my cultural artifact essay

Cultural Identity Essay

27 August, 2020

12 minutes read

Author:  Elizabeth Brown

No matter where you study, composing essays of any type and complexity is a critical component in any studying program. Most likely, you have already been assigned the task to write a cultural identity essay, which is an essay that has to do a lot with your personality and cultural background. In essence, writing a cultural identity essay is fundamental for providing the reader with an understanding of who you are and which outlook you have. This may include the topics of religion, traditions, ethnicity, race, and so on. So, what shall you do to compose a winning cultural identity essay?

Cultural Identity Paper: Definitions, Goals & Topics 

Before starting off with a cultural identity essay, it is fundamental to uncover what is particular about this type of paper. First and foremost, it will be rather logical to begin with giving a general and straightforward definition of a cultural identity essay. In essence, cultural identity essay implies outlining the role of the culture in defining your outlook, shaping your personality, points of view regarding a multitude of matters, and forming your qualities and beliefs. Given a simpler definition, a cultural identity essay requires you to write about how culture has influenced your personality and yourself in general. So in this kind of essay you as a narrator need to give an understanding of who you are, which strengths you have, and what your solid life position is.

Yet, the goal of a cultural identity essay is not strictly limited to describing who you are and merely outlining your biography. Instead, this type of essay pursues specific objectives, achieving which is a perfect indicator of how high-quality your essay is. Initially, the primary goal implies outlining your cultural focus and why it makes you peculiar. For instance, if you are a french adolescent living in Canada, you may describe what is so special about it: traditions of the community, beliefs, opinions, approaches. Basically, you may talk about the principles of the society as well as its beliefs that made you become the person you are today.

So far, cultural identity is a rather broad topic, so you will likely have a multitude of fascinating ideas for your paper. For instance, some of the most attention-grabbing topics for a personal cultural identity essay are:

• Memorable traditions of your community
• A cultural event that has influenced your personality 
• Influential people in your community
• Locations and places that tell a lot about your culture and identity

Cultural Identity Essay Structure

As you might have already guessed, composing an essay on cultural identity might turn out to be fascinating but somewhat challenging. Even though the spectrum of topics is rather broad, the question of how to create the most appropriate and appealing structure remains open.

Like any other kind of an academic essay, a cultural identity essay must compose of three parts: introduction, body, and concluding remarks. Let’s take a more detailed look at each of the components:

Introduction 

Starting to write an essay is most likely one of the most time-consuming and mind-challenging procedures. Therefore, you can postpone writing your introduction and approach it right after you finish body paragraphs. Nevertheless, you should think of a suitable topic as well as come up with an explicit thesis. At the beginning of the introduction section, give some hints regarding the matter you are going to discuss. You have to mention your thesis statement after you have briefly guided the reader through the topic. You can also think of indicating some vital information about yourself, which is, of course, relevant to the topic you selected.

Your main body should reveal your ideas and arguments. Most likely, it will consist of 3-5 paragraphs that are more or less equal in size. What you have to keep in mind to compose a sound ‘my cultural identity essay’ is the argumentation. In particular, always remember to reveal an argument and back it up with evidence in each body paragraph. And, of course, try to stick to the topic and make sure that you answer the overall question that you stated in your topic. Besides, always keep your thesis statement in mind: make sure that none of its components is left without your attention and argumentation.

Conclusion 

Finally, after you are all finished with body paragraphs and introduction, briefly summarize all the points in your final remarks section. Paraphrase what you have already revealed in the main body, and make sure you logically lead the reader to the overall argument. Indicate your cultural identity once again and draw a bottom line regarding how your culture has influenced your personality.

Best Tips For Writing Cultural Identity Essay

Writing a ‘cultural identity essay about myself’ might be somewhat challenging at first. However, you will no longer struggle if you take a couple of plain tips into consideration. Following the tips below will give you some sound and reasonable cultural identity essay ideas as well as make the writing process much more pleasant:

• Start off by creating an outline. The reason why most students struggle with creating a cultural identity essay lies behind a weak structure. The best way to organize your ideas and let them flow logically is to come up with a helpful outline. Having a reference to build on is incredibly useful, and it allows your essay to look polished.
• Remember to write about yourself. The task of a cultural identity essay implies not focusing on your culture per se, but to talk about how it shaped your personality. So, switch your focus to describing who you are and what your attitudes and positions are. 
• Think of the most fundamental cultural aspects. Needless to say, you first need to come up with a couple of ideas to be based upon in your paper. So, brainstorm all the possible ideas and try to decide which of them deserve the most attention. In essence, try to determine which of the aspects affected your personality the most.
• Edit and proofread before submitting your paper. Of course, the content and the coherence of your essay’s structure play a crucial role. But the grammatical correctness matters a lot too. Even if you are a native speaker, you may still make accidental errors in the text. To avoid the situation when unintentional mistakes spoil the impression from your essay, always double check your cultural identity essay. 

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Do a Little Background Reading

Sometimes, it's hard to know what to write about without doing some background reading about your artifact. This will help you think about what is interesting about the artifact, and help you focus your topic. You probably won't cite your background reading directly in your paper (unless asked to by your instructor), but it's a good way to help you think about your artifact in new ways.

• Wikipedia Yes - we know you know this one already. Wikipedia can be particularly useful if you are looking at an artifact from popular culture and for topics that aren't covered in traditional encyclopedias.

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Cultural Identity Essay: Writing Guidelines for an A+ Paper

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Writing a cultural identity essay is an exciting academic exercise that allows students to develop and utilize critical thinking, reflective, and analytical skills. Unlike a standard essay, this type of paper requires learners to use first-person language throughout. In essence, such a composition is about writers and what makes them identify with a particular societal orientation. Further on, they should choose a specific identity and focus on it throughout their texts. Moreover, authors should reflect and brainstorm, use the “show, not tell” method, utilize transitions to create a natural flow of ideas, and proofread their papers to eliminate mistakes and errors. Hence, students need to learn how to write a cultural identity essay correctly to provide high-quality papers to their readers.

General Aspects

Students undertake different writing exercises in their learning environments to develop their critical thinking, reflective, and analytical skills. Basically, one of these exercises is academic writing, and among different types of essays that students write is a cultural identity paper. In this case, it is a type of essay where authors write about their culture, which entails exploring and explaining a real significance of their ethnic roots. Moreover, there are numerous topics that instructors may require students to write about in such documents. In principle, some assignment prompts fall under different disciplines, such as religion, socio-economic status, family, education, ethnicity, and business. Besides, the main defining features of such a composition are what aspects make authors know that they are writing in this type of essay. In turn, these features include language, nationality, gender, history, upbringing, and religion, among many others.

What Is a Cultural Identity Essay and Its Purpose

According to its definition, a cultural identity essay is a reflective and analytical piece of writing that explores an individual’s unique ethnic background, experiences, and influences. The main purpose of writing a cultural identity essay is to explore and articulate various elements of culture that constitute one’s life, such as ethnicity, traditions, language, customs, and values (Greetham, 2023). Through this paper, writers engage in self-examination, present their ethnic narrative, and offer more insights into a uniqueness and complexity of their experiences. Moreover, such a composition promotes self-awareness and allows individuals to acknowledge and appreciate their roots while also recognizing a unique diversity of experiences within their social group. By sharing these experiences and reflections, both a particular writer and his or her readers to recognize various complexities and richness of ethnic identities, highlighting a real importance of cultural heritage in shaping who they are (Wallace, 2021). In terms of pages and words, the length of a cultural identity essay depends on academic levels, specific assignment requirements, academic standards, and a depth of analysis, while general guidelines are:

High School

• Length: 1-2 pages
• Word Count: 250-500 words

College (Undergraduate)

• Length: 3-5 pages
• Word Count: 750-1,250 words

University (Bachelor)

• Length: 5-7 pages
• Word Count: 1,250-1,750 words

Master’s

• Length: 8-12 pages
• Word Count: 2,000-3,000 words
• Length: 12-20+ pages
• Word Count: 3,000-5,000+ words

Note: Some sections of a cultural identity essay can be added, deleted, or combined with each other. In writing, people explain their cultural identity by describing a unique mix of traditions, values, language, and personal experiences that have shaped their beliefs and sense of self.

Generally, a cultural identity essay is similar to a standard academic paper regarding its structure and outline. However, a central point of difference is a specific topic to write about. In this case, a cultural identity essay is a reflective exploration of how people’s ethnicities, family traditions, languages, and personal experiences have shaped their beliefs, values, and sense of self (Spelic, 2019). While standard academic papers, such as argumentative, persuasive, and informative essays, require learners to use third-person language, such a composition requires them to use first-person language. As such, authors should use the word “I” throughout to show a target audience that they are writing from their perspective. Indeed, this aspect is a primary objective of such an essay – to give a writer’s perspective concerning his or her culture (Davies et al., 2019). Besides, another point of difference between such an essay and other papers is that the former does not require writers to utilize external sources but to write from a personal viewpoint.

Examples of Cultural Identity Prompts

Cultural Orientation and Socialization in a Learning Environment

Here, this prompt may require students to discuss an actual significance of culture in education, focusing on ethnic heritage and socialization. As such, this topic requires writers to reflect on how culture influences behavior in a learning environment.

The Impact of Culture Change on Family

Here, a writing assignment may require students to explore and discuss how culture impacts a family unit. Moreover, a central theme is a family, and a student’s mission would be to explain how culture in all its dynamics affects families in diverse settings.

The Role of Language in Building an Ethnic Identity

Here, instructions may require students to explore and explain a particular significance of language in ethnic heritage. Hence, writers should focus on explaining a specific place of culture in a sociology discipline, focusing on a direct connection between language and cultural orientation.

The Significance of Culture in a Globalized Economy

Here, such a prompt may require students to explore and discuss how culture affects individuals and businesses in today’s connected world. Besides, a student’s task would be to explain how culture, in all its dynamics, such as language, is essential in business for individuals and enterprises.

How Culture Influences Relations in the Workplace

Here, an essay prompt may require students to explore and explain how culture, in all its dynamics, affects or influences social relations at the workplace. In turn, a particular task of writers, for example, would be to focus on how human resource (HR) departments can use culture to enrich workplace relations.

The Place of Culture in Individuals’ Self-Concept

Here, an analysis of a theme may require students to reflect on how their ethnic orientation has affected their self-concept. Moreover, a student’s task would be to discuss how culture and its dynamics enable individuals to build a strong or weak understanding of themselves.

The Importance of Cultural Orientation in a Multicultural Environment

Here, assignment writing instructions may require students to explore and discuss how their ethnic orientation enables them to operate in a culturally diverse environment, such as a school or workplace. In this case, a student’s task would be to explain how identity characteristics, such as language and religion, facilitate or hamper social competency in a multicultural setting. 

How Global Conflicts Disturb Ethnic Identity for Refugees

Here, this prompt example may require students to explore and explain how conflicts in today’s world, such as civil unrest, affect a unique identity heritage of those who flee to foreign countries. As such, a student’s task would be to explain how one’s culture is affected in a new environment with totally different social dynamics.

The Challenges of Acculturation

Here, this kind of prompt may require students to explore and explain possible challenges that individuals face in identifying with a dominant culture. In particular, a student’s task would be to explain a specific significance of a dominant culture and what those from other cultures that try to identify with it must confront.

Host Country Culture and Multinational Enterprises

Here, this essay prompt sample may require students to explore and explain how a host country’s culture affects expatriates working for multinational corporations. Besides, a student’s task would be to show how one’s culture defines their behaviors and how that can be affected in a new environment with new social characteristics.

Compare and Contrast Native Culture and Dominant Culture in the United States

Here, such instructions require students to explain specific areas of similarity and difference between a Native culture and a dominant culture. In turn, a student’s task would be to define both a Native culture and a dominant culture and help a target audience to understand whether they mean the same thing. Hence, whether they do or do not, students should elaborate.

The Objective of Acculturation

Here, this prompt example requires students to explore and explain why people prefer to identify with a dominant culture. Moreover, a student’s task would be to note some advantages of a dominant culture over others and possible opportunities that one may access to identify with this dominant culture.

The Challenges That the LGBTQ Community Faces in the Modern World

Here, essay prompt instructions require students to explore and discuss potential challenges that lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender people face in their normal day-to-day activities. In this case, a student’s task would be to explain an uniqueness of a LGBTQ community and how stereotyping makes their lives miserable in an environment where people are intolerant of different personalities and viewpoints.

Dangers of Cultural Intolerance in the Health Care System

Here, assignment instructions may require students to explore and discuss how nurses who are intolerant of social differences may jeopardize patients’ lives.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Acculturation

Here, such a prompt requires students to discuss some pros and cons of identifying with a dominant culture.

How to Know

Key defining features of a cultural identity essay give students a particular indication that they need to write this kind of paper. For example, cultural identity is important because it shapes people’s traditions, customs, languages, family practices, historical backgrounds, values, beliefs, personal experiences, and sense of belonging, fostering self-awareness and promoting a deeper understanding and appreciation of lifestyle diversity (Heersmink, 2021). Hence, when students read instructions regarding their essay topics they need to write about, they should identify one or several defining elements. In turn, these elements include language, nationality, religion, ethnicity, and gender.

Steps on How to Write a Cultural Identity Essay

To write a cultural identity essay, people reflect on and describe some significant aspects of their ethnic backgrounds, such as traditions, language, and experiences, and analyze how they have influenced their worldview. In turn, common steps for writing a good cultural identity essay are:

• Understand an Assignment: Read and comprehend an essay’s prompt to ensure you meet all requirements.
• Choose a Focus: Select specific aspects of your ethnic heritage to highlight in your essay.
• Conduct Research: Gather information about your ancestral background and its historical context.
• Brainstorm and Outline: Reflect on your cultural experiences and organize your thoughts into an outline.
• Write a Strong Introduction:   Write an engaging opening with a hook, background information, and a thesis statement.
• Develop Body Paragraphs: Discuss each aspect of your ethnic heritage with personal examples and reflections.
• Incorporate Cultural Influences: Explore an actual role of family, community, and society in shaping your social orientation.
• Address Challenges and Pride: Highlight any challenges faced and express pride in your actual roots.
• Write a Logical Conclusion: Summarize key points, restate a central thesis, and offer final thoughts on identity heritage.
• Revise and Edit: Review for coherence, clarity, and errors, and make revisions based on feedback.

As stated previously, a primary point of similarity between a cultural identity essay and standard papers is its writing structure and outline. In this case, to start a cultural identity essay, people begin with an engaging hook, provide background context on their ethnic heritage, and present a clear thesis statement that outlines main aspects of their roots they will explore further (Spelic, 2019). Basically, this structure and outline comprise three main sections: introduction, body, and conclusion. Like in all other papers, writing such a composition requires students to address specific issues, which are, in essence, a defining characteristics of an essay’s structure and outline. In turn, some examples of sentence starters for beginning a cultural identity essay include:

• Growing up in a household where [specific cultural practices] were a daily routine, my ethnic heritage was shaped by specific traditions and values of my [ethnicity/nationality] heritage.
• A rich picture of my lifestyle is woven from diverse threads of my family’s history, which includes [briefly mention key ethnic elements].
• From a young age, I was impressed by unique customs of my [specific social group], where celebrations and rituals played a crucial role in shaping my sense of self.
• My journey to understanding my cultural roots began with shared stories that my grandparents told me about their experiences in [country/region], which instilled in me a deep appreciation for our heritage.
• A direct connection between [ethnicity] and [ethnicity] cultures in my upbringing provided me with a unique perspective on life and allowed me to embrace my complex heritage.
• Living in a multicultural community, I was constantly surrounded by different traditions and practices, which enriched my understanding of my own ethnic identity.
• Reflecting on my childhood, I realized that cultural festivals and family gatherings we celebrated were essential in fostering a strong connection to my [specific culture] roots.
• A particular influence of my ancestral background on my personal values and beliefs is profound, as it has shaped my worldview and interactions with others in significant ways.
• As a child of immigrants, my life was shaped by blending my parents’ homeland traditions with new cultural norms of our adopted country.
• Understanding and embracing my ethnic roots has been a continuous journey, marked by moments of both pride and challenge, as I strive to honor my heritage while finding my place in a current world.

Introduction and Its Defining Characteristics

An introduction is the first paragraph of a cultural identity essay. Here, students introduce themselves to a target audience, giving a brief background of their ethnic heritage. Moreover, rules of academic writing dictate that this part should not exceed 10 percent of a whole word count of an entire paper (Greetham, 2023). In this case, writers should be brief and concise. Then, the most prominent component of this section is a thesis, a statement that appears at the end of an introduction paragraph and whose objective is to indicate a writer’s mission. In summary, the introduction part’s defining features are a writer’s background and thesis statement. In turn, the former gives a hint about a writer, and the latter provides a target audience with insight into a author’s objective in writing a cultural identity essay.

Body Paragraphs

A body element of a cultural identity essay is the most significant section of a paper and takes the largest part. Generally, writers use several paragraphs to advance different arguments on their ethnic heritage to explain specific concepts (Karjalainen, 2020). In writing a cultural identity essay, authors can use different paragraphs to explain important aspects of their ethnic heritage. Nonetheless, what determines the number of paragraphs and the content of each is a paper topic (Greetham, 2023). Besides, the most prominent defining features of a essay’s body are paragraphs, with each advancing a unique concept about a writer’s ethnic heritage. In turn, paragraphs are where writers provide real-life experiences and other personal anecdotes or examples that help a target audience to develop a deeper understanding of authors from a cultural perspective.

A conclusion part is the last section of a cultural identity essay. In particular, writers restate a thesis statement and summarize main points from body paragraphs (Greetham, 2023). Moreover, authors provide concluding remarks about a topic, which is mostly an objective personal opinion. In summary, the conclusion part’s defining features are a restatement of a thesis, a summary of main points, and writer’s final thoughts about a topic.

Outline Template

I. Introduction

A. Hook statement/sentence. B. Background information. C. A thesis statement that covers main ideas from 1 to X in one sentence.

II. Body Paragraphs

A. Idea 1 B. Idea 2 … X. Idea X

III. Conclusion

A. Restating a thesis statement. B. Summary of the main points from A to X. C. Final thoughts.

An Example of a Cultural Identity Essay

Topic: Identifying as a Naturalist

Introduction Sample

The period of birth marks the beginning of one’s identity, with culture playing a significant role. However, from the stage of adolescence going forward, individuals begin to recognize and understand their cultural makeup. In my case, I have come to discover my love for nature, an aspect that I believe has made me a naturalist both in belief and action.

Examples of Body Paragraphs

Idea 1: Parents

Parents play a critical role in shaping a cultural and personal identity of their children. In my case, it is my mother who has instilled in me a love for nature. Although I may not say exactly when this love started, I can only reason that since it was ingrained in me since childhood, it has developed gradually.

Idea 2: Naturalism

Today, naturalism defines my interactions with people and the environment. In short, I can say it shapes my worldview. As a lover of nature herself, my mother had this habit of taking me outdoors when I was a toddler. I have seen family photographs of my mother walking through parks and forests holding my hand. What is noticeable in these pictures besides my mother and me is the tree cover that gives the setting such a lovely sight. Moreover, I can now understand why I seem more conversant with the names and species of flowers, trees, and birds than my siblings- my mother was the influence. In turn, my siblings and friends make a joke that I have developed a strong love for nature to the point of identifying myself with the environment. Hence, the basis for this argument is my love for the green color, where even my clothes and toys are mostly green.

Conclusion Sample

Naturally, human beings behave in line with their cultural background and orientation. Basically, this behavior is what determines or reflects their ethnic identity. In turn, my intense love for nature underscores my naturalist identity. While I may not tell the stage in life when I assumed this identity, I know my mother has played a significant role in shaping it, and this is since childhood.

What to Include

Common mistakes.

• Lack of Focus: Failing to narrow down an essay to specific aspects of cultural identity, leading to an unclear narrative.
• Vague Thesis Statement: Providing a weak or unclear thesis statement, which makes it difficult for readers to understand an essay’s main argument.
• Insufficient Personal Reflection: Neglecting to include personal examples and reflections, which are crucial for illustrating an actual impact of ethnic heritage.
• Overgeneralization: Making broad and unsupported statements about specific groups rather than focusing on personal and specific experiences.
• Ignoring Historical Context: Failing to provide historical or ethnic background that can help readers to understand a real significance of certain traditions or practices.
• Poor Organization: Structuring an essay poorly, resulting in an illogical and difficult-to-follow narrative.
• Lack of Depth: Addressing ethnic heritage without explaining how it shapes beliefs, values, and behaviors.
• Cultural Stereotyping: Relying on stereotypes or clichés rather than presenting a personal perspective on ethnic roots.
• Inadequate Conclusion: Providing a weak conclusion that does not effectively summarize main points or reflect on a real significance of a particular ethnic heritage.
• Ignoring Feedback and Revision: Failing to seek feedback from others or revise a cultural identity essay, which can leave writing errors and unclear sections unaddressed.

Like any standard paper, writing a cultural identity essay allows students to build essential skills, such as critical thinking, reflective, and analytical skills. In this case, a real essence of such a paper is to provide a writer’s cultural identity, background, or orientation. As such, in order to learn how to write a good cultural identity essay, students should master following tips:

• Decide where to focus. Culture is a broad topic, and deciding what to focus on is essential in producing such an essay. Basically, one may have several ethnic identities, and addressing all may lead to inconclusive explanations.
• Reflect and brainstorm. Given a close link between one’s cultural orientation and personal experiences, learners need to reflect on experiences that would provide a target audience with an accurate picture of their ethnic heritage.
• Adopt a “Show, not tell” approach by providing vivid details about one’s experiences. Using personal anecdotes may be effective in accomplishing this objective.
• Use transitions , such as “therefore,” “thus,” ” additionally,” and “furthermore,” to enhance a natural and logical flow throughout an essay.
• Stay personal by using first-person language to describe one’s background and experiences.
• Proofread a final document to eliminate spelling and grammatical mistakes and other notable errors, such as an inconsistent life storyline.

Davies, S. R., Halpern, M., Horst, M., Kirby, D., & Lewenstein, B. (2019). Science stories as culture: Experience, identity, narrative and emotion in public communication of science. Journal of Science Communication , 18 (05), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.22323/2.18050201

Greetham, B. (2023). How to write better essays . Bloomsbury Academic.

Heersmink, R. (2021). Materialised identities: Cultural identity, collective memory, and artifacts. Review of Philosophy and Psychology , 14 (1), 249–265. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13164-021-00570-5

Karjalainen, H. (2020). Cultural identity and its impact on today’s multicultural organizations. International Journal of Cross Cultural Management , 20 (2), 249–262. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470595820944207

Spelic, S. (2019). Care at the core conversational essays on identity, education and power . Tredition.

Wallace, K. (2021). Network self: Relation, process, and personal identity . Routlage.

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A Teacher's Guide to First-Year Writing

Baruch college first-year writing program, lynda dalgish: cultural artifact assignment.

This is one of the first assignments of the semester. It focuses on the paragraph, beginning with an examination of important cultural artifacts, and leads into longer essays on cultural values.

ENG 2100T Cultural Artifact Assignment

What is it?

• Students are asked to bring in an artifact (or picture of the artifact) which is important in their culture.
• On the day when artifacts are brought in, each is placed on a student desk by the teacher with no one knowing whose artifact it is. Each artifact is given a number.
• Students are given a chart to fill out, in which they identify this information for each artifact: a) what they think the artifact is, b) its purpose, and c) its origin.
• When students have visited each station, they go sit with their own artifact, prepared to give a short presentation about the artifact, and answer questions about it.
• As a homework assignment, each student writes a paragraph about his/her artifact.

This paragraph is used as a scaffold to thinking about audience in writing, students’ own culture, and the different cultures of their classmates.

Cultural Artifact Worksheet

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Home — Essay Samples — Arts & Culture — Cultural Phenomenon — The Significance of Cultural Artifacts in Cultural Studies

The Significance of Cultural Artifacts in Cultural Studies

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Published: Aug 1, 2024

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My Cultural Identity

This essay about my culture explores the unique blend of Eastern European heritage and northeastern United States customs that define my cultural identity. It discusses how cuisine serves as a vital cultural expression, blending traditional dishes with local flavors to create a rich tapestry of food that marks both familial and festive gatherings. The essay also touches on the role of language, noting how Polish and Ukrainian phrases permeate family conversations, preserving the linguistic heritage of my ancestors. Additionally, it describes the influence of the local environment on community activities that are deeply intertwined with the changing seasons, reflecting a strong connection to both place and tradition. Finally, the essay highlights core values such as hard work, resilience, and the importance of education, which have been inherited from immigrant ancestors and remain central to my cultural ethos today. Overall, the essay paints a picture of a dynamic cultural identity that merges historical legacies with contemporary life.

How it works

The journey into one’s cultural realm is a labyrinthine expedition, traversing the intricacies of personal and collective identity. It entails an immersion into the labyrinth of traditions, ethos, and societal mores that thread through generations, etching indelible imprints upon the psyche and conduct of individuals within a social milieu. Contemplating the inquiry, “What defines my cultural essence?” compels me to navigate through a mosaic of historical legacies, geographical contexts, and socio-cultural landscapes that delineate my distinct cultural tapestry.

At its nucleus, my cultural ethos embodies an amalgamation of indigenous norms from the northeastern expanse of the United States and the inherited legacies of Eastern European forebears.

This fusion bequeaths a singular modus vivendi that exalts the fortitude of immigrant enclaves juxtaposed against the whirlwind of innovation characterizing contemporary American ethos. The cultural ethos, encapsulated within gastronomic delights, festive revelries, and oral traditions, serves as a testament to the resilience of diasporic narratives amidst the currents of adaptation and assimilation.

The culinary arena emerges as a palpable terrain of cultural expression, where ancestral lore converges with contemporary culinary sensibilities. The hearth becomes a crucible where ancestral legacies intermingle with contemporary innovations, engendering a palimpsest of flavors that narrate tales of diasporic odyssey. Holiday repasts bear witness to this cultural communion, wherein quintessential American fare harmonizes with Eastern European delicacies such as pierogi and borscht, each culinary creation a testament to the odyssey of migration and acculturation.

Language, with its vernacular cadences and idiomatic lexicon, constitutes a linchpin of my cultural identity. While English serves as the lingua franca of quotidian discourse, vestiges of Slavic linguistic heritage punctuate familial colloquy, particularly in matters pertaining to culinary alchemy and familial camaraderie. Though the younger generation may not wield these linguistic nuances fluently, they serve as mnemonic vestiges of ancestral provenance, kindling sentiments of pride and nostalgia amidst familial communion.

Community life serves as a tableau vivant, wherein the seasonal vicissitudes of nature choreograph communal rites and festivities. Residing in locales where seasonal transitions orchestrate the cadence of daily life, communal engagements are inextricably intertwined with the flux of natural cycles: autumnal revelries, winter frolics, vernal rejuvenation, and summertime sojourns to coastal enclaves. Each season bequeaths its pantheon of rituals and festivities, many of which are testament to the adaptive ingenuity of diasporic communities in synchronizing ancestral legacies with local landscapes.

Furthermore, my cultural ethos is imbued with a valorization of toil, tenacity, and the pursuit of knowledge. These cardinal virtues, bequeathed by predecessors who traversed oceans in pursuit of greener pastures, reverberate resoundingly within our family’s ethos, shaping our approach towards life’s vicissitudes and aspirations. Manifesting in a reverence for scholastic pursuits and vocational pursuits, these values mirror the broader American zeitgeist of ambition and individual endeavor.

In summation, my cultural identity emerges as a symphony of epochs, a confluence of bygone legacies and emergent narratives. It is characterized by a variegated epicurean repertoire, a polyglot linguistic mosaic, a tapestry of communal conviviality, and an ethos steeped in ancestral wisdom and aspirational verve. The odyssey of exploring and articulating the intricacies of my cultural ethos not only engenders a profound rapport with ancestral moorings but also fosters a heightened appreciation for the kaleidoscopic diversity enshrined within the tapestry of global cultures.

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How to Write an Essay about Your Culture

Do you need to write an essay about your culture but don’t know where to start? You’ve come to the right place! I’m Constance, and I’ll show you how to write an essay about your culture. I’ll guide you step by step, and we’ll write a sample essay together. Let’s dive in. 

Writing an essay about your culture includes 5 steps:

Step 1. Plan how many words you want in each paragraph.

When you know the exact number of words you need for an essay, planning the word count for each paragraph will be much easier. 

For example, a 300-word essay typically consists of five paragraphs and three key elements:

• The introductory paragraph.
• Three body paragraphs.
• The conclusion, or the concluding paragraph.

Here’s a simple way to distribute 300 words across the five paragraphs in your essay:

You’ll get 300 when you add up these numbers. 

Step 2. Decide on what your main and supporting points will be.

First, you must take a stand, meaning you must decide on your main point. What do you really want to say about your culture? Whatever you want to say, that becomes your thesis. 

For example, “My culture is very rich.” That is enough to get started. You’ll get a better idea of how to expand or tweak your thesis after the next step.

Next, divide your topic using the Power of Three to prove the point that your culture is rich using three supporting ideas.

The Power of Three effectively divides an essay’s main idea into its supporting points. It means your main idea is true because of the three reasons you will provide in the body. So, it is a three-part structure that helps produce your body paragraphs .

Let’s try it for an essay about Filipino culture!

For example, here are three supporting ideas explaining the richness of Filipino culture:

• The Philippines has incredible food .
• Traditional Filipino clothing reflects the country’s heritage.
• Family values in the Philippines are essential.

Great! Now we have everything we need to write an essay about Filipino culture. We’re all set for the next step!

Step 3. Write your introductory paragraph.

Here are the key components of an introductory paragraph you need to remember in writing your essay:

Our first sentence is the introduction, which should pull our reader into the world we want to portray in our essay.

And the rest of the introductory paragraph is our thesis statement. It includes our main idea and three supporting points.

Example of an introductory paragraph about culture

“Having been colonized for centuries, the Philippines boasts a vast heritage. It has a rich culture characterized by food, clothing, and family values. Filipino culture has delicious food inherited from diverse parts of the world and periods of conquest. Traditional Filipino clothing reflects the country’s history, as well. And Filipinos prize their family values probably above all else.”

Look at how the introductory paragraph goes from a general statement to specific ideas that support our main idea.

Our introductory sentence is a general statement that serves as the opening in our essay. It briefly sets the essay’s context. Next comes the thesis statement — our main idea. Finally, we have three supporting ideas for our thesis.

Step 4. Write your essay’s body paragraphs.

Again, a 300-word essay typically has three body paragraphs containing your three supporting ideas. Here’s how to structure a body paragraph:

Looking back at our word count plan, we know that our body paragraphs should have roughly 70 words each. Remember your word plan as you write.

Body Paragraph 1

“The Philippines boasts a diverse food culture. It reflects indigenous flavors and foreign influences, such as American, Spanish, Indian, and Chinese. Whether it’s a typical or special day, Filipinos love eating these various dishes with rice, a staple. For example, rice goes well with curry, noodles, and adobo. It is also common to see various foods like pizza, pancit, lumpia, paella, (Filipino-style) sweet spaghetti, cakes, and ice cream at parties.”

As you can see, the first sentence in this body paragraph is a topic sentence . It gives context to the paragraph and briefly summarizes it.

The second sentence explains why the Philippine food culture is considered diverse. 

The remaining sentences illustrate your main point (topic sentence) by providing examples, starting with rice in sentence 3.

Body Paragraph 2

“Traditional Filipino clothing reflects Philippine cultural heritage. Although Filipinos now conform to current fashion trends in their everyday lives, the traditional clothing style is often used during celebrations. The traditional fashion sense exhibits influences from indigenous tribes, Chinese immigration waves, the Spaniards, and Americans, portraying the chronology of Philippine historical events. For example, the Philippines’ national costume, the baro’t saya, is an elegant blend of Spanish and Filipino clothing styles. Even some modernized forms of clothing also display other global influences.”

Just like Body Paragraph 1, this paragraph follows the same structure outlined in the diagram. It proceeds from a general statement to more specific points :

• The topic sentence.
• An explanation.

Body Paragraph 3

“Family values are vital in the Philippines. The daily lives of most Filipinos revolve around close and extended family, making them known for their family-oriented lifestyle even when they’re overseas. It’s common for children to live with their parents after reaching legal age; some even stay after getting married or obtaining a job. Filipinos also cherish their extended families (aunts, uncles, grandparents, and cousins) and hanging out or celebrating significant events together.”

Once again, this paragraph follows the body paragraph structure. Now, we’re all set for the final step — the conclusion.

Step 5. Write the conclusion.

The easiest way to write a concluding paragraph for your essay on your culture is to restate your main idea and its supporting points using different words. You can even paraphrase your introduction — a time-proven method!

Let’s write the conclusion for our essay.

“Because of its history, the Philippines has a rich, diverse culture rooted in a vast heritage. Filipino cuisine is a blend of indigenous and foreign flavors. The nation’s history is reflected in its traditional clothing. And family values display a distinct Filipino trait.”

Note that this conclusion uses different words to restate the points we’ve already made, including those in the body paragraphs. 

Hope this was helpful. Now go ahead and write an essay about your culture!

Tutor Phil is an e-learning professional who helps adult learners finish their degrees by teaching them academic writing skills.

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5.8 Spotlight on … Profiling a Cultural Artifact

Learning outcomes.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

• Read in the profile genre to understand how conventions are shaped by purpose, language, culture, and expectation.
• Read one of a diverse range of texts, attending to relationships among ideas, patterns of organization, and interplay between verbal and nonverbal elements.
• Analyze a composition in relation to a specific historical and cultural context.

If you would like to profile a subject other than a person, you may be unsure of how to make such a focus work. This section features a profile of a cultural artifact and discusses how the elements of profile writing work within the piece.

First, here is some background to help you better understand the blog post: On December 7, 1941, Japanese fighter planes attacked the United States military base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, damaging or destroying more than a dozen ships and hundreds of airplanes. In direct response to this bombing and to fears that Americans of Japanese descent might spy on U.S. military installations, all Japanese immigrants and Japanese Americans living on America’s West Coast—about 120,000 men, women, and children in all—were detained in internment camps for the remainder of the war.

As you will read in the profile, people living in the camps created newspapers for fellow detainees; the subject of this profile is the newspapers themselves. Author Mark Hartsell published his profile of the newspapers, Journalism, behind Barbed Wire , on the Library of Congress blog on May 5, 2017. Look at these notes to find out how profile genre elements can work when the writer focuses on a cultural artifact such as these newspapers.

annotated text As you find when you click on the link above to visit the blog post, Hartsell uses images to show his subject to readers. Providing images can be a particularly strong choice for profiles of places or cultural artifacts. end annotated text

public domain text For these journalists, the assignment was like no other: Create newspapers to tell the story of their own families being forced from their homes, to chronicle the hardships and heartaches of life behind barbed wire for Japanese-Americans held in World War II internment camps. “These are not normal times nor is this an ordinary community,” the editors of the Heart Mountain Sentinel wrote in their first issue. “There is confusion, doubt and fear mingled together with hope and courage as this community goes about the task of rebuilding many dear things that were crumbled as if by a giant hand.” Today, the Library of Congress places online a rare collection of newspapers that, like the Sentinel , were produced by Japanese-Americans interned at U.S. government camps during the war. The collection includes more than 4,600 English- and Japanese-language issues published in 13 camps and later microfilmed by the Library. “What we have the power to do is bring these more to the public,” said Malea Walker, a librarian in the Serial and Government Publications Division who contributed to the project. “I think that’s important, to bring it into the public eye to see, especially on the 75th anniversary.… Seeing the people in the Japanese internment camps as people is an important story.” end public domain text

annotated text Although the blog places almost every sentence in its own “paragraph” for easier online readability, the first four sections function as a cohesive opening paragraph as presented here. Notice how the author supports his points with information synthesized from a variety of sources: quoted material from both the newspapers and one of the project’s curators, background, historical context, and other factual information. end annotated text

public domain text Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order that allowed the forcible removal of nearly 120,000 U.S. citizens and residents of Japanese descent from their homes to government-run assembly and relocation camps across the West—desolate places such as Manzanar in the shadow of the Sierras, Poston in the Arizona desert, Granada on the eastern Colorado plains. There, housed in temporary barracks and surrounded by barbed wire and guard towers, the residents built wartime communities, organizing governing bodies, farms, schools, libraries. They founded newspapers, too—publications that relayed official announcements, editorialized about important issues, reported camp news, followed the exploits of Japanese-Americans in the U.S. military and recorded the daily activities of residents for whom, even in confinement, life still went on. In the camps, residents lived and died, worked and played, got married and had children. One couple got married at the Tanforan assembly center in California, then shipped out to the Topaz camp in Utah the next day. Their first home as a married couple, the Topaz Times noted, was a barracks behind barbed wire in the western Utah desert. end public domain text

annotated text This section offers additional background information and information from secondary research, woven with specific details to help readers imagine the backdrop for the newspaper writing. Hartsell offers a brief overview of typical content found in these newspapers; this description indicates that he has reviewed primary documents. The section concludes with a brief anecdote to show the human face of the original camp newspaper audience. end annotated text

public domain text The internees created their publications from scratch, right down to the names. The Tule Lake camp dubbed its paper the Tulean Dispatch —a compromise between The Tulean and The Dusty Dispatch , two entries in its name-the-newspaper contest. (The winners got a box of chocolates.) Most of the newspapers were simply mimeographed or sometimes handwritten, but a few were formatted and printed like big-city dailies. The Sentinel was printed by the town newspaper in nearby Cody, Wyoming, and eventually grew a circulation of 6,000. end public domain text

annotated text After covering background and context, Hartsell turns to focus on his profile subject. He discusses specific details of naming and producing the newspapers; he also includes information about the writers and their decisions regarding newspaper content. end annotated text

public domain text Many of the internees who edited and wrote for the camp newspapers had worked as journalists before the war. They knew this job wouldn’t be easy, requiring a delicate balance of covering news, keeping spirits up and getting along with the administration. The papers, though not explicitly censored, sometimes hesitated to cover controversial issues, such as strikes at Heart Mountain or Poston. Instead, many adopted editorial policies that would serve as “a strong constructive force in the community,” as a Poston Chronicle journalist later noted in an oral history. They mostly cooperated with the administration, stopped rumors and played up stories that would strengthen morale. Demonstrating loyalty to the U.S. was a frequent theme. The Sentinel mailed a copy of its first issue to Roosevelt in the hope, the editors wrote, that he would “find in its pages the loyalty and progress here at Heart Mountain.” A Topaz Times editorial objected to segregated Army units but nevertheless urged Japanese-American citizens to serve “to prove that the great majority of the group they represent are loyal.” “Our paper was always coming out with editorials supporting loyalty toward this country,” the Poston journalist said. “This rubbed some… the wrong way and every once in a while a delegation would come around to protest.” end public domain text

annotated text People reading these newspapers in current times may be surprised that such newspapers often featured content with a focus on loyalty to the United States. While Hartsell does not dig deeply into alternative views held by internees, he does indicate that some disagreed with the emphasis on such content. Readers are often interested in learning surprising or counterintuitive information about a profile subject. end annotated text

public domain text … (section removed) end public domain text

public domain text As the war neared its end in 1945, the camps prepared for closure. Residents departed, populations shrank, schools shuttered, community organizations dissolved, and newspapers signed off with “–30–,” used by journalists to mark a story’s end. That Oct. 23, the Poston Chronicle published its final issue, reflecting on the history it had both recorded and made. “For many weeks, the story of Poston has unfolded in the pages of the Chronicle,” the editors wrote. “It is the story of people who have made the best of a tragic situation; the story of their frustrations, their anxieties, their heartaches—and their pleasures, for the story has its lighter moments. Now Poston is finished; the story is ended. And we should be glad that this is so, for the story has a happy ending. The time of anxiety and of waiting is over. Life begins again.” end public domain text

annotated text Hartsell closes with a chronological structure, concluding his piece with the closing of the internment camps and their newspapers. He allows the voices of the editors to have the last word. end annotated text

Publishing Your Profile

Because your individual profile is about someone or something related to campus, once you have developed your final draft, you may want to share your work with others at your school. Here are some suggestions:

Group Publication

One option for sharing your work is to create a class book that includes the profiles each student has written. As an alternative, each class member might contribute their own autobiographical profile in which they highlight a moment when they witnessed or enacted an admirable trait. When the individual pieces are complete, class members will work in teams to collect, compile, introduce, and produce the essay collection. The instructor or one of the class teams might compose an afterword to explain the project. The final project could be housed in the campus archives or linked on the campus website.

Campus Newspaper

Another option is to work either individually or in a small group to build on your profile about someone or something of interest to other students, faculty, or staff at your school. Check with the editor of your campus newspaper to learn whether they have suggestions for a revised angle, if needed, and whether they would be interested in publishing your completed profile.

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Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/writing-guide/pages/1-unit-introduction

• Authors: Michelle Bachelor Robinson, Maria Jerskey, featuring Toby Fulwiler
• Publisher/website: OpenStax
• Book title: Writing Guide with Handbook
• Publication date: Dec 21, 2021
• Location: Houston, Texas
• Book URL: https://openstax.org/books/writing-guide/pages/1-unit-introduction
• Section URL: https://openstax.org/books/writing-guide/pages/5-8-spotlight-on-profiling-a-cultural-artifact

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