Indian American Immigrants in the Golden Age Essay Example for Free

Indian American Immigrants in the Golden Age Essay Arthur W. Helweg is known as a Cultural Anthropologist and a Professor of Anthropology at the Western Michigan University, who studied the lives and stories of many Asian Indian Immigrants in different countries around the world which includes Australia, Canada, Great Britain, India and the United States of America (Arthur W. Helweg). Through his love and passion for the people with Asian Indian origin, he worked with different publications and has already written various books that feature the tale of many Asian Indian Immigrants around the world. He also co-authored the book entitled â€Å"Immigrant Success Story: East Indians in America,† which has been awarded with the Theodore Saloutos Book Award given by the Immigration and Ethnic History Society, as the best book on immigration history category in the year 1990. More so, he has also done co-editorial task wherein he has been chosen to be a part of the editorial team for the book series entitled Discovering the People of Michigan. The book entitled â€Å"Strangers in Not-So-Strange Land: Indian American Immigrants in the Golden Age† is regarded as one of the most brilliant works of Arthur William Helweg in his chosen field of interest in studying the narrative of many Asian Indian people around the globe who seek for better life and fortune outside the premises of their motherland. This book is also characterized as one of the apparent proofs that signify the dedication and excellence of Arthur Helweg, as a Cultural Anthropologist and an enthusiast of the Asian Indian struggles as immigrants in different countries abroad, more especially in the United States. Currently, there are now thousands of Asian Indians who are living in the United States. Synopsis of the Book In a sense, this book of Arthur Helweg presents his own account of case study regarding the narrative and struggle of many Asian Indians in the United States. For more than three decades, the story of these people has never been in the mainstream and almost regarded as nonexistent ever since they arrived in the U. S. However, this profound community of Asian Indian is regarded to be a group of immigrants with the highest educated members and known as the highest earning average family of any ethnic group in North America. Thus, theses Asian Indians are noted as valuable members and representatives of the latest type of immigrants arriving in the United States. In a sense, the author, Arthur Helweg, has focused more about the theme of immigration of these people in the United States. This book highlights the truth and facts about the narrative of Asian Indian immigration and how these highly educated and professionally trained immigrants vary and deal with different challenges and difficulties associated to the traditional concepts of migration in the United States. Thus, this book tells about the real stories of these people regarding their journey to the land of America and how they adjusted to the new set of laws in the United States, as immigrants and foreign people. This also highlights the case study of the author about the adjustments involved in creating a new line of respect between the Asian Indians and the Native American people. Furthermore, this reading also renders a clear overview about the historical narrative of the Asian Indian in the United States and how the Indian Diaspora becomes a global tribe, which has been all over the world. This also explains the origin of these people and how their homeland is being recognized, as these people continuous to create good recognition across their names internationally. With the fact that these people is now recognized as one of the well acknowledged group of immigrants in the United States, this book also highlights the real happenings as to how the ethnicity of the Asian Indian survived in a relatively new world and volatile nature of the United States. More so, this also depicts the apparent pictures with regard to the efforts and hard work of these people in laying the foundation of their ethnicity in the United States. The Critique From a personal point of view, it is of reasonable grounds to say that Arthur Helweg, as a cultural anthropologist, professor and author is indeed a master and specialist of what he does best, which is that of studying the narrative of Asian Indian immigrants in different areas around the globe, more especially in the United States, as evident in the excellence of this book. More so, this book is observable to be cohesive and reliable in presenting valuable and factual accounts of the Asian Indian ethnicity and their journey towards instituting their equal position in the American society. Starting from the fundamentals and discussing the significance of the main story, the writing style of Arthur Helweg for this book is indeed informative and at the same time profoundly entertaining, as he also incorporates most of his distinct humor in presenting and discussing some of the light aspects of the book. Though writing a case study type of book is a bit tricky and complicated to do, the author, Arthur Helweg, has done a good job in presenting a well researched and comprehensive readings with regard to the life and struggle of these people, as valuable refugees in foreign countries like the United States. The way Arthur Helweg highlights and reveals both of the minor and major issues that these people are experiencing in the United States, as immigrants, is really one of main factors of that has made this book cohesive and well informative, not only for the member of Asian Indian community in U. S. but also for the people who wants to know more about the narrative of these ethnic people. Relation to Class Material As for this book, the topic about ethnicity and race of the Asian Indian in the United States is what I really understand the most. As a part of the class discussion, I learned that though people from other countries with specific ethnicity or cultural background prefers to live and start a new in a foreign outside of their original home turf, they can still be classified as an individual according to their culture, as seen evident through their beliefs, actions and language. Thus, as for the case of Asian Indian, depicted in the book of Arthur Helweg, it has become more understandable that these people, though they traveled so far and miles away from their homeland, still remain as a recognizable ethnic society in the U. S. because of their cultural background and racial origin, which can never be easily altered though they are already living in a relatively strange world. More so, through the materials we have discussed in class, it made me understand better that racial inequality in diverse countries like the United States is one of the most significant and common issues as well as dangers that typical ethnic immigrants like the Asian Indian in the United States are facing as a group of people living a strange world. Lastly, it is of my well established knowledge that migration of different of ethnic group in particular country helps alter the cultural background and/or orientation by the people involved in the process. In the end, this book of Arthur Helweg, has helped me better understand the issues and facts as to how migration of different ethnic groups of people around the world is changing the world cultures and influencing the formation of various policies both local and international. More so, through this book, I learned that in the end, race and/cultural differences should not be the main basis from which one would draw the importance and superiority of ethnicity. Instead, people should value the worth of one another according to their abilities and help for the betterment of a given country, regardless of race or cultural background. Works Cited Arthur W. Helweg. 15 may 2009 http://msupress. msu. edu/authorbio. php? authorID=13 Helweg, Arthur. Strangers in a not-so-strange land: Indian American immigrants in the global age. California: Wadsworth, 2004. Miller, Barbara. Cultural Anthropology in a Globalizing World. Boston: Addison-Wesley, 2007. Profile of Asian Indians in the U. S. A. spindlepub. com. 15 May 2005

Listening is a Form of Love Essay -- Personal Narrative

Listening is a Form of Love Listening can be defined as the act of hearing attentively. Love can be defined as a strong redilection or enthusiasm. Listening is indeed a form of love. In my opinion, when you listen to someone or something, that means you are interested in what is being said. I also think listening is a form of caring and of respect. You may care about the person you are listening to or what you are listening to. Listening to a family member can be a form of love. For example, my great-grandfather, Nathaniel Hudson, 92, feels very lonely now because he lives in a nursing home and his family only comes to see him once or twice weekly. He does not really have anyone to talk to. When he comes to my house on the weekends, he is very talkative, telling me everything about his childhood. Most of the time he is boring and he repeats himself often, but I know it is because of his age. It is difficult for him to hear me when I respond to him. However, just by me taking a few minutes to listen to his stories makes him feel good because he had someone to talk to. I made hi...

Social Structure and Interaction in Everyday Life

Adanna Nwadike Sociology 101-052 Professor. Wyzykowski 2/21/12 Sociology in Our Times: Chapter 4 Outline: Social Structure and Interaction in Everyday Life I. Components of Social Structure A. Status 1. Status is a socially defined position in a group or society characterized by certain expectations, rights, and duties. 2. Status set compromises all the statuses that a person occupies at a given time. 3. Ascribed status is a social position conferred at birth or received involuntarily later in life, based on attributes over which the individual has little or no control, such as race, ethnicity, age, and gender. . Achieved status is a social position a person assumes voluntarily as a result of personal choice, merit, or direct effort. 5. Master status is the most important status a person occupies. 6. Status symbols material signs that inform others of a person’s specific status. B. Role 1. Role is a set of behavioral expectations associated with a given status 2. Role expectat ion is a group’s or society’s definition of the way a specific role ought to be played. 3. Role performance is how a person actually plays the role. 4.Role conflict occurs when incompatible role demands are placed on a person by two or more statuses held at the same time. 5. Role stain occurs when incompatible demands are built into a single status that a person occupies. 6. Role exit occurs when people disengage from social roles that have been central to their self-identity. C. Group 1. Social Group consists of two or more people who interact frequently and share a common identity and a feeling of interdependence. 2. Primary group is a small, less specialized group in which members engage in face-to-face, emotion-based interactions over an extended period of time. . Secondary group is a larger, more specialized group in which members engage in more impersonal, goal-oriented relationships for a limited period of time. 4. Formal organization is a highly structured grou p formed for the purpose of completing certain tasks or achieving specific goals. D. Social Institutions 1. Social institution is a set of organized beliefs and rules that establishes how a society will attempt to meet its basic social needs. II. Societies: Changes in Social Structure A. Durkheim: Mechanical and Organic Solidarity . Division of labor refers to how the various tasks of a society are divided up and performed. 2. Mechanical solidarity refers to the social cohesion of preindustrial societies, in which there is minimal division of a labor and people feel united by shared values and common social bonds. 3. Organic solidarity refers to the social cohesion found in industrial (and perhaps postindustrial) societies, in which people perform very specialized tasks and feel united by their mutual dependence. B. Tonnies: Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft 1.Gemeinschaft is a traditional society in which social relationships are based on personal bonds of friendship and kinship and on intergenerational stability. 2. Gesellschaft is a large, urban society in which social bonds are based on impersonal and specialized relationships, with little long-term commitment to the group or consensus on values. C. Industrial and Postindustrial Societies 1. Industrial societies are based on technology that mechanizes production. 2. Postindustrial society is one in which technology supports a service-and information-based economy.III. Social Interaction: The Microlevel Perspective A. The Social Construction of Reality 1. Social Construction of Reality- the process by which our perception of reality is largely shaped by the subjective meaning that we give to an experience. 2. Self-fulfilling prophecy- a false belief or prediction that produces behavior that makes the originally false belief come true. B. Ethnomethodology 1. Ethnomethodology is the study of the commonsense knowledge that people use to understand the situations in which they find themselves. C. Dramaturgical Anal ysis 1.Dramaturgical analysis is the study of social interaction that compares everyday life to a theatrical presentation. 2. Impression management (presentation of self) refers to people’s efforts to present themselves to others in ways that are most favorable to their own interests or image. 3. Face-saving behavior refers to the strategies we use to rescue our performance when we experience a potential or actual loss of face. D. Nonverbal Communication 1. Nonverbal Communication is the transfer of information between persons without the use of words. 2. Personal space is the immediate area surrounding a person that person claims is private. Social Structure and Interaction in Everyday Life Adanna Nwadike Sociology 101-052 Professor. Wyzykowski 2/21/12 Sociology in Our Times: Chapter 4 Outline: Social Structure and Interaction in Everyday Life I. Components of Social Structure A. Status 1. Status is a socially defined position in a group or society characterized by certain expectations, rights, and duties. 2. Status set compromises all the statuses that a person occupies at a given time. 3. Ascribed status is a social position conferred at birth or received involuntarily later in life, based on attributes over which the individual has little or no control, such as race, ethnicity, age, and gender. . Achieved status is a social position a person assumes voluntarily as a result of personal choice, merit, or direct effort. 5. Master status is the most important status a person occupies. 6. Status symbols material signs that inform others of a person’s specific status. B. Role 1. Role is a set of behavioral expectations associated with a given status 2. Role expectat ion is a group’s or society’s definition of the way a specific role ought to be played. 3. Role performance is how a person actually plays the role. 4.Role conflict occurs when incompatible role demands are placed on a person by two or more statuses held at the same time. 5. Role stain occurs when incompatible demands are built into a single status that a person occupies. 6. Role exit occurs when people disengage from social roles that have been central to their self-identity. C. Group 1. Social Group consists of two or more people who interact frequently and share a common identity and a feeling of interdependence. 2. Primary group is a small, less specialized group in which members engage in face-to-face, emotion-based interactions over an extended period of time. . Secondary group is a larger, more specialized group in which members engage in more impersonal, goal-oriented relationships for a limited period of time. 4. Formal organization is a highly structured grou p formed for the purpose of completing certain tasks or achieving specific goals. D. Social Institutions 1. Social institution is a set of organized beliefs and rules that establishes how a society will attempt to meet its basic social needs. II. Societies: Changes in Social Structure A. Durkheim: Mechanical and Organic Solidarity . Division of labor refers to how the various tasks of a society are divided up and performed. 2. Mechanical solidarity refers to the social cohesion of preindustrial societies, in which there is minimal division of a labor and people feel united by shared values and common social bonds. 3. Organic solidarity refers to the social cohesion found in industrial (and perhaps postindustrial) societies, in which people perform very specialized tasks and feel united by their mutual dependence. B. Tonnies: Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft 1.Gemeinschaft is a traditional society in which social relationships are based on personal bonds of friendship and kinship and on intergenerational stability. 2. Gesellschaft is a large, urban society in which social bonds are based on impersonal and specialized relationships, with little long-term commitment to the group or consensus on values. C. Industrial and Postindustrial Societies 1. Industrial societies are based on technology that mechanizes production. 2. Postindustrial society is one in which technology supports a service-and information-based economy.III. Social Interaction: The Microlevel Perspective A. The Social Construction of Reality 1. Social Construction of Reality- the process by which our perception of reality is largely shaped by the subjective meaning that we give to an experience. 2. Self-fulfilling prophecy- a false belief or prediction that produces behavior that makes the originally false belief come true. B. Ethnomethodology 1. Ethnomethodology is the study of the commonsense knowledge that people use to understand the situations in which they find themselves. C. Dramaturgical Anal ysis 1.Dramaturgical analysis is the study of social interaction that compares everyday life to a theatrical presentation. 2. Impression management (presentation of self) refers to people’s efforts to present themselves to others in ways that are most favorable to their own interests or image. 3. Face-saving behavior refers to the strategies we use to rescue our performance when we experience a potential or actual loss of face. D. Nonverbal Communication 1. Nonverbal Communication is the transfer of information between persons without the use of words. 2. Personal space is the immediate area surrounding a person that person claims is private.

Analysis of The One Minute Manager Free Essay Example, 500 words

ï » ¿ Book Report: The One Minute Manager â€Å"The one minute manager† by Blanchard and Johnson is a well written book which facilitates its reader in understanding the process of effective and efficient management with the help of an interesting story. It is on the list of the highly recommended books because it provides readers with exceptional techniques and methods about managing other people. By going though this book one is able to learn quick and relatively easy techniques and philosophies associated with different aspects of management including people management. People management skills are essential for almost every person, as humans are social animals and cannot survive in isolation. Every other second one is involved in direct interaction with other people. Specially in the case of managers who are responsible for bringing out the best possible performance of all team members and subordinates, and also for the complete team management so that the overall performance can be improved considerably. One sh ould acknowledge that it is not easy to manage a large team which consists of different people and it requires considerable effort and stamina on part of managers. Managers are like captain of the ship and are responsible for ensuring that ship reaches the destination safely and on time. We will write a custom essay sample on Analysis of The One Minute Manager or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now Performance and growth of overall organization is directly dependent on the attitude and abilities of the top managers who are responsible for setting directions for other employees. Several organizational studies and researches have concluded that employees are confused and uncertain about their responsibilities and tasks. There is a need that they are provided with appropriate goals and directions to achieve those goals. Apart from this in order to ensure they fulfill all their responsibilities in efficient manner and achieve the provided goals there should be quick and ongoing feedbacks from managers. This positive and negative feedbacks will serve as a guideline and roadmap for meeting the set targets and goals and will encourage the employees to provide best possible results. Blanchard and Johnson (1-64), have provided three simple techniques which can enhance the management skills of any manager. It provides a simple process which can be learn ed and applied by any manager in order to improve the overall performance of the employees. These techniques allow managers to incorporate proactive approach as compared to reactive approach. In order to get exceptional end results, one has to ensure that the start is correct and whole team is on the right track throughout the process. For this reason it is important to set the goals and objectives on first hand and then provide quick and timely feedback to the team members about their performance whether it is positive or negative. All these concepts have been thoroughly explained with the help of ‘one minute goal setting’, ‘one minute praising’, and ‘one minute reprimands’ (Blanchard, and Johnson 1-64). These techniques and philosophies explained in this book are very much beneficial for professional as well as personal lives of people. For instance these methods of team management can also be utilized during the group research work by stud ents. The team leader or group leader can set different goals and objectives which have to completed in certain span of time and assign tasks to other team members. With the help of ongoing feedback of the team leader along with other student members, the group of students will be able to complete their research work in effective and efficient manner. This book is not only beneficial for managers in the process of team or people management, but can also be useful for any individual in the process of self management. The same methods and techniques can be used by any one in managing the daily tasks and activities. One can set challenging goals and objectives to be achieved, and then can appraise or warn oneself for different activities. Hence â€Å"the one minute manager† not only facilitates mangers in the process of building efficient team and organization but can also help every other person in the process of self management. REFERENCES Blanchard, Kenneth, and Spenser Johnson. The One Minute Manager. New York: Berkley Book, 1983. 1-64.