American Multicultural Identity

The cultural diversity of the United States makes it impossible to describe American identity as homogenous or monolithic. The sense of belonging to multiple cultures and its relationship to identity are central concerns in literary works by African, Native, Asian, Latino/a, and other ethnic Americans. While some prioritize one culture over another, others emphasize the space in between, to insist on a balance between the two, or to express a feeling of being in-between, or the inability to participate in either side, as so brilliantly evoked in Sui Sin Far’s description: “I give my right hand to the Occidentals and my left to the Orientals, hoping that between them they will not utterly destroy the insignificant ‘connecting link.’”

In multicultural America, identity can be complicated, confusing, even frustrating while at the same time inspiring new perspectives, creativity, and a rich source of pride. This volume features studies of works as diverse as Sherman Alexie’s National Book Award-winning The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Gish Jen’s Mona in the Promised Land, and the lesser known but equally powerful Real Women Have Curves by Josefina Lopéz. Also offered are essays exploring cultural and historical contexts including one by Annette Harris Powell on the changing politics of hyphenation in the United States and its literature over the course of the 20th century