Forbidden Fruit

Forbidden Fruit

In an orchard where the soft grass glistens,

Where flowers blossom and fill the air with sweet bliss,

I gaze up at the crooked branch and spot a perfectly round,

Perfectly plump peach

Painting the horizon with it’s silky rich skin.

I lick my lips and can almost taste it’s sweet nectar

Gliding down my throat.

I long for the day that my padded fingers

Meet its fuzzy skin.

In an orchard where the soft grass glistens,

Where flowers blossom and fill the air with sweet bliss,  

Mighty branches poke and prod at my flesh.  

As I inch closer

And closer

To the forbidden fruit

My arm strains to weave through the tight branches.

A kaleidoscope of greens distracts me

Almost making me forget what I had come for

And planting the seed in my head that perhaps

I’m not meant to have it at all.

I can see where that blue jay has been picking at its bone  

And leaving deep purple dents and brown bruises.

All around its heart

Leaving it an empty pit.

Strangely enough,

I find myself yearning for not just its fruit,

But leaving me with a burning desire for more than just a superficial relationship.

I want to feel the passion

as your roots run deep into my soul,

Wrap its vines all around my heart,

Grow,

and become a part of me,

Not apart from me.

Sohrab's Invisibility

This picture represents Sohrab's invisibility in life. When you first notice the green shrubbery it stands out and is present in the scene but eventually, the novelty of the green shrubbery fades out and blends into the concrete. Looking closely, the turbary t is always a point of interest because of the color always contrasts against the black asphalt. similar to Sohrab, after awhile his presence begins to fade from the public eye. When Sohrab tells Amir that he is afraid to go back to the United States with him because he fears that after a while, Amir will get tired of him. The brown bit of dead grass around the edges of the green represent shrubs feeling of dread and anguish that eventually lead to suicide. Just like how Sohrab attempted to commit suicide.

Cultural Culprit: Appreciation or Exploitation?

Cultural Culprit: Appreciation or Exploitation?

Kendall, Kylie, Kim, and Khloe. What do all of these women have in common? Besides the fact that they are all related, the media has accused them of being culturally insensitive. From cornrow wearing Khloe to Coachella Kylie wearing a bindi, these women are not the only ones that the media has found guilty of appropriating culture, more specifically African/black culture. Celebrities, who are often the most visible representatives of Western culture, are often the most guilty for skewing Western views of African culture.

Cathy Young argues that nothing is too petty for culture cops and that people are reaching too far when accusing someone of ‘stealing’ African culture because the line between appropriation and appreciating culture is blurred (Young). Others such as Journalist Nadra Kareem Nittle believe that there is an incredible amount of insensitivity in the media when it comes to respecting a culture (Nittle).  So what is the truth? Is society being too petty, or are we just that culturally insensitive. In order to understand what is happening right now, we have to go back and look at how European colonialism affected African culture in terms of beauty and money.  

Dating back to the late nineteenth century, Africa was invaded by countries such as Spain, Great Britain, France, and Italy. They imposed their teachings and established control over the African tribes. Hundreds of years later, the effects of European colonization can be seen by what many refer to as Eurocentric beauty standards. Maisha Johnson writes that valuing whiteness as beauty comes down to more than just skin color, it is also about the anglicized features that we associate with white women such as smaller noses, thinner lips, and less prominent curves. Our society bases the idea of beauty on things like the “golden ratio,” which traits traits like eye size, nose width, lip fullness, and hairstyle and says that the ideal proportions of so-called “universal beauty” never rank on- European features as most beautiful (Johnson). This creates a double standard when it comes to beauty with both white and black women. We have African women bleaching their skin and pressing their hair to get more European features, white women darkening their skin and getting ‘boxer braids’. It’s not the hairstyle that’s offensive, it’s the fact that white women are praised and called beautiful for the same thing that black women get called ghetto for.

It’s not just about hairstyles and clothing, it’s also about money. In the case of Solomon Linda, the writer of the widely popular “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”, was not given credit or compensation for his song. He grew up in Zulu, South Africa and had a knack for songwriting, when he moved to Johannesburg in the late 20’s, the original version of “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” or “Mbube” was written (Olufunmilayo). The song began to gain popularity in Europe in the 40’s and was produced in the U.S. This is just one of many cases where borrowing from African culture is considered insensitive because of the lack of knowledge of the history between Africa and the rest of the world (Olufunmilayo). Many see this as a problem because this lack of giving credit because there were many financial consequences that black musicians faced when they are often times seen as the ones who paved the way for rock ‘n roll success (Nittle).

There are many different interpretations of this term Cultural Appropriation. Some don’t think it’s a big deal while others believe that the topic deserves more awareness. Whatever the case may be, it is important to realize that around the world cultures are all one big melting pot.

Works Cited

Africa, The Conversation. "Cultural Appropriation: When 'Borrowing' Becomes Exploitation." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 21 June 2016. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

Johnson, About Maisha Z. "10 Ways the Beauty Industry Tells You Being Beautiful Means Being White." Everyday Feminism. N.p., 02 Dec. 2016. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

Nittle, Nadra Kareem. "What Is Cultural Appropriation and Why Is It Wrong?" ThoughtCo. N.p., 7 Feb. 2017. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

Young, Cathy. "To the New Culture Cops, Everything Is Appropriation." The Washington Post. WP Company, 21 Aug. 2015. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

Secret Symbols

Secret Symbols

Sijie uses the symbols of the alarm clock and the sheepskin coat to represent Luo and the narrator’s expression of intellectual liberty. The alarm clock symbolizes the two boys’ intellectual superiority that allowed them to have more control over their situation. The sheepskin coat represents their hunger for knowledge and the curiosity they have once they have been exposed to Western literature. They both represent a form of rebellion against the barriers that had been put up around them. Manipulating the clock allows them to get more rest and take advantage of the headman. Writing on the sheepskin coat would definitely be considered reactionary, but their determination to learn outweighs their fear of the possible consequences for their actions.

Quotes

“After that historic morning we got into the habit of re-adjusting the time on the alarm clock” (15).

“In the end we had changed the position of the hands so many times that we had no idea what the time really was” (15).

Quotes

“It was the first time in my life that I had felt any desire to copy sentences from a book” (58).

“This fellow Balzac is a wizard … He touched the head of this mountain girl .. and she was transformed … She ended up putting on your wretched coat … She said having Balzac’s words next to her skin made her feel good, and also more intelligent.” (62)

Dandelion Seed

Dandelion Seed

Your body is as dainty as a dandelion

Hundreds of seeds

One for each of scar

Each stretch mark

And blemish

That you wish would disappear

But unlike a dandelion

These things that make you; you , don’t just disappear into the wind

So

Empty your mind

Release the heaviness from your heart

And look down

Count your fingers

Count your toes

Take notice into the small scars

Old scars, and blemishes that you hate

Look at them

Feel them

Become them

Realise that you were born with your body

That your body will carry you

Day in

And day out

You are a single dandelion

With hundreds of seeds that you have to offer

Each one better than the last

Spreading your wisdom and spirit in a barren field