#164, Ethnicity
Next week in class, you will read a story that revolves around characters who struggle understanding their identity. In Skins, Mitchell Sabattis is half Native American and half Swedish. He struggles to be a "real" Indian and dealing with his split identity. His jealousy over someone he perceives to be more Indian than him, Jimmy T., eats away at him. Both characters have to ask themselves, how do my race and ethnicity affect who I am?
ethnicity n. the fact or state of belonging to a social group that has a common national or cultural tradition
South Korea is a homogenous nation with ethnic Koreans comprising 96.7% of the population. As the vast majority of the populace is Korean, ethnicity is less of a concern here than most other parts of the world. This still leaves the very difficult question—what is a “real” Korean? What does a real Korean believe in? What do they value? How do they behave? What do they look like? How do they dress? And in your mind, how closely do you match this imagined person?
To complete this Journal response, address the following:
How much of a “real” Korean do you think of yourself? Why?
Comment on a peer's response.
-Brenden Lee Teacher