Alienation in Contemporary America

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses and analyzes the books, "Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez", by Richard Rodriguez, and "White Boy Shuffle", by Paul Beatty. Specifically, it discusses the concept of alienation in the two works, as well as in the film, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines". It relates this theme to the broader theme of contemporary American history and culture. All three of these works have different views of alienation and our American culture, but they all show it exists and that we alienate other cultures by forcing them to conform to our own. The paper discusses racism, differences in language, and nuclear survival.

From the Paper:

"Rodriguez, on the other hand, used his educational opportunities to change his life, and become a voice of change to his own people. While Gunnar has made a difference with his poetry somewhat, he seems to be floundering and wasting his life, while Rodriguez is trying to help the "minority students" become mainstream students, and help people understand how public alienation can affect a person for life. His story is much more inspiring than Gunnar's, because he has done something meaningful with his life, and attempted to help others."

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