Human The Documentary Part 1 Analysis

Weather, food, the way people look, the way people dress, customs, traditions, expressions, gestures, and beliefs varies throughout the world, and from person to person. Differences are what makes each of us unique, and keeps life interesting. However, there are constants found throughout the world that bind all of mankind together. The constants of love, self-acceptance, and overcoming single stories unites all people. Love is defined as “an intense feeling of affection,” but it is much more than that. It causes one to feel as if a piece of oneself was unknowingly missing, and now that they feel unabridged, they couldn’t imagine living any other way. In “Human: The Documentary Part 1” people from around the world are asked questions about …show more content…
While spending time in America, Ifemelu alters many things about herself to be seen as less of a foreigner. She straightens and relaxes her hair even though it brings her tremendous physical pain, utilizes an American accent as opposed to her Nigerian accent, and ceases mentioning her Nigerian education, (because it is not recognized by Americans). When trying to tame her hair to improve her chances of getting a job, Ifemelu endures burns, and scabs that ooze pus. She would lie in bed trying to fall asleep, but often was unable to due to how much pain she was in. The extensive damage to her hair forces her to cut it, resulting in an Afro, which Ifemelu detests until she discovers a blog and a group chat about African women who wear their hair naturally. The more and more she visited this site, the more Ifemelu began to find herself again: “posting on this website was like giving a testimony in church; the echoing roar of approval revived her” (page 264). Ifemelu began to strut down the street with her natural hair, and when she spoke, she did so with her Nigerian accent. In “American Born Chinese” Jin so badly wants to fit in with his White-dominated class in school that he tries to erase almost every aspect of his ethnicity. He wears his hair differently, changes his name to Danny, stops speaking Mandarin, and even sacrifices his friendship with Wei-Chen. Jin changed himself so much that the he forgot who he truly was. Jin doesn’t see how much he has changed until he is visited by the monkey king and reminded of his past actions. Jin is angry because he thinks the monkey king has come to punish him, but the monkey king tells him ”I came to serve as your conscience - as a signpost to your soul...you know, Jin, I would have saved myself from five hundred years’ imprisonment beneath a mountain or brick had I only realized how good it is to be a