Black Hair and Lost Sister - Gary Soto and Cathy Song

In this Culture

Gary Soto and Cathy Song, the authors of Black Hair and Lost Sister, along with so many other ethnic backgrounds in the United States have had to come to terms with their culture. Living in America, it's hard to think outside the box because of stereotypes and pre-dispositions. In order to find you're self and come to terms with who you are as a person apposed to what the rest of the world may view you as, you have to approach the stereotypes head on and grow from them. Both of the speakers in Black Hair and Lost Sister has had to recognize the short comings of their culture to be accepted and grow in the American Culture.

Gary Soto was born in a third-generation Mexican American family in Fresno, California (Criticism 368). He was first inspired by Robert Creeley's anthology The New American Poetry and began to attend workshops with poet Philip Levine, who mostly wrote about urban living (Criticism 368). Even as a young boy Mr. Soto has recognized two totally different cultures in his life. Most of Mr. Soto's poetry documents his life growing up as a Chicano in California. In most of his poetry he emphasizes on the typical Mexican American life- such as the "frustration over discrimination and limited opportunities and the appreciation of Hispanic culture (Criticism 368)."

In Black Hair, the young narrator talks about his childhood or immediate life. The speaker is infatuated with baseball and idolizes Hector Moreno, a fellow Mexican American who broke barriers when he became a professional baseball player; becoming the symbol of hope and new opportunities for his fellow Mexican Americans. "I came here because I was a Mexican, a stick of brown light in love with those who could do it (Legacies 148)." This excerpt tells us that he didn't only come to the game because he loves baseball, but that a Mexican was playing, and that he was supporting a fellow Mexican's success. In the late 1970's around the time Mr. Soto was a teenager, Mexicans along with other ethnic nationalities were on the brink of being widely accepted, not because of their culture, but on the different talents and achievements that they brought to the United States. This is clearly shown in the next excerpt, "When Hector lined balls into deep center, in my mind I rounded the bases with him, my face flared, my hair lifting beautifully, because we were coming home to the arms of brown people (Legacies 148)."

Cathy Song was born in Honolulu Hawaii, her father was a Korean American and her mother was a Chinese American (Criticism 330). While in high school, Mrs. Song became interested in writing and was supported by poet John Unterecker. Song's work usually was centered on family; "The moral ties that bond children to women and parents, their communities, to tradition, and to the land (Criticism 330)." As a girl Song was bombarded with different ethnic nationalities. Growing up in Hawaii, although not a main home for Caucasians, it was for other foreign settlers.

In Lost Sister, the speaker talks about China, and how the Chinese lived their lives. "In China, even the peasants named their daughters Jade-- the

...