in Bisaya when the opportunity presents itself. I still consider Cebu as my home but none of these have stopped me from excelling here academically, socially, and especially in anything that can help me in the future career-wise. 

There are still moments when I stumble like when I try more and more to speak Tagalog and some Bisaya comes out instead, but ultimately, I feel that as long as I’m doing my best then I’m doing good. Manila is a melting pot of different provincial cultures especially here in the Ateneo. I don’t quite think I’ve gotten the hang of big city life just yet but with the help of who I was before I got here and who I am now has made this transition much simpler. I think I’ve actually reached a point where I’ve made peace with being the Manila friend to my Cebuano friends when I come back because in all honesty, although I am and always will be a Cebuano, I am also now growing to be more of a Manileño too.  

[mattsyoung-blog]

I chose to represent my hybrid identities using a character from the Chronicles of Narnia. This centaur, is a combination of 2 creatures with its upper half representing a human and its lower half representing a horse. With these two very different creatures, I also find myself having this sort of “mixture” in terms of my attitudes towards different crowds of people. As an example, I act differently when I am with my classmates in school when compared to how I act at home. With these two different personalities, experiences and personal emotions may happen in one side that may not happen in another because of the large gap of similarities. Seeing a two separate attitudes in one person might be hard to comprehend but that is the way it is for me and a lot of other people as well. Luckily, these conflicting identities happen inside me and not on the outside look, which would make things a lot messier and a lot more complicated.

[nicnic19-blog1]

Food is something i deeply admire; it’s also an integral part of my life and culture. When i look at my own identity, i think about what really makes up me and i use my experience eating food, cooking food or the food themselves. The top left photo shows me and my mom cooking and this shows the side of me that loves cooking the middle bottom photo shows me and my family eating at a chinese restaurant for a birthday and i’d like to think this photo as the photo the sums up integral parts of my identity which is the chinese and filipino aspect of my life as the color red is an important color in chinese culture and my family being my family who’ve lived in the Philippines for years. The other photos which showcases various food represents some other aspects of my identity like the Wrap it Up wrap represents my life as a student as the wrap can be bought at JSEC in Ateneo where i study while the others such as the burger and sushi represents my love for western and japanese culture respectively and the plate with sliced duck breast represents my privilege and gratitude of being able to live a good and comfortable life.

[msjsocsci]

BLOG POST #1

My local and global hybrid identities

I will admit I am not the most in touch with my local identity. Although many parts of my identity are tied intrinsically to the culture and practices found within the country, I lived in a household heavily entrenched in Western influence. As a result, a great deal of my interests, and beliefs are tied to this.

I think what is most Filipino about me is my attitude towards family as a daughter. I love my parents, grandparents, and other relatives very dearly. Many of the decisions I have made for my own life have been influenced by it, such as remaining in the Philippines rather than studying abroad, and even taking Chemistry rather than Physics, which would likely have taken me out of the country to pursue research. I would also say that my advocacies for social justice are heavily tied into my Filipino identity, specifically to the idea of kapwa, which is a distinctly Filipino concept.

What I think ties the most into my global identity rather than a local one are my beliefs and stances on certain issues. Unlike most Filipinos, who are largely Catholic or generally religious, I am an atheist. Tying into this is my being a secular humanist, a moral system that is largely unknown in the country. I am also a liberal, feminist, and member of the LGBTQ+ community, all of which are very different from the Philippines’ generally conservative culture. Certain talents of mine play into this as well, as my vocal training and training as a guitarist are heavily influenced by Western classical music, and musical theatre. Even my writing, which is heavily inspired by the melange of foreign books, video games, and media I consume takes on this quality. My art style is also heavily stylized, drawing most of its influence from Japanese art and media.

It is a bit shaming that I have so little of my own local identity in me. That my own creative output has so much foreign influence while I’ve largely avoided Filipino media throughout my life is very unfortunate,especially my inability to speak and write in Filipino as readily as I do in English. I firmly believe that it is possible to love a culture but still realize its flaws, and I think I should begin applying this more heavily to my own home culture. I think I have removed so much of my Filipino identity from my own because, in my youth, I was slightly ashamed of it due to how backwards I thought it was. I have since realized that mistake, and have been taking steps to rectify it.

As a young woman in a globalized society, it is inevitable that my identity be so heavily influenced by foreign countries. Creating a hybrid identity is inescapable, especially in the Philippines, where its culture is already so steeped in American and Spanish values and culture. This being said, it is time that I revisit the rich history and identity of my home country, and begin appreciating it for the beauty it holds. 

[candicebelmonte]

Blog Entry #1: Hybrid Identity

I am more than what meets to eye, I am affected by my surroundings both globally and locally. These different environments shapes who i am, influences my decisions, and my perspective on things. 

I am more than my surfaces. i realize now how important it is to be aware of what makes you, you, what separates you from others and at the same time see how similar you can also be to them. 

Yes,I am unique, one of a kind, and special. But i have characterisitcs that i share too with others

[suzylwade]

Njideka Akunyili Crosby “I came to LA two years ago [from the East Coast], and I'm finally seeing LA creeping into the work. The first thing I noticed was something about the color reflecting the lights of the place I was in. We moved into an apartment with big sliding-glass doors that overlooked the pool, and it reminded me of David Hockney. I started making works with plants when I was on the East Coast, but the use of plants in the work has kept evolving and developing since [I moved]. For a long time I used houseplants I photographed on the East Coast and a local root tuber from rural areas in Nigeria called the cassava. Then, when I arrived here, I decided to do more elaborate plant scenes, and I found myself walking around my studio, just photographing plants I saw. Plants can be markers of location and markers of place, but also sometimes markers of how people have moved from place to place. I think I'm getting to a point where I'm curious to see what happens outside the [interior] space I've been creating. I've been doing a lot of pieces with portals or openings into the outside world [using] a lot of windows and doors; that's where the gardens come in.” - Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Artist. Drawing on art historical, political and personal references, Njideka Akunyili Crosby creates densely layered figurative compositions, precise in style that, nonetheless conjure the complexity of contemporary experience. Akunyili Crosby was born in Nigeria, where she lived until the age of sixteen. In 1999 she moved to the United States where she has remained since that time. Her cultural identity combines strong attachments to the country of her birth and to her adopted home a hybrid identity that is reflected in her work. #neonurchin #neonurchinblog #dedicatedtothethingswelove #suzyurchin #ollyurchin #art #music #photography #fashion #film #words #pictures #neon #urchin #nigereia #america #pennsylvaniaacademyofthefinearts #swarthmorecollege #yale #bobblers #cinematicdepictions #domesticity #complexnaratives #collage #painting #drawing #hybrididentity #artist #njidekaakunyilicrosby https://www.instagram.com/p/CCA2VXcF3dQ/?igshid=1cbo1t2oka49

[macharose]

We go public Friday With @imaginescience #shortfilm #7daychallenge #filmcontest #science #hybrididentity #chimeracorps #director http://ift.tt/2yvyoLQ

[matmatto1]

STOP! IDENTITÀ IN FRANTUMI