Is true culture in the mind or in the heart?

"True culture is in the mind, the mind," he said, and tapped his head, "the mind."
"It's in the heart," she said, and in how you do things and how you do things is because of who you are."
- Everything That Rises Must Converge (pg 409-410)


In the story, Everything That Rises Must Converge, Julian believes that true culture comes from the mind. He believes this because at a young age his mother had to sacrifice herself to give him what he needed. By watching his mother struggle to keep up with life he learned to think about culture for himself. He disagreed with his mother about African Americans and Whites being together, therefore, he did a lot of reflecting about culture today. His “mental bubble” was the only place he felt safe. His thoughts blocked the racist reality of the world. At the beginning his mother was being racist and she grew up living with African Americans and even today she thinks they were better off as slaves. Since she was raised with this way of thinking her heart automatically tells her that her race is still superior.

Similarly, I observed that my parents believe their culture comes from their heart because they have been raised in their own country and lived there for so long and just like Julian’s mother they had to sacrifice themselves to give me a better future in America. After a few years living in the United States I believe they started to think more about the American culture. So it was a mixture of both. This is where the mind comes in and they start thinking that they can also be Americans because they became integrated in a new culture.

Although my experience is not entirely about skin color I can still relate this quote to my culture and who I am. I believe that true culture is in both the mind and heart. Since I was little I was taught to keep following my traditions. I have learned to believe my parents about our culture. They taught me everything I needed to know even though I was also being taught to value the American culture. When I was able to tell the differences between economic status and about immigrants I entered my own "mental bubble." I started to think that I was inferior because I was an immigrant and then my "mental bubble" helped me block out all the racist things other people had to say. In my mind I am both Mexican and American. My heart tells me I'm Mexican because that's what I truly am. I was born in Mexico and if it wasn't for economic problems and my parents wanting to give me a better life in America I wouldn't be here today.

My culture comes from the heart because I am very proud of my heritage. Others try to put us down and make us inferior by using stereotypes but I don't care what other people say because in my heart I find my true feelings for my traditions. At the same time my mind tells me I am also American because I assimilated into the American life. Unlike Julian's mother my parents don't mind the integration of different cultures. Mixing cultures brings us together and helps us understand each other.

Another quote that I found interesting was "If you'll never learn where you are," he said, "you can at least learn where I am." A lot of people are confused about their identity and what culture they belong to. If other people can't learn about themselves then they can try asking another person. They should be careful and not make inferences about where they come from because you can insult someone like that. From my experience I know where I stand and where I belong and if a person wants to know then they should ask me because I get frustrated when people say I'm white and I am not. I am of light complexion but that doesn't mean you automatically know I'm American or Italian or from somewhere else. I believe people should be mindful of what they say and think. A person should get to know another individual before making comments about their race or culture.