Marroquin 1

Jhonatan Marroquin
Professor Jon Beadle
English 113b
24 February 2016
Me, Myself, and my Culture
I belong to a variety of cultures such as the Mexican, Guatemalan, Athletic, and Student
cultures. As author Anastacia Kurylo from Culture and Communication says, Although you
may view a person as representing a single culture there are an infinite number of cultures with
which any person can identify. The two cultures I see my self currently more involved in are the
Guatemalan and Mexican cultures. These two Latino cultures are very different; even the though
the countries are neighbors, the language is spoken differently, people dress differently to
cultural events, and the food differs in its own ways. These cultures shaped the way I speak
Spanish and the way I dress during cultural traditions. I grew up in a house hold with both
cultures and I love every single culture I am apart of, but the Guatemalan and Mexican cultures
shape who I am.
Guatemalan culture as I know it differentiates from Mexican culture from the way the
Spanish language is spoken. Kurylo also says we manage our identities through our
communication, communication can be defined as the use of symbolic code to send messages
and create a meaning. There are many phrases that these different cultures use, for example here
in the U.S we tend to say oh my God, or goodness. Mean while in Guatemala the people say
something like A la gran puchica which is just a phrase similar to oh my goodness. I grew up
always laughing when I heard the adults in my family say that phrase. I always thought they

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were cursing until I asked what was it that they were saying. Now I catch myself saying that
phrase instead of saying oh my goodness. The countrys history impacts the culture, many
citizens and tourist find native clothes very fashionable and worn often, Kurylo also states
Culture is a group of people that share a way of life. Guatemalan food is similar but not really
the same as Mexican food. Tamales are a shared food between the two cultures but they are made
different with different recipes.
Taking a recent trip to Mexico had made me realize how awesome and different the
culture is from my home. Mexican culture is based off music, food, clothes and sports. Living in
a household with a Guatemalan culture made me realize that I need to start practicing Mexican
culture as well because its who I am. While in Mexico I was able to practice and be apart of the
culture. Mexican culture consisted of having huge festivals which had a lot of dancing, food and
sports. The food in Mexico had a different taste, in my opinion a better taste. While visiting a
foreign country you have to be carful how much and what you eat. The food might get you sick
because our stomachs are not use to the food. Bull riding is a huge tradition in the state that I was
visiting. Bull riding is a tradition with in the culture and the bull riders dont do it for the money
they do for the love of the sport and the culture. Bull riding and horse dancing is the
entertainment for the people. When I first arrived I dressed the same way I did as if I was still in
the U.S. I realized that I wanted to fit into the culture so I became comfortable with the clothes
they wore. I wanted the people of the small community that I stayed in to see me as one them
and not an outsider because, if I wore my regular clothes I would contributing with my American
culture and not really fitting in with the Mexican Culture.

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Stereotypes are well known for Hispanic cultures. Uninformed people think that at all
Hispanics are all automatically Mexican because of the color of their skin and the language they
speak. We are all different due to our cultures, our cultures categorize us and because of that
people are able to tell us apart from other cultures. My cultures make up my identity, the way I
dress shows my American culture, the way I chose to speak Spanish shows my Guatemalan
culture, and the traditions and food I love show my Mexican culture. Our food is different as
well, we all dont just eat tacos. Every Hispanic culture has their own food that is prepared
differently. Same with clothes, Mexican culture is known for wearing cowboy hats and boots, but
it doesnt mean every person wears it everyday, youd be surprised to see that many people dress
the same way in American culture. Within the state little communities have their own traditions
while the bigger cities have their own modern culture. For example, people with in the city go
out on the weekends to bars or night clubs, while the people of the smaller communities dress up
in their cowboy attire and go out to dances. The music that they play at the the bars are
completely different from the dances.
Earlier in my essay when I said that I am more involved in Guatemalan culture than
Mexican culture is the fact that I lived and still am with my Guatemalan family. When I learned
to speak Spanish at the age of 7, I was taught to speak with a Guatemalan accent and use
common words. When I visit family from Mexico I notice the difference in the language. When I
speak Spanish to my Mexican side of the family I have a difficulty translating words they dont
know into words they do know. Most words are different between the two languages, for
example, the word straw in Guatemalan Spanish is pajilla (pa-he-ya) and in Mexican Spanish its
popote. The food is also different; I am accustomed to eating black beans but when Im with my

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Mexican family we eat pinto beans, I rarely eat Mexican food, I enjoy a lot but I only get a
chance to eat it when Im with my family from Mexico.
With in both cultures there are some traditions that my family and I dont take part in. For
example, in Guatemala there is a holiday called Burning of the devil this holiday where
families build bonfires outside their homes and burn effigy of Satan. It is a
tradition that many Guatemalans take part as a way to cleanse their home
from devils that lurk in their home states Imelda Yumul from themixedculture.com.
This holiday is mostly celebrated by religious Catholics but it is a huge holiday for the
Guatemalan culture. In Mexican culture they have a holiday called
day of the dead which I do not celebrate because I am not deeply involved in the Mexican
holiday culture. Day of the dead from mexicansugarskull.com They believe that the gates of
heaven are opened at midnight on October 31, and the spirits of all deceased children are allowed
to reunite with their families for 24 hours. I dont celebrate this big holiday in Mexican culture
due to my Guatemalan family with whom I grew up with. My religion also plays a part in why I
dont celebrate these holiday having to do with dead. I still see myself as apart of the Mexican
culture even I dont interact with some traditions.
Before my trip to Mexico I didnt really identify myself with the Mexican culture. When
I arrived I felt welcomed and at home it wasnt until I got to celebrate certain traditions that I
realized I belonged to the culture. Ronald Jackson, Cerise Glen, and Kesha Williams from Self
identity and culture say As you learn more about cultural identity, you learn that some aspects
of who you are remain more salient than others, some seem more universal, and strange at times
Pg.118. They also state Understanding self-identity is important to inter/cultural communication

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because as you learn who you are, you learn how to communicate effectively with others. I
agree with the authors because when I started to get more involved with the culture it was more
difficult for people to notice that I was an outsider. I was self identified with the American
culture when I arrived but when I started to understand Mexican culture I became part of the
culture. When visited Mexico self-identified my self as an American, but my trip made realize
that there is so much of me that I can be apart of a new culture. I have never visited Guatemala
but other Guatemalans that Ive interacted with notice that I am part of the culture just by the
way a talk and the certain phrases I use.
Being part of two different cultures is hard and fun. Learning to speak to different types
of Spanish so that my family and I could communicate was kind of difficult. Especially when I
was in Mexico I didnt know that there were words my family didnt understand when I spoke
with them. Being part of two cultures is fun because I get to experience both cultures, be aware
of the differences and celebrate different traditions.

Work Cited
Jackson II, L. Ronald. Glenn, L. Cerise. Williams, Morant Kesha. Self-identity and culture
Pdf.
Kurylo, Anastacia. Culture and communication Pdf.

Yulmul, Imelda. themixedculture.com Web. August 27, 2014